A/N - For Neon, who sobbed for chapters. Hopefully they didn't sob for weeks cuz like I'm super late.
I had this ready for you for a bit, I just posted it now. My b homie.
Let's get started.
DISCLAIMER - I do not own Naruto
When I woke up, it wasn't in the morning. Actually, as my vision began to blur from parting, I was met with darkness besides the brightness of the moon's ray that slithered it's way past the cracks of my black curtains. I wasn't sure what time it was, or why my eyes were even open, but the slight throb in my head and the foggy way my mind slurred the simplest things into comprehension helped me realize it was all too soon for me to be awake.
But I was.
And beside me, I felt a dip within my bed.
Incredibly, my heart didn't hammer in fear. Instead, almost calmly, I rolled over to whoever my mistake was tonight.
And was surprised to see shadow red hair and tired brown eyes.
The second I caught the surprised gaze, they shifted away.
"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you up."
The mumbling was soothing, soft and rough at the same time. My eyes adjusted to the movements, covers being tugged up carefully before more weight was applied to my bed.
Blinking sleepily, I curled towards the extra warmth, my hands instantly slipping across soft skin and equally soft cloth of a shirt. And without thinking, I pulled that warmth closer, "Tayuya…"
Her hum in response spurred a pool of warmth within my stomach. Smile slipping my lips, I curled within her more while mumbling my lips across her shoulder, "You stayed."
"Mm, I did." She hummed again, but made no further comment or movement. She simply laid on her back, eyes open and staring at the ceiling.
I didn't like it, how it seemed she was right next to me but far away at the same time. So I dragged my hand to her neck, tugging her to look at me. She complied, turning her tired eyes to me. Watching her, I asked quietly, "Where did you go?"
"I was out there… deciding if I should stay or not." She muttered, holding my eyes steady for three long seconds before dipping her eyes away, "I didn't mean to wake you up."
"You stayed," I stated again in a whisper, but it held more meaning now. Knowing she could have left, that I could be stirring awake alone, seemed to change something. Scratching her neck lightly, I carefully asked, "Why?"
Her brown eyes flickered back to me before flashing away. It took a moment for her to answer before she quietly stated, "Because I wanted to…"
And something about that brought a smile to my lips. Slightly pulling at her neck, I was able to drag her gaze back to me. I watched her, the way she steadily watched me, for a few seconds. And she allowed me to, knowing what I was doing. Digging. Chipping away. Searching for whatever was on her mind. Yet she didn't pull away once.
So I pulled myself close to her with the grip at her neck as my gentle anchor, and I brushed my lips across her jawline as I kissed her lightly, whispering the only thing I could give to show my gratitude, "I'm glad."
She sighed heavily and pulled my hand away, but instead of shrugging away to get distance, she merely laced her fingers with mine. And what could only be described as a nuzzle, she ran her cheek across mine and muttered, "Good. I survive off of your happiness."
That only made me smiled even more before falling fast asleep.
X
When I woke again, It was morning. My head was screeching with pain and my mouth felt like a desert. Strange, because I honestly didn't remember drinking that much last night, but I guess after a certain point the amount you drink slowly becomes foggy. Just like my memories.
What I was sure of was Tayuya had stayed last night... So why did my bed feel empty and my back felt cold...
It only took seconds to comprehend.
She had left...
Despite that, a smile pulled my lips, because deep down I wasn't sightly surprised. Her staying the night was far fetched to begin with. Realizing she wasn't there was like stepping within reality. In all honesty, I might have dreamed of the whole thing to begin with.
It was my fault, if I had wanted her to stay I would have played my cards right but I remember reaching the lowest amount of fucks last night. Of course after all that, she wouldn't have stuck around. Yet, laying here in my cold bed, I felt a degree of emptiness.
My heart clenched.
I honestly wished it was all real...
But I wouldn't mope about it, I forced myself not to. Because after all that I've been through, I knew better. So instead, I blanked last night out completely, and slowly attempted to block out all of my feelings that were as harsh as the light attacking my eyes. It didn't matter. It never did.
