Author Note: Thanks to Dreamhare for the song suggestion! I listened to it, and it really fit well with the story. For those that want to know about this song, it's called "Comatose" by Skillet. It's pretty awesome and suits the story really well.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Break Apart

That morning, Neji awoke early with an unbearable headache, and decided to take a walk through the forest nearest the Hyuga compound. He assumed the headache was from his lack of sleep the night before, and that was only because of the thoughts overwhelming his mind. He had so many thoughts plaguing him as of late and getting out of the confines of the compound seemed to be a good way to help calm himself.

As he walked aimlessly through the dense forest, he didn't stop until he realized where he had ended up. Gazing around, his emotionless features took in the clearing around him. The pond was just ahead of him bringing back all the memories of his childhood. His feet unwillingly led him to the pond's edge where he gazed out across its motionless surface. The pond could almost be considered frozen, and that only reminded him of another lost memory.

It was as if he could see his younger figure out on the icy pond holding onto a wobbly childish Hinata. They wore constant smiles back then, and they showed their love for each other without a care in the world. Unknowingly, his face formed into one of morose feeling.

Shaking his memories away, he walked back over toward the edge of the clearing with the clear intention to leave. However, something caught his attention from the base of another tree. He glanced over and set his eyes onto a small patch of yellow flowers. Winter Jasmine…His feet once again pulled him towards the flowers until he was kneeling down in front of them. His fingers stroked over the petals and he could remember so clearly the immense look of happiness little Hinata had when he had showed them to her on her birthday. Her four-year-old face appeared from his memories with that smile she used to always wear. "N-Neji-kun…"

He reached out further and plucked one of the flowers from its stem, and stood up to stare nostalgically at it. How was it that time had changed so much? Why was it that they had changed so much? Regretfully, he knew it wasn't really Hinata who changed, but rather himself. He knew he couldn't simply go back in time to erase his mistakes, so he had to start changing now. Heh…easier said than done. The truth was Neji found it hard to change. It wasn't that simple to ignore his constant desire for Hinata's mere presence. It would be immensely difficult to stop treating her like a possession, which came so natural to him.

No, there was no way he could even hope for a split-second change; it would have to be gradual. He was only human, after all. Even so…I don't want anyone to have Hinata. She belongs to me—she's mine. It's been like that ever since we were little, and she never looked like she cared, so…Now that she's dating Naruto, does that mean she doesn't want to be mine anymore?

"Neji-sama?" a quiet voice sounded just next to him startling him from his train of thought.

He glanced over and watched as Hinata approached him warily. "Hinata…"

She smiled waveringly. "Um…T-Tenten-san and Lee-san h-have arrived at the compound for your training."

Neji's eyebrows furrowed. "Why? We usually just meet up at our training grounds."

"Y-Yes…but…" she gulped and suddenly found her feet very interesting. "They s-said that y-you had agreed to t-training at the compound this morning."

Neji raised a brow in confusion and was about to open his mouth to oppose that statement when he remembered something. He nearly wanted to hang himself for not paying that much attention the night before at their dinner. He had agreed to something assuming it was just another training session, not one where they elected his home to train at. He cursed under his breath and moved toward her. "Damn it."

Hinata remained silent for a few moments until she looked under her thick lashes at the patch of familiar yellow flowers just behind Neji. Her eyes widened in recognition and she smiled faintly in remembrance. She began to walk over to the flowers as if Neji was no longer present. It wasn't until she was kneeling down near the flowers did she start whispering only audible to him. "Winter Jasmine…right, Neji-sama?" she stroked the velvet petals and heard a grunt of acknowledgment come from the man standing a few feet from her. She smiled wider. "They're so strong…surviving through the heat of summer…and the freezing cold of winter…it's as if they never whither away…"

Neji gazed down at her with an unreadable expression and eventually tore his gaze away to stare at the flower in his hand. It's as if she's describing herself. "Never whither away" huh? His far-off gaze turned into a regretful frown. "Until they're broken."

Hinata met his gaze and they matched each other's sorrowful expressions.

Neji's mouth quirked bitterly. "Then they have no choice but to whither and die."

