day 3: pocky - pocky game

Ino pulled box after box of snacks out from under the counter. "I have original, matcha, strawberry," She crouched down to get even more flavors. "Almond, sakura, coconut, purple sweet potato, and- ooo, cantaloupe! I thought we ran out of this."

Temari buried her face in her hands. She should have known that asking Yamanaka Ino for help would be a bad idea. She peeked through her fingers at the array of colorful boxes spread in front of her, all bearing the name 'Pocky'. "Why do you even have so many of these? I thought Choji was a chips guy."

"I told you, couples love these! Pair them with a gorgeous bouquet, and you've got the perfect gift!"

Temari looked uneasy. She had approached Ino for advice because, after three dates, she hadn't gotten a single kiss from Shikamaru. On the cheek didn't count, she wanted a real, full, one-minute-long kiss. But Ino's idea seemed a little too unconventional for her.

"What do you think about orange?" The younger girl called, still hidden from view. "Or... is that cheese-flavored...?"

Yeah, this was too much. Temari rapidly shook herself back to her senses. "Ino, just- get up!"

Ino popped back up. "What's wrong?"She sighed heavily. "I'm regretting my decision now."

"What, to play this game?"

"No, to ever speak to you."

Ino rolled her crystal clear eyes. "Okay, I won't take offense to that because I know it's the nerves talking-"

"I am not nervous." Temari scowled.

"-I mean, a first kiss is a big deal."

"Oh my- nevermind, I'm leaving." Temari threw her hands in the air, ready to stomp out of the store.

Not that she had any other ideas. Clearly Shikamaru wasn't going to catch on to any of her hints. What else was she supposed to do - ask him?!

"Wait!"

She whirled around to come face to face with a pink box of Pocky. Ino blinked her eyes innocently. "Don't forget your kissing sticks."

She found him at one of the training grounds, not training. "Oi, lazy. Don't you ever get tired of just lying around?"

Shikamaru heaved a long sigh, acting like speaking was the most exhausting thing in the world. "If you would ever try it, you'd know you can't get tired from doing nothing. That's the point."

Temari rolled her eyes, unimpressed. She dropped to a crouch next to his head. "Get up. I want to play a game."

He grumbled unintelligibly, though he did open an eye to finally look up at her. "What kind of game?" He asked cautiously.

She waved a pink chocolate-covered stick in his face and watched his jaw drop. "Oh no."

After explaining the short version of the rules (and deliberately not mentioning the possible end result), Temari forced him to stand up for the little game. "Are you finally ready?" She asked, full of false bravado.

She was sure her cheeks matched the color of the pocky. There was no way they were actually going to go through with this. She couldn't believe the lengths she had to go to - just for a kiss!

Shikamaru just sighed and closed his eyes, opening his mouth slightly. Temari gingerly stuck the plain end in his mouth, keeping the sweeter end for herself. She took a deep breath before lightly biting down on the treat, slowly, slowly, making her way up. Her eyes stayed open, cautious of any sudden movements from Shikamaru's side.

However, (un?)luckily for her, nothing was happening. At all.

Temari had at least eaten a third of her half while the genius just stood there, doing nothing! The only good thing about this horribly awkward situation was that she liked the strawberry taste. She sighed angrily through her nose. Stupid Pocky, stupid Ino, Stupid Shika-

Shikamaru opened his eyes, and before she could blink, snapped the Pocky stick in half and spit it out off to the side.

Temari gawked at him, her heart dropping at what was him basically admitting that he didn't want to kiss her. "What are you..." She trailed off, her own part of the Pocky falling from her mouth.

That was all she managed to say, though, because then Shikamaru grabbed her by the arms and kissed her.

Her hands fumbled at first, unsure of where to go, but when one of his arms slid around her waist, she immediately clung to his shoulders, closing the distance between them. Temari hummed happily. Maybe Pocky wasn't so bad.

Later, after the little pink box was empty and flattened, the couple rested under the shade, side by side. Shikamaru rubbed the back of his neck, sighing loudly. "Next time, troublesome woman, how about you just tell me what you want instead of forcing me to play a silly game."

She tried to play off being caught by mumbling. "Tch. It wasn't my plan to kiss you."

"I don't believe that for a second." Shikamaru snorted.

Temari huffed, but the opportunity to argue was lost when he pulled her close and kissed her again.

She might have failed to outwit him this time, but that was okay, because she won in the end.

Shikamaru being a great kisser was just as good as a promotion.