-We Will Never Part-
Disclaimer: I don't own any recognizable content.
-Chapter Fifty-
-Strange Brew-
Hinata could feel the eyes on her and her friends. She could feel their judgement and ire, their irritation and annoyance. But Hinata didn't care. Had she been alone or with her sister, she would have felt self-conscious and changed her behaviour. With her friends though, she didn't care what others thought of her. Especially after not seeing the other three for over a month and going through an emotional rollercoaster essentially on her own.
She was absolutely ecstatic about being reunited, and she was sure the same could be said about Tenten, Ino, and Sakura. So, being loud, and raucous, even in the confinement of an airplane fuselage was just something everyone else on the fairly empty plane would have to deal with.
They were currently in the middle of the giggling, gasp-inducing tale of Ino's romantic journey with Shikamaru, and whenever the blonde was talking about matters of the heart, she was never quiet. Sakura and Hinata gasped, and squealed, and giggled along at the appropriate moments in the story. Tenten, who was the least hopelessly romantic of the quartet, was not as enthusiastic in her part, but she participated nonetheless.
All in all, it felt right. Everything was back to normal; the gang was once again back together. Sure, Hinata's mother was dying, Sakura was facing a court date, Tenten had started playing soccer again, and Ino was seriously contemplating dating a non-jock. But, in the grand scheme of things, those were small potatoes. All that mattered was that Hinata, Tenten, Sakura, and Ino had been reunited and, as the plane touched down with a slight jerk, back in Konoha where they belonged.
The girls disembarked the plane, still loudly chatting, and giggling, and carrying on. They walked through the waiting area, past departing passengers, arm in arm. Finally, they were connected once more. Together, the four of them came to a set of sliding doors separating the secure area of the airport from the more public areas.
They walked through the doors, arms still linked, and began searching out their rides. Standing off to their right, in a small huddle, were the girls' families. Hinata's dad, Ino's parents, Tenten's dad, and Sakura's harried looking parents were all standing around talking to each other.
"Mom!" Sakura exclaimed, tears filling her eyes. She disentangled herself from her friends and ran to her awaiting parents. Tenten, who likewise hadn't seen her father in quite some time, enthusiastically embraced the thin, lanky man. In's hellos, having seen her parents earlier that day was subdued. Hinata, the last of the girls to approach the group of parents mustered a small smile. The Hyuugas were never big on outward displays of emotions, but Hinata was still trying to figure out how much her dad knew in regards to her mother and wasn't feeling particularly warm towards the male.
That being said, it still felt extremely good to be home.
From: Hyuuga Nanami (Nana12)
To: Hyuuga Hinata (lil_miss_sunshine); Hyuuga Hanabi (lil_firecracker)
Sent: Sunday, August 12; 5:00 pm
Subject: Mea Culpa
My dearest daughters,
I am so sorry. Firstly, for leaving when you were young. I had my own issues going on at the time and my own problems to work through, but I hope to share all that with you later. I just want you to know that not a day goes by that I don't regret leaving you.
But, right now, I have possibly wronged you worse. A few months ago, I was diagnosed with cancer and I didn't tell you. At first, I told myself I wanted to tell you in person. Then, I thought it wouldn't be good to drop this news on you after not seeing you for years. So I thought I'd get to know you two a little first. I just waited too long and for that I am extremely sorry. I hope in time you can forgive my thoughtlessness and we can continue to build on the relationships we had begun to cultivate this summer.
If, and when, you are ready, feel free to reach out to me. I will be waiting.
Your loving mother
The four girls sat in the sun on lounge chairs around Ino's pool. Sakura was nattering on about all the things she and Sasuke had done together over the summer and all the reasons she was, essentially, in love with him. Ino was squealing right along, overjoyed that her friend had finally found someone.
"So?" Ino questioned, sitting on the edge of her lounge chair and leaning closer to Sakura. "What now? I mean, are you still together? Are you going to keep seeing each other? Long distance can be hard, what with you here and him in Kirigakure, but I'm sure you two will absolutely stick together." Ino remained cherry and smiling despite the fact that she was talking about potentially depressing topics. Sakura's face slipped slightly and she sputtered a little.
"Well –ah, you see- Sasuke and I didn't exactly have time to discuss all that. Getting arrested and being spirited away was not part of the plan so we never got around to even really thinking about what we would do when I went home. We'll just have to talk about it when I go back for my court appearance in a few weeks."
Sakura and Ino continued talking about their summer romances, but Hinata's attention had drifted. She was now almost entirely focused on Tenten. Normally, when conversation turned to boys and romances, the brunette tuned out of the conversation. Hinata expected a lack of involvement, but what she saw from the brunette was more detachment than normal. Especially after having been away for so long.
The few times that the four girls were apart, for a few days or a week, whenever they reunited each of the girls was more talkative and engaged in all topics of conversation than they normally would be. Tenten's very reserved behaviour was definitely strange.
Hinata was especially alert to reserved behaviour on the part of the brunette as a result of the fact that the last time the shy girl had witnessed this behaviour it hadn't been good. The brunette had completely shut down emotionlessly, not only not feeling the negative emotions, but also not feeling the positive ones. It was not a healthy state of mind.
"You okay, Tennie?" Hinata suddenly asked, interrupting Ino's slightly pornographic description of watching Shikamaru prepare bouquets. All three girls' snapped their heads in the dark haired girl's direction. Hinata looked right at the brunette, trying to read her expression.
"Hmm?" Tenten initially responded, obviously being drawn from her thoughts. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired I guess. It's been a long couple of days, a lot going on and all." She tried to smile innocently, playing off her friends' concern.