Hinata stood and broke away her gaze to stare at the flower in his grasp.

His voice had become a whisper as well, and only partially realized that they were no longer talking just about the flowers anymore. "And by then…you wish you had never broken it in the first place."

Hearing this, Hinata stared at the ground below her feet. Her lips quivered and she could feel the tears stinging her eyes. "Were they not…broken for a reason?" she breathed.

Neji faced her even though she wasn't looking at him anymore, and he closed the gap of distance between them until he was only a few inches away from her face. Her head was bowed, and he was allowed to inhale the fragrance of her hair. "Yes," he answered her. "A very selfish reason."

Hinata sniffed and blinked away her tears furiously. She nearly gasped when she felt Neji's hand rest against her cheek with a gentleness she had almost forgotten he possessed. Slowly, she looked upward to meet his regretful eyes. Neji didn't say anything and only stared into her eyes intensely. When his thumb began to caress her cheek, Hinata involuntarily closed her eyes as if to relish this rare type of touch.

She inhaled a shaky breath, and willed herself to back away from him. When there was enough distance between them, Neji dropped his hand back to his side in disappointment, and Hinata inched her eyes open. Her eyes shifted away from his, and she tried to smile, as weak as it was. "W-We should go, Neji-sama. Y-You wouldn't want to keep y-your teammates waiting."

Neji inhaled deeply and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his facial cast had returned to his typical stoicism. "Let us go then."

The walk back to the compound had been silent, especially with Hinata staying a few feet behind her superior, and Neji lost in his own thoughts once again while trying to ignore his throbbing head. When they approached the gates, the branch member, who was the gate guardian, bowed respectfully to the Hyuga heir. "Neji-sama, welcome back."

Neji nodded and continued to walk past him in order to enter the compound.

When Hinata was passing by the guard, she smiled warmly and waved. "G-Good morning, Hanashi-san."

The guard named Hanashi gave Hinata an admiring smile. "Morning, Hinata-san."

Hanashi was only five years older than Hinata, but he wasn't the only branch member who favored the young woman. In fact, very few Hyugas even knew how well Hinata got along with her side of the family. She was constantly smiling around her fellow branch servants as if she was their beacon of hope in some way.

"H-How's your wife doing?"

The young man beamed. "She's getting bigger! She should be due here pretty soon. You should come visit her. She's less moody when you're around."

Hinata giggled. "I will."

He winked teasingly. "I'll hold you to that."

Hinata nodded and smiled once more before making her way into the courtyard of the compound, where Neji was standing in front of his teammates. The hallways around the courtyard were empty either due to most of the Hyugas sleeping or off training somewhere.

Passing by Neji and his team, Hinata headed for the kitchen.

Neji glared at his two teammates with an animosity they were quite familiar with. Tenten was the first to speak. "Man, you must've really been out of it last night if you can't remember that we all decided to come here to train."

Lee was next and spoke with enthusiasm. "Gai-sensei said he would not be with us today, so we must train with each other!"

"Yes," Neji hissed. "Train with each other, but why the hell did you decide to train here?"

"You agreed to it, Neji-kun." Tenten smiled.

He faced away and grumbled under his breath. "Unknowingly…"

Lee, not really hearing their last remarks, chose to answer Neji's previous question. "The training grounds are occupied today. Gai-sensei said it would be better if we trained where we would not be interrupted!"

Neji resisted the urge to roll his eyes, but Tenten didn't pause to roll hers. The Hyuga heir sighed and massaged his temples. "Whatever. Let's just get this over and done with, so you two can leave."

The green-clad teen pumped his fist into the air. "We shall train with every ounce of youthful energy we have and more! Let us begin!"

Tenten laughed and looped her arm in Neji's. "Maybe if we wear him out, he'll leave me and you to train alone." She gazed up at him lustfully.

Neji inwardly sneered. For once, he was unbelievably thankful that Lee was not the type to get weary with his insurmountable amounts of "youthful" energy.

