A/N: SORRY! SORRY! SORRY! I'd intended to post a new chapter a while back, but I got sidetracked, mainly because I was working on various projects in real life. I promise you won't have to wait too much longer for the next chapter, however.

In the kitchen, Naruka grabbed a pot here, some random utensils there and began preparing ingredients for her special lunch: Ichiraku-style ramen. Ordinarily, she detested vegetables, but once they were simmering in broth along with all the other ingredients, she found them acceptable to her palate. Once the broth was truly boiling, it filled the kitchen with a medley of savory scents. While she was zipping about the kitchen cooking, Naruka hummed "Run Runaway" to herself. Then, she felt two arms wrap around her from behind.

"Having fun, my dear?" Gaara rested his head on Naruka's shoulder.

Naruka smiled. "If you keep hugging me like this, lunch is never gonna get done!"

"But you're so beautiful! You deserve it!"

"You're too kind, babe!"

Gaara stayed for a moment before leaving Naruka to her own devices. Eventually, she brought out two piping hot bowls of ramen for the two of them to enjoy. Without question, the two of them chowed down.

"Naruka, I don't know how you do it, but you make the best homemade ramen I've ever tasted!" said Gaara.

"Aw, you're so sweet!" said Naruka.

"Speaking of food, I wanted to tell you something…"

Naruka leaned closer to Gaara. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry for all those times I insulted you by calling you 'ugly'. Had I known you were going to grow up and fill out the way you did, I would never have called you that. I recognize now that all women are beautiful, but none more so than you."

Naruka blushed. "Oh Gaara, that's not necessary! You've more than made up for it!"

"Really? You're forgiving me this easily?"

"Of course I am, silly! Well, I'm not going to forget the pain and scars that you've caused me, but forgiveness is good for the soul, right?"

"I suppose you're correct."

After their ramen and drinks were finished, Gaara got up from the table and collected the leftover bowls, utensils and beverage bottles. While he was washing the dishes, Naruka returned the hug that he'd given earlier.

"You know, you didn't have to do this for me." Naruka smiled. "I could've easily done this myself."

"I know, but you slaved over all those ingredients, so I think it's only fair that I should share the burden."

"Gaara, I didn't know you were a feminist!"

"No, I just believe in helping out, although I will admit, I enjoy helping out one of my favorite women ever."

"Oh, Gaara!"

Naruka began to playfully nibble at Gaara's ear, causing him to blush.

"Naruka, what are you doing!?" said Gaara.

"Just showing my love for my favorite guy ever! Believe it!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't expect you to do that while I was doing chores."

Naruka frowned. "Are you saying you don't like it when I do that?"

"Oh no, that's not what I'm saying at all!" Gaara smiled. "Please, keep doing it…babe!"

Naruka laughed. Then, she continued her affections. By the time he got done with the dishes and washed his hands, Gaara turned to Naruka and scooped her up, bridal-style.

"GAARA!" Naruka laughed.

Gaara ignored Naruka and carried her up to her bedroom, which was decorated with random pop culture and motivational posters, in addition to various action figures and plush dolls. He then set her down on the bed.

"I presume this is the part where I get to make out with you?" said Gaara.

"No, you're wrong, babe!" Naruka put her hands on Gaara's arms. "This is the part where I get to make out with YOU!"

Naruka pulled Gaara down on the bed and began kissing him. Wanting to maintain her dominance, she gave him a gentle push and straddled his body. Gaara knew that Naruka enjoyed being on top, but it didn't matter too much to him. As long as she felt good, he felt good. What really felt good to both parties was the fact that they'd taken a shower before making out, so they could truly enjoy the experience. Granted, their breath still had the scent of ramen, but this only made Naruka want to make out with Gaara even more. Gaara found the feeling of Naruka's tongue rubbing against his lips rather ticklish, and he couldn't help but giggle a little, thereby permitting her tongue to enter his mouth. At last, he got more than a taste of her, and it proved intoxicating. Now completely under her spell, he moaned as he remained interlocked in this bout of passion. The sound of Gaara's muffled moaning gave Naruka tingles up and down her spine. As fun as it all was, it couldn't last forever, so Naruka broke away when she felt as though she had her fill. As for Gaara, his mouth hung open in an expression of pure, unbridled joy. Much to his pleasure, she whispered in his ear:

"You were really fun, babe. We should do this more."