Instead, I focused on my treatment for this hangover.
Coffee, an aspirin, and laying in bed without any noise would fix everything.
So I moved. Mechanically. Like a robot. Because over the last couple of days that's how I felt. Sakura hadn't come back like she said she would, I could almost bet on my life she hadn't bothered to text me or call, and if I didn't make an obvious effort on my own she probably wouldn't stop by again today.
And how else was I supposed to handle all of that but pretending I didn't feel a thing.
Because, even as everything was happening, I wanted her to come back.
Fuck it, never mind.
I don't care, I never did.
This was just another morning, another day of class that I wouldn't be making it to.
Nothing had changed, nothing will change.
Repeat and breathe. Repeat, and believe.
Yet, why when I kept saying it to myself over and over as I poured my coffee, I felt this stabbing in my fucking chest.
I pushed it out as I brought my mug to my lips carefully.
Only for the thoughts to pull back to my mind.
A constant battle I was prepared to fight all day if I had to.
And that's when my door opened.
With Tayuya there with two cups in her hand and a brown bag bitten between her teeth.
She seemed startled to see me standing in there in the kitchen, and I was just as surprised to see her there as the door closed.
Walking to the nearest counter, she put the cups down and took the bag from her mouth that covered her frown, "You're up early." I just watched her, unable to think of anything to say. "Thought you would still be in bed," she continued to mumble, seeming troubled.
Finally, I managed to force out, "What are you doing here?"
She frowned again, "What do you mean? I just went out to get coffee for you... But I didn't know how many creamers and sugars you liked so... I got you pumpkin spice."
Even as she explained herself, I was confused. From here, with my own coffee in my hand that I hadn't bothered to put anything in, she looked nervous. Nervous over the simple fact that she didn't know how many creamers and sugars I liked. Not nervous over the fact of what happened, not nervous over the fact that I literally had a t shirt on with nothing, completely nothing, underneath or anything for bottoms. And here she stood.
Nervous.
About coffee.
I shook my head slightly in disbelief, but even that small movement made me wince as I felt the swirl of the hangover begin to stir. Tayuya shifted almost out of reaction, digging through the brown paper bag she had placed on the counter and pulling out a case of pills.
"Here, I wasn't sure if you had any, so I grabbed some Aspirin.
My eyes narrowed again, not with pain but with absolute confusion as I watched her and asked again, "Tayuya, what are you doing here?"
Her frown pulled deeply, "I told you, I just went out to grab coffee."
"I just," I said slowly, placing my mug down as I struggled to get out the words, "I just honestly thought you left. Figured I wouldn't hear from you for awhile."
"Why?" She asked, shaking her own head, "Because of last night?"
"Yes," I answered, as if it were obvious.
"Well, even though that fucked me up, it wasn't enough to have me running for the hills," she replied with a grimace. "Look, I'm sorry I wasn't here when you woke up. I thought that would send the wrong message, but I figured you getting the hangover under control was more important than me getting to see you open your eyes first thing in the morning."
I simply stood there, not able to comprehend at all.
Sighing, she grabbed one of the cups from the counter and walked over to me. Forcing me to take it, and eyed me intently until I took a sip, she reached over to my mug and lifted it to her nose with a sniff causing me to frown. She merely shrugged, "I had to be sure."
"I'm not that insane," I grumbled, taking another sip of my new coffee because I couldn't resist the burst of sweetness it brought to my mouth.
"The concept of fighting a hangover with more alcohol is a solid theory, wouldn't make you crazy," she replied with a shrug before placing it back down, "How is it? Good?"
She was close, standing merely inches away, and from where she towered I could sense her uneasiness. Something about it made a smile slip my lips, "What are you so antsy for?"
"I mean, I remember getting you pumpkin spice before when we first met, but you had never really said anything about it. So, I wasn't sure..." She explained with her eyes falling between us.