Hinata's temporary smile had faded as she was currently in the kitchen preparing tea for Neji and his team. It was still early morning, and she wasn't expected to train with her team until later. After training, she had promised to spend time with Naruto, her best—boyfriend. He was her boyfriend now, not just her best friend. Remembering that fact, Hinata's eyebrows lowered and she gazed solemnly at the three cups of hot tea in front of her. Why doesn't it feel right to be with Naruto-kun? I thought I was going to stop hurting once I began dating Naruto-kun, but…it still hurts so much.

Her hand lifted up to clench the space over her heart. "Sister!" a loud voice interrupted Hinata's quiet moment alerting her to someone else's presence. She looked over in time to see a dark blur run into her.

"H-Hanabi-chan…"

Hanabi wrapped her arms around Hinata's waist and tightened her embrace before pulling away to smile at her older sister. "What are you doing, Hina-chan?"

Hinata gave her a soft smile. "Making Neji-sama his tea."

"Oh, yeah, I saw him and his team out there in the courtyard." She held her finger to her lip as if she was in deep thinking.

Hinata giggled and took notice of Hanabi's training attire. "Were you training as well, Hanabi-chan?"

The younger sister blinked once before nodding her head fervently. "Yup! Just got done training with father. Although…" she pouted her lips. "I have to go train with him again this afternoon." Hanabi looked up at Hinata when she heard her laughing softly. "It's not funny, Hina-chan! It's no fair that he doesn't train you constantly!"

Once she stopped laughing, Hinata stroked Hanabi's hair affectionately. "That's because I have my own team to train with. Don't worry, Hanabi-chan, you'll get assigned a team in a few years."

"That's too long…" she grumbled and began to rummage through the fridge looking for something to eat.

Hinata only smiled again and picked up the small tray of tea to take out to the courtyard.

Tenten was hunched over breathing heavily with her weapons strewn about her. As she was panting for air, she continued to watch her two male teammates spar together. To anyone watching, it was a decent fight. Of course, it wasn't anything new to Tenten, but that didn't stop her from inwardly cheering on her favorite teammate.

While Tenten had tired out awhile ago, Lee continued his determined assault on Neji. The Hyuga heir fought against Lee with nothing more than his usual stoic expression. Although, if one looked closely, there were a few visible beads of sweat on his brow. Honestly, Neji was completely surprised that Lee was tiring him out this soon. Usually, Neji would be able to fight on for a good while since his stamina was excellent, but this training session just wasn't the same.

He and Lee had been going at it for awhile, not really fighting to win, but to practice various movements and tactics. Even so, Neji was breathing hard, his head was pounding, and every now and then his vision would get blurry before he had to blink in order to clear it away. Unbeknownst to his teammates, Neji had stopped spinning around as much as he usually did all because he was now getting dizzy from it for some odd reason. This confused the young Hyuga and also worried him a little. What the hell is going on with me today?

Hinata walked down the hallway with her tray in hand. She didn't look over at the team training, and instead moved to rest the tray gently down onto the wooden floor nearest the courtyard. Once everything was set out, she stood back up and took a quick glance at the two young men sparring. She was about to turn away when something seemed a little off. Hinata had seen Neji train many times, but for some reason, he seemed…less agile, like he was distracted or something. Blinking a few times, she turned away to head towards the kitchen again.

It was at that time, that Neji caught sight of Hinata walking down the hallway. Normally, a quick glance somewhere else wouldn't have mattered when he was training, but today just wasn't his day. In that moment his eyes strayed away from his opponent, Lee landed a kick to Neji's gut sending him flying back a few feet and knocking him unconscious. Tenten immediately stood up with wide eyes that matched Lee's equally surprised face. "Neji!" they simultaneously yelled running towards their fallen comrade.

Hinata, hearing their call of alarm, speedily turned around to see what had happened. Seeing him lying still on the ground made her gasp in utter concern. Neji! Without hesitance, she ran into the courtyard center and sped towards Neji's body.

Tenten shook Neji's shoulders. "Neji! Hey, Neji! Wake up!" When she got no response, she turned on Lee. "What the hell did you do that for?"

Lee waved his hands in front of him defensively. "I thought Neji would have seen it coming and dodged it! He has always dodged my hits before!"