This gave Gaara chills. Now that he was frozen with happiness, Naruka turned him on his side and cuddled with him.

"Hey, remember the night of our senior prom?" asked Naruka.

"Yes, what about it?"

"I still can't thank you enough for staying with me that night."

"It was the least I could do, especially considering all the bad things I did."

"Hey, why are you so focused on the bad things? You should be focused on happy stuff, birthday boy!"

"I know, but the fact that I'm turning 21 and have nothing to look forward to but adult responsibilities does not fill me with great joy."

"Then maybe this will fill you with great joy!"

Naruka nibbled at Gaara's ear again, and he squirmed a little.

"What's the matter, babe?" said Naruka. "Don't you enjoy this?"

"I do, actually!" said Gaara. "Please, continue!"

And so, Naruka nibbled at Gaara's ear some more. Once she'd had her fun, she lied back down and continued cuddling.

"So, what do you wanna do next, babe?" asked Naruka.

"I don't know about you, but I could spend all day in bed with you!" said Gaara.

"That's awfully sweet of you, but I wanna get up and do something that involves moving around!"

"Like what?"

"Like, shooting each other with Nerf guns!"

"As long as nobody gets their eyes shot out, I'm up for it!"

And so, Naruka dug up her old Nerf guns and darts, and she and Gaara headed out to the backyard.

"Now, the rules are simple…" said Naruka, "…we start with our backs to each other, and then we take ten paces forwards, turn around, and FIRE! Sound good?"

Gaara gave a thumbs up. "Of course, Naruka!"

"Great!"

Gaara and Naruka loaded the guns and stood with their backs to each other.

"Ready, boy?"

"Mm-hmm!"

"Then let's do it!"

1…

2…

3…

4…

5…

6…

7…

8…

9…

10!

Gaara and Naruka turned around and fired.

"Huh?" said Gaara, who noted a distinct lack of Naruka when he turned around.

Suddenly, a dart emerged from a nearby bush and struck Gaara square in the chest.

"What the…!?"

"PSYCH!"

Naruka jumped out of the bush and charged at Gaara. Not wanting to be outdone, the latter opened fire.

(Damn, I forgot she had a longer stride than me!) thought Gaara.

So, the two of them pelted each other with darts until they ran out of ammo. Not knowing what else to do, Gaara discarded his gun.

"HUG FIGHT!"

Gaara charged at Naruka and gave her a big hug, causing her to giggle.

"Gaara, what are you doing!? That's not in the rules!"

"But it's not out of the rules, either!"

Naruka laughed even harder and returned Gaara's embrace. To her, it wasn't quite as fun as the naked hug they'd shared earlier, but feeling his big, strong arms around her made her feel secure, nonetheless. She gave him another surprise…

"WHOA!"

Gaara didn't expect Naruka to trip him and push him to the ground with her, but that was exactly what she did. Thankfully, he suffered no injuries when he hit the ground. Naruka stared into his eyes for a brief moment before kissing him again.

"You know, Naruka, no matter how hard I try, I just can't get enough of your touch."

"What can I say? I'm just trying to make your present all the more special! Believe it!"

Gaara smiled. "I appreciate the thought!"

"Glad you do, boy! Now, how about we go inside and shoot some pool?"

"All right!"

After they'd picked up all the Nerf darts, Naruka led Gaara down to her basement, which the latter found to be squeaky clean, much to his surprise. The centerpiece of the basement was a pool table, with all the balls already racked up. Naruka put the ball rack away, handed a cue to Gaara and chalked her own stick.

"Ready to lose again?" asked Naruka.

Gaara smiled. "Why should I bother? Even when I've lost, I've won!"

Naruka laughed. "Oh, you're such a charmer!" She then took a quarter that was laying on top of the pool table. "Call it!"

"Heads!"

Naruka flipped the coin and caught it on her first try.

"Tails!"

With that, Naruka aimed at the already-placed cue ball and hit it. On the break, the 13 ball went into one of the corner pockets.

"HA!" Naruka pumped her fist and aimed for the 14 ball, which she sent into one of the corner pockets.

"So, think you're gonna win this round or what?"

Naruka hit the 12 ball into a side pocket.