I bit my lip to hide another smile that wanted to pull through, "You remember that? Back when you were doing everything against my will."
She snorted, "It was me being nice."
"Weird way of showing it," I joked, sighing as I placed my cup down, "So..."
"So," she repeated, eyes catching mine again with intensity that curled my stomach into a floating ball, "How about you take those pills, eat the greasiest bready thing I could find on my run, and finish your coffee in bed with me?"
I was caught off guard, because I was sure she would want to talk about last night. Eyes pulling away from hers, I tried to fight past the clench in my chest that ran to my throat.
"Or if you're up to it, we can skip the meal until later," she continued, catching my eyes with a tilt of her head, "But you have to take the pills now."
She was whispering, soothingly, in a way that washed every feeling of misery I had just minutes earlier away. But it didn't run whatever was stuck in my throat down. So I swallowed, muttering, "What are you doing, Tayuya?"
"Telling you what I want," she answered, watching me carefully, "It's too early for you to be out of bed, and I want to be there with you. So... please?"
This new thing she was doing, these little begging pleas she was starting to pull out, was heart stopping. It was something I hadn't built a tolerance for. And I couldn't even fathom saying other than, "Okay..."
"Yeah?" Her smile pulled slowly, only slightly tugging the left corner of her lip, but I could see it. And it felt like my own little smile, something only I could have, and something about that made me want to keep it for myself.
"Yeah," I repeated with a small nod.
Pleased, she stepped away from me, but I didn't want her any further from me than she already was. So I caught her shirt, looking away as she glanced at me curiously. But she caught my eyes again, and I saw that little smile reserved for me appear for the second time in a row. "Pills. That was the deal. Right?"
A burn was starting to wash over my cheeks, "Alright."
"I'm not going anywhere," she assured, as if she knew me.
As if she knew, before even I realized, that I had panicked for a split second. That I had reached out to her to ensure she wouldn't leave.
So with beat between us, her ensuring I was alright and me attempting to hide my embarrassment, she took only the amount of steps necessary to grab the pills within arm reach, and smiled when she returned, showing she had made it back from her 'long' journey.
I couldn't help but laugh a little, taking the bottle when it was handed to me and took the pills she was insisting I take with her focused eyes. Afterwards, she took my hand and said with a nod, "Good, now bed time."
When we finally both climbed into bed, her holding me and my eyes closed as I was enveloped within the silence around us, she broke it all with a quiet question.
"Ino... Do you have feelings for me?"
My heart stopped; for what reason, I didn't know. Up until now, I never admitted it to myself. Maybe once or twice my thoughts brushed across it, but never out loud. And in all actuality, it was obvious. How way my chest ached when I woke up without her there this morning, the way I couldn't stand us being quiet for too long after a fight, how I always worried about if she was sleeping or not. The jealousy. The irate anger when I felt like I was being second placed by Sari, of all people. And that distant smile she gave to me whenever our fights were lasting too long that always made my heart crack into two.
Of course I had feelings for her.
But the way she asked...
"Why?" I mumbled, heart thudding nervously.
"Because depending on your answer, how things play out from here will be a lot different," she said without hesitation, with all the confidence that I didn't have.
It sounded like some dark promise whispered against my ear as we laid together.
Biting my lip, I stalled.
When the silence stretched for longer than it should have, she went on quietly, "It's a yes or no, Ino. I've got to hear it."
Curling deeper into the corner I've seen to place myself into, I mumbled in my smallest voice, "Yes..."
"All you had to say," she sighed out, pulling me closer.
She made it sound simple, but I could see it.
Just sitting here.
How complicated everything will be getting.
Prepare yourself. Because I see some reality checks coming in, and some real savagery happening.
And I'll just like to say it's nice seeing that even though Tayuya was checked, faked out, and practically broke her ankles in Ino's gruesome play last chapter, she still stuck around. Good for her.
See you next time little ones.
Read review tell me what you think!
Shycadet loves. Out.