Tenten opened her mouth to yell at Lee again, but Hinata rushed passed them and kneeled next to Neji's form. She bent over resting her ear against his chest listening to his heartbeat as an instinct. It was beating somewhat slow, but nothing too worrisome. She lifted up and cupped his face in her small hands. Hinata bent over again and touched her forehead to his. Normally, she would've blushed at initiating such close proximity, but none of that occurred to her. She just wanted to make sure he was okay, and she had never been so grateful for learning medical basics.

"Hinata-chan," Tenten knelt next to Hinata with a mix of emotions on her face. She expressed her concern freely, but her eyes gave away that small twinge of jealousy she was feeling despite herself. "Is he okay?"

Without even glancing at Tenten, Hinata backed up onto her heels while her hands continued to brush across his face. "I think he's o-okay…but…h-he has a fever."

"I did not realize Neji was ill!" Lee exclaimed.

"Neither did I. He seemed alright when we started training." Tenten added.

Hinata nodded. "W-We need to g-get him to his r-room…so he can lay down."

Immediately, Lee took action and leaned down to haul Neji up. One of Neji's arms went around Lee's neck, and the other around Tenten's neck. The two teammates supported his weight and began to follow Hinata towards the main branch of the Hyuga household. She located his bedroom with ease, opened the door to let them through, and went over to the bed to pull back the covers.

After setting Neji's body onto the bed, Hinata took over and removed his shoes before situating him under the covers of his bed. She made sure he was comfortable before turning to face the rest of Team Gai. "Th-Thank you for h-helping."

Lee smiled widely. "It was no problem! We were glad to assist you, Hinata-chan!"

Tenten smacked his head. "Shut up, Lee. Geez, you're loud." She sighed and smiled uncertainly at Hinata. "We should get going since training is over, I guess."

Hinata nodded with a comforting smile. "D-Don't worry, N-Neji-sama will be fine."

Tenten nodded and stared between Hinata and Neji suspiciously before turning around to leave with Lee following her closely.

With a chair set up next to Neji's bedside, Hinata sat down and dampened a cloth in a bowl of water next to her. She removed his forehead protector before placing the wet cloth in its place. His breathing was labored and his eyebrows knotted together. Seeing his face contorted like that made Hinata frown in worry.

She scooted closer to his bedside and brushed the back of her hand against his face feeling its warmth. With her hand back to its side, she then noticed how his own hands were fisted into his bed sheets. Hinata absently rested her hand over his in an attempt to soothe him. Surprising to her, it did manage to calm him slightly. His hand relaxed from his tight fist, and Hinata gently slid her hand into his own. For only a second, she was holding his motionless hand until his fingers began to curl around her hand in an accepting grip.

Seeing his movement, she startled thinking she had woken him, but one look at his sleeping face proved otherwise. She exhaled a breath of relief and focused her attention back onto their adjoined hands. For a moment, her eyes glazed over as she lifted his hand to her face. Her lips left a whisper of a touch across the back of his hand before she rested her cheek to that same part. Her eyes closed serenely with a sigh. "Neji…"

"H-Hinata…"

Her eyes snapped open and shot directly to Neji's face. His eyelids were opening slowly and stopped halfway once he was able to make out her figure and, most importantly, her face. "N-Neji-sama…"

His voice was hoarse. "What happened…?"

Hinata released his hand and moved to re-wet the cloth and place it back onto his forehead. "Lee-san knocked y-you out…but, I think you m-might've been sick before that…"

"Hn." His tired eyes never left her face. "I thought it was just a headache."

"No…you have a fever." She replied as she finished situating the cloth so it wouldn't irritate him. "I-It's not too bad…y-you'll be fine by tomorrow, I think."

He closed his eyes in acceptance. He felt her fingers moving away from his face, so he quickly grasped onto her wrist making her jump in surprise.

"N-Neji-sama?"

"Don't…" he whispered holding onto her hand once again and laying their entwined hands above his stomach. "Don't call me that."