Gaara crossed his arms. "That depends on whether or not you're going to keep cheating."

Naruka raised her index finger. "Now now, babe, you know as well as I do that I can keep hitting the balls in as long as they keep going in!"

Naruka aimed for the 10 ball and hit it. She got it in, but she also sunk the cue ball in a corner pocket. Gaara went to retrieve the cue ball when Naruka put a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey boy, what do you think you're doing!?" said Naruka.

"Have you forgotten?" replied Gaara. "If you hit the cue ball in, then it's MY turn."

Naruka gave a sharp snort. "Fine."

Gaara placed the cue ball towards one end of the table, aimed for the 6 ball and got it in a side pocket.

"I respect your womanhood, Naruka, but even I can't let that get in the way of the rules."

Gaara sunk the 3 ball into another side pocket.

"Nevertheless, I hope you don't let that get in the way of our relations."

Gaara sent the 7 ball into a corner pocket and cracked a slight smile.

"I won't, even if you are a poor sportswoman at times."

This time, Gaara hit the 2 ball into a side pocket.

"You're losing ground quickly, my dear Naruka."

Next, Gaara hit the 5 ball into a corner pocket. His smile widened and grew more evil.

"Still feel lucky…babe?"

Gaara managed to get the 4 ball into a side pocket with a tricky bank shot.

"I can almost feel the coup de grace…"

Gaara aimed for the 1 ball and…

"SWING! BATTA BATTA BATTA!"

Naruka's chant caused Gaara to mess up, miss the shot and lose his smile.

"You know, if you weren't the kind of person you are, I probably would take a swing at you," he said.

Naruka pouted, and her eyes sparkled. "You wouldn't take a swing at a pretty young woman like me, would you?"

Gaara lowered his stick. "No…I guess not. Please…continue."

Naruka's smile returned. "Awesome!"

With that, Naruka attempted to re-gain her crown by hitting the 15 ball into a corner pocket, and succeeded in doing so.

"Don't mind if I do!"

Naruka hit the 9 ball into another corner pocket.

"Now…what was that about losing ground?"

Naruka sent the 11 ball into a side pocket.

"Almost there!"

Naruka hit the 15 ball into a corner pocket.

"And…8 ball in the corner pocket!"

Naruka hit the 8 ball, but it just missed the corner pocket.

"Damn," she said to herself.

Now that it was his turn, Gaara easily sunk the 1 ball in a side pocket.

"8 ball in the corner pocket!"

Gaara smiled as he aimed another bank shot and struck the cue ball. Both parties watched as the ball rolled on towards its intended target. Much to Gaara's good fortune, the cue ball hit the 8 ball and sent it into the corner pocket.

"YES!" Gaara pumped his fist. "How do you like me now, Naruka!?"

Naruka smirked. "Oh, I like you now, boy! As a matter of fact, let me show you how much I like you!"

"Huh…WHOA!"

Naruka grabbed Gaara, pinned him against the wall and started kissing him. While she was doing so, she tickled him.

"MMPH! MMMMMMPH!" Gaara tried to push Naruka away, but she held firm. It was only when "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" by Black Sabbath began playing that Naruka let up. Then, Gaara took out his phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey Gaara, having a fun time?" asked Temari.

"Oh yes, Temari, Naruka and I are having a blast!"

"Yeah, you sure sound happier than you did this morning!"

"What can I say? I just had the benefit of having time to think things over!"

"Good! Say, Kankuro and I are all ready for the birthday dinner. What about you?"

"Almost. Just bring me my leather jacket. Oh…and my GTO."

"Sure thing, baby brother!"

"And Temari…"

"Yes?"

Gaara frowned. "Don't wreck it."

"Understood!"

Gaara's smile returned. "Before you go, I have a question…"

"Yes?"

"Can Naruka come with us tonight?"

"Oh, of course! She's such a nice woman, and she deserves to share in the fun!"

"OK, I'll let her know. I love you, sister!"

"I love you too!"

"Goodbye!"

"Bye!"

Gaara hung up. "Good news: Temari says you can come along with us."

"REALLY!? SWEET!"

Naruka gave Gaara another hug. He turned red, but only because he anticipated another round of tickling. That never transpired, however.

Criticism is gold. Negativity and nitpicking are pyrite.