a/n: Hello everyone! I'm very pleased to announce that I'm coming off my short hiatus period. It was difficult for me to write anything during the time leading up to my final exams, and then I had a two-week recovery phase where I rewired my brain back in to writing mode. Anyways, this is totally random shikaneji fluff…disclaimer on my profile, no warnings (except for total complete randomness)…enjoy!

Drabble 056: Morning Run, shikaneji.

Neji beamed at Shikamaru when he rounded the corner of the park. "You're on time today."

"Can you blame me for not wanting to wake up at 5:30 in the morning so I can meet you here every day?" Shikamaru grumbled. Nevertheless, he gave his boyfriend a hug. "Come on, let's get going while it's still cool out."

"It won't get warm until about 10:00," Neji said patiently.

Shikamaru glanced over at Neji in amusement. "You never know…you might just want to go out for a really long run."

"Four and a half hours?" Neji laughed as they started to jog down the street. "I doubt it."

Shikamaru chuckled. "This is coming from the idiot that trained six hours a day with his uncle."

"That was when I was an angsting preteen," Neji said, his face flushing in embarrassment. "And even then, I wouldn't have run for four and half hours. That's more Lee's type of training."

"Oh lord," Shikamaru groaned. "I can just see it now… 'Gai-sensei, I have failed you! I will run for four and half hours to prove my youthfulness to the world!'" he said mockingly.

Both boys flinched when an energetic figure in a green jumpsuit appeared alongside them. "Is that your youthful voice I hear, Shikamaru?"

"No," Shikamaru said sarcastically, "It's that bush that we passed five minutes ago."

Lee blinked in confusion.

Neji sighed and rushed to clarify. "He was kidding, Lee. What are you doing up so early?"

"The same thing as you…going for a morning run!"

"How long have you been running for?"

"Long enough to get warmed up," Lee grinned devilishly and took off in to the darkness. "See you later, my youthful rival!"

Shikamaru and Neji returned to comfortable silence, neither one willing to chase after Lee. They jogged around their neighborhood for another half hour before returning to Shikamaru's apartment where they washed off the sweat and grime from their run.

Neji coughed in amusement when he found Shikamaru spread out across the large windowseat in his living room. "The point of getting up early is staying up."

Shikamaru grunted and shifted slightly, inviting Neji to lie down with him. Neji complied, sighing in mock exasperation which quickly melted away in to a tender smile. "I love you," he whispered in Shikamaru's ear.

Shikamaru squeezed his hand, and the young couple drifted off to sleep while the sun began to rise, lighting up their happy faces in joy.

a/n: Yay for totally random fluff! I hope you enjoyed; also I've started posting a new work called 'The Moon and the Stars', so if you're a fan of itaneji, please stop by and check it out! Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review on your way out also, if you have time, please vote on the poll on my profile.