"But, I have to Neji—"

"No…not when we're alone, Hinata. When we're alone," he coughed to clear his throat. "I'm not the heir, and you're not a servant."

Hinata gazed at him blankly at first, but then gave him a small smile. "Like when we were children?"

He smirked unnoticeably in remembrance of those days. "No…because we are not children anymore, Hinata. We make our own choices now."

She could tell that he definitely had something on his mind, but what?

"Hinata…tell me why." He murmured in a low whisper.

Her eyes narrowed in confusion. "Why what?"

Neji met her eyes with a stare of ardent desire. "Why are you with Naruto?"

Her eyes widened in shock. "Y-You know?"

"Yes. Lee and Tenten told me yesterday…before I talked to Naruto." After his statement, he could feel her hand tremble in his own. No doubt she was assuming the worst now, so he decided to reassure her. "I didn't fight him, if that's what you're thinking."

Hinata relaxed, but now she was curious. "W-Why did you t-talk to h-him?"

"To find out just why the hell you suddenly accepted his romantic advancements towards you." His voice was now harsh and bitter causing the younger Hyuga to flinch and look elsewhere. "He told me, but I want to hear it from you. I need to know if your reason is true."

She stayed silent just staring dazedly at their hands, which were still connected despite where their conversation had drifted.

"Well?" he persisted with earnest.

She shut her eyes tightly closed and urged herself to keep her tears at bay. She bit her lip before inhaling deeply and beginning to speak lowly. "N-Naruto-kun…loves me."

"Do you feel the same way?" he sneered through clenched teeth.

She shook her head still avoiding his gaze. "I don't…love him the way he wants me to. I…love him…only as a friend."

"All I ever was to Hina-chan was her best friend. That's all she ever intended me to be." He could hear Naruto's voice perfectly in his memory."Then why…?"

She met his eyes then and her tears streamed down her cheeks unwillingly. Her smile was weak and shaky as she squeezed his hand softly. "I don't think Naruto-kun…will hurt me."

So, that was it huh? His eyes narrowed in speculation as he thought back on Naruto's most important words the night before. "She said she didn't want to hurt anymore…"

I'm hurting her…

"She believed that you two were 'meant to be', but something's changed…"

I changed…

"You broke something in Hinata!"

Her trust in me…

"So, what did you do to her?"

His silver eyes locked onto her almost identical ones. "I treated you like you were just a possession." He paused. "That's how I hurt you…right? That's why you accepted him."

More tears poured from her eyes as she nodded. "…Yes…"

He sighed heavily. "Then the idiot was right. It is my fault."

"Neji—"

He grunted and held up his hand to stop her. "Not now. We'll finish this later, Hinata."

She tilted her head in question and was about to question him, but a knock sounded at the door. Neji motioned for her to answer it, and she obeyed.

Upon opening the door, she came face-to-face with one of the gate guards. "H-Hanashi-san,"

He was smiling for a second, but it died away once he fully noticed her tear-stained cheeks. "Hinata-san, what's wrong?"

She wiped away her tears furiously and attempted to smile at him. "It-It's nothing. D-Did you need something, Hanashi-san?"

"Huh? Oh yeah. Your team is waiting for you at the gate." He glanced behind her at the expressionless face of the Hyuga heir. Hanashi bowed. "Neji-sama, I apologize for interrupting."

Neji merely nodded and faced away from the two, even though he was still listening.

Hanashi watched as her eyes darted side to side in indecisive thought. "Do you want me to tell them you can't make it today?"

"N-No, that's alright…I'll do it." She turned around to face Neji and bowed. "Excuse me, Neji-sama." She stood straight again and left the room with Hanashi walking next to her.

Once they were a good distance from the main branch side of the house, Hanashi nudged her. "Are you sure you're okay, Hinata-san?"

"I-I'm fine, Hanashi-san."

"You were crying."

"It's nothing important."

They were getting closer to the gate now, and Hanashi cleared his throat in obvious discomfort. "Did…Did Neji-sama do something to make you cry?"

"No…it's fine, Hanashi-san. Really, I'm okay."

He nodded even though he clearly was still suspicious. "Hinata-san, there's something I wanted to ask you."