"You know what the best cure for having a lot on your mind and being tired is?" Ino chimed in, jumping up from her spot on the lounge chair. "We need a good ol' fashioned girls'-night-in! it's high time for a fun, sugar-filled summer-apart detox in the form of a sleepover! My house. Tonight. Be there or be disowned!"
Hinata tried to catch Ino's eyes to try and see if the blonde was perhaps picking up on the same warning flags that the raven haired girl was. however, for whatever reason, Ino just stared directly at Tenten.
From: Temari (blondieluvr)
To: Fashionable piggy (littlemisspiggy)
Sent: Sunday, August 12; 10:20 pm
Subject: Our lovely brunette friend
Hey Ino,
I've been mulling this over for quite a few hours, trying to decide if I'm imagining things or if my intuition is correct. I would have brought it to you sooner, but I was battling myself. But, eventually, I just figured I would tell you so you could decide for yourself.
A few nights ago, the camp threw a party to celebrate the tournament champions. Because it was a camp-sponsored event, there was supposed to be no illicit substances, but teens are experts at getting around prohibitions, and there was definitely access to alcohol at the party.
Now, Tenten was very good and didn't drink a drop. The same, however, cannot be said for our teammate/ cabinmate Kin. Now, I'm sure Kin is a perfectly nice girl, but when she drinks, she acts very easy and open, and doesn't think out all of the consequences. Well, apparently drunk Kin got it in her head to kiss Neji.
I'm not sure how much you know about Neji; I think he knows or is related to one of you. Anyway, he was giving Tenten extra practice lessons, and, I guess with that extra time, feelings started to develop. And, when things went upside down with my brother, Tenten revealed her growing feelings to Neji.
However, before they really got anywhere, Kin kissed Neji and Tenten shut down. Like, she almost seemed like a robot on the day she left. I'm not sure what it means but, when everyone else was teary and upset about the impending departure, Tenten seemed unfazed.
I'm not sure what to make of it, so I thought I'd fill you in. you know her a lot better than I do so you'll know if it is something to worry about.
Temari
Hinata was certain that Ino knew that something was going on with Tenten. The blonde was extremely good at reading people, so it would be quite surprising if she hadn't picked up on the change in behaviour in the brunette. So, the demure raven-haired girl decided to show up at Ino's house early, before Sakura and especially Tenten arrived to the sleepover. That way, she could confront the blonde, hopefully get on the same page, and devise a plan to help Tenten break out of her funk.
"Hinata! It's lovely to see you! I heard you were visiting your mom this summer. It's so great that you're working on your relationship again!" Ino's mother cheerily chimed as she opened the door.
Hinata smiled up at the blonde woman and made some non-committal remarks about how she spent her summer before she sidled past into the house. Ino was in the Yamanaka family's game room, setting up the area for the sleepover. Hinata stepped into the room and cleared her throat, causing the blonde to whip around, her long ponytail whipping along with her. It smacked into her face and caused the blonde to sputter.
"Pthah-ack!" Ino spat, trying to get stray strands of her hair out of her mouth. "Give a girl some warning!" Once she'd righted herself, Ino beamed at her friend.
"You're sure here early, Hina! I'm not even anywhere near ready! There's still junk food to procure, music to cue, and sleepover activities to organize." Ino spoke with the slightly harried tone that always came when she was in the middle of planning.
"I know. Sorry. I know how much you hate it when the curtain is pulled back, but I rally need to talk to you. There's something seriously wrong with-"
"Tennie? Yeah, I've noticed. She's closing herself off, shutting herself down. And, according to my friend Temari, it's because she's heartbroken or emotionally strung out. either way, I think she needs a good girls' night! We can make her forget her troubles, show her that she is loved, and just let her know that we will always be there for her. But I can't do it without at least a pound of Lindt!" Ino then scampered off towards the kitchen.
The first sleepover back was as spectacular as any they'd ever had before. They ate pizza, and chips, and chocolate, and sweets. They drank pop and non-alcoholic mixed drinks. They danced around and sang along with sugary pop songs. They watched rom coms and action films and laughed along to all the cheesy and predictable moments in both. They stayed up way too late gossiping and chatting. It was an absolute blast!
And yet, as the four girls finally tucked themselves into bed that night, Hinata knew that it hadn't been enough. Tenten had perked up some as the night had gone on, laughing and smiling and joking as much as the others. However, in the quiet moments before sleep overcame them, Hinata saw the mask slipping back into place, the doors of her emotions slamming shut.
Apparently, it would take more than her sisters and a girls' night to right Tenten.
From: Hyuuga Hinata (lil_miss_sunshine)
To: Neji (soccerstar)
Sent: Wednesday, August 15; 10:20 am
Subject: A favour
Hey Neji,
I know it's been a while since we've talked. I spent time with your mom this summer and I hoped you'd be there to catch up. But no, you had to go to soccer camp this summer and meet my friends Tenten.
Now, I'm missing some very important details about everything, but I know that something happened between the two of you. Tenten isn't talking about it. In fact, she'd started to shut herself away so that she doesn't feel anything. It's happened once before and it was not good.
We've tried what worked last time to get her out of her state, but this is apparently a different situation. She doesn't feel alone this time, but heartbroken. All I know is that you're some part of all of this. So that's where my favour comes in.
I will guarantee you time with Tenten, to say your piece and whatnot so long as you can help bring her back to us! What do you say?
Hope you are well,
Hinata
-End Chapter 50-
-To be continued-