"What is it?"

He scratched the back of his head. "Uh, I heard some rumors going around the compound. I didn't want to believe them until I talked to you personally."

"R-Rumors?"

"Yeah…about you and Neji-sama."

Her heart stopped for a second before beginning to beat rapidly. "What a-about?"

He shrugged. "Something about you two…uh…being closer than a main house member and a branch servant should be."

"Closer…?" she whispered.

"Yeah, you know…romantically closer. Is that true?" he asked analyzing her face carefully.

Hinata schooled her features to one of absolutely no expression at all. "No, it's not."

Hanashi snorted. "I thought as much. I knew you wouldn't fall in love with someone like Neji-sama. He's not your type. Not to mention that it wouldn't be allowed." Now he was smiling. "You need someone who's more like you. Kind, sweet, caring, quiet…stuff like that."

Hinata inwardly laughed. Well, that rules out Naruto-kun and Neji-sama. "Hanashi-san, where did you…um…hear those rumors from?"

He smirked sheepishly, "Well, it's only something a few Hyugas heard about. I heard it from my uncle, who's one of the elders."

"H-He told you?"

"No," he laughed. "He was talking about it with another elder, and I…overheard."

"Oh." Hinata laughed lightly.

"Well, that's what I get for eavesdropping. The rumors are never true when you eavesdrop."

Hinata lowered her gaze to the ground as they walked. Not always…

"Hinata-chan!" Kiba shouted from the gate's entrance once she came into view. Akamaru barked and Shino nodded in greeting.

Hinata smiled at her teammates and met them just outside the gate.

"You ready to go, Hinata-chan?"

"Um…actually, Kiba-kun…" she smiled. "I c-can't train today."

"What? Why not?" the dog lover looked completely disappointed.

Shino regarded her curiously. "Is something wrong?"

"No, no. Well…N-Neji-sama is sick, so…as his caretaker…"

"Ah, man! That's no fair!"

Shino ignored Kiba's complaining and nodded to Hinata in understanding. "It's alright, Hinata-chan. We'll train again tomorrow."

"Thank you, Shino-kun, Kiba-kun."

The team separated with waves and apologies before Hinata faced Hanashi again. "Hanashi-san, can you do me a favor?"

"Of course, Hinata-san, what do you need?"

"Um, w-would you be able to get a medical-nin here?"

"For Neji-sama?"

"Yes." She paused. "I don't think it's serious, but…"

Hanashi patted her shoulder. "Better to get it checked out anyway, right?"

"Yes."

"Got it. I'll have someone else switch spots with me while I go do that."

"Thank you so much, Hanashi-san." She bowed in appreciation.

"Don't worry about it." He laughed. "Anything for you, Hinata-san."

Hinata took a deep breath before slowly opening the door to Neji's bedroom. As soon as she closed the door behind her, she bravely met eyes with the young heir. Neji was sitting up in his bed now looking at her sternly. Hinata bowed her head in respect. "Neji-sama, a med-nin will be here shortly to check on you."

"There's no point." He spoke up appearing somewhat agitated. "You said yourself that it's not that serious. I just have a small fever, right?"

"Y-Yes, but…b-better to get it checked out anyway…"

"Hn." His lips tightened into a thin line at the same time he turned his head to gaze out of the window.

Seeing his attention elsewhere for the moment, Hinata took another deep breath and walked over quietly to sit in the chair next to his bed. I'm his caretaker, this is my job. I'll ask him if he needs anything, he'll say no, and I'll be dismissed. She chanted to herself as she sat down. I just hope this goes as smoothly as it usually does… "Um…Neji-sama,"

His face snapped back to hers with a deep scowl dominating his features. He didn't even have to say anything in order for her to get the hint.

Hinata winced at first, but finally realized why he was glaring at her like that. She didn't need to glance around to know that they were alone again, and he did expect her not to call him what she did when they were around others. She inwardly sighed and exhaled deeply to calm her heart rate. "N-Neji…" she applauded herself for not adding on the honorific like she had been trained to do for years. "Um…do you need anything?"

It was true that Neji appeared satisfied when she said his name the way he always wanted her to say it, but after hearing her question he looked more thoughtful. "Actually…yes."

Hinata's eyes widened at hearing his answer. That would've been the first time in awhile he said 'yes' to that same question. It was shocking.

Neji waited until she was looking at him before he began to speak again. "I know you were telling the truth about why you accepted Naruto, but that wasn't the entire truth, was it?" he paused watching her withdraw into herself. "You don't want to be hurt anymore. That's your main reason for doing what you did, but there's another reason besides that. I want to know what it is."

The young woman gulped and fidgeted with her fingers. "H-How did you—"

"Know?" he finished for her. "Don't insult me, Hinata. I've known you for years—better than anyone you've ever met, better than Naruto knows you. I'm an expert when it comes to reading people's movements to figure out what they're hiding. But I don't have to look at your movements to know that there's another reason."

Hinata stopped fidgeting and met his gaze evenly.

Neji's mouth quirked into a soft smirk. "It's written in your eyes. I can see regret, sorrow, loneliness, and…a determination of sorts. It's the determination in you that led me to believe there's a deeper meaning to what you're doing."

In reality, Hinata shouldn't have been as shocked as she was. She always knew how great Neji was when it came to reading people, and she had always been an open book to him. He wasn't bragging when he said that he knew her better than anyone else, for it was completely true. It's just as true as how well Hinata knew him. Nobody can read Neji's eyes when he puts his guard up, but he seemed to always have a hard time keeping it up when Hinata was with him. That was why she was always able to read the emotions swirling in his silvery depths.

What broke her heart was that she saw his main emotion of regret and apology in his eyes. It was no longer the lustful wanting gaze she was used to for awhile. It was an enlightened look…a painfully enlightened look.

"So, tell me, Hinata." He began again swinging his legs over the side of the bed and pushing the covers away from his body. His own knees were barely an inch away from hers, and he made sure that her eyes didn't stray from his. "Why else did you turn away from me?"

Her heart was racing and her lips were trembling. There was no doubt about it. She had to tell him, but…what would he think? Would he be okay with it? Would he understand her reasoning? Would he go along with it? There was only one way to find out. "Because I…I…you…"

"What?" he whispered.

Hinata gulped again, and was about to look away when his hand cupped her cheek to keep her still. His gaze was even more intense now causing her to close her eyes momentarily. When she opened them again, she appeared just as stern as Neji. "Neji…I'm not going to be the reason for you losing any power to the elders." She didn't stammer or stutter. She was surprisingly serious. "If they know you are with me before you become clan head, then they will find ways to take some of your power away from you. If—If the elders h-have any power w-when you turn eighteen…then…you won't be able to change the Hyuga for the better."

Neji released his hold on her face and backed up in understanding. "So…you're not only dating Naruto to avoid being hurt again or being treated like my possession, but it's also a way for the elders and everyone else to assume that there is nothing between us anymore. Is that right?"

"B-Basically."

He nodded slowly. "Normally, I would not allow this to go on any longer. You may not be my possession, but I do firmly believe that you belong to—with me." He leaned forward to hold onto her jaw to make sure she was paying complete attention to him. "I'm not going to allow anyone else to have you, but me. I'll let you continue this scheme of yours, and I'll even participate a little, but be warned Hinata." He paused. "No one, not even the elders, have the power to take you away from me. When I become head of the Hyuga, I will claim you. Not Naruto, not any other foolish boy in this village…only me. Understand?"

Hinata nodded her head fearfully. "Yes." She breathed.

"Good. Until then…" He smirked. "I'll let Naruto think he's won you over."

Okay, let me get a few things straight. First of all, you might be a little confused with Neji's behavior. Just when you start thinking he's changed, a little of his old self pops back up into the picture. I do this for a reason. Neji is human. Humans don't just change out of the blue and all of a sudden. They have to change gradually and through different experiences. Neji is changing for the better, but there are certain things going on that is keeping him from changing completely. For example, Hinata not belonging to him because of the elders' threat. Okay enough rambling. Any more questions, message me. Please review!