The blaring sound of his alarm made him groan.
"Is it really 6 o'clock already?" Kiba yawned, stretching as his alarm kept ringing. "This is fucking great and right when I thought I still had hours left." Akamaru jumped onto this bed, wagging and barking like crazy. "Yeah, yeah buddy. Your walk." He smiled and scratched his dog's head. "You're getting pretty big, huh?"
His alarm blared what seemed even louder.
"Oh for fucks sakes!"
"So everything is going good with that chick who likes cats?"
Kiba took a bite of his steak and nodded. "Yeah, she's a real catch."
"What was her name again?" Naruto sat back, tapping his fork on his plate. "Something with a T?"
"Tamaki," finished Kiba, pointing the knife at him, "and you better remember it because you made me remember Hinata's."
"You said you didn't need me to remind you because you liked her enough for you to remember, you idiot!" shouted Naruto, causing the people around them to stop their conversation and stare at them.
"I'm so sorry about my friend," exaggerated Kiba. He pointed at Naruto and gasped, "He thinks he's some kind of king and he can do whatever he wants. I pity him."
"Kiba, you better fucking stop," hissed out Naruto, ears turning red and eyes glaring as he leaned forward.
"Hush, hush, my love," cooed Kiba as everyone resumed with their conversation. "By the way, how's Hinata doing?"
"She's doing really well." Naruto looked out the window, a small smile on his face. "She's been going to therapy every week and she's improving! I even help her with the homework the therapist gives her."
"I'm glad she's doing better." Kiba smiled and grabbed his cup of Coke. "Cheers for Hinata, for asking for help and helping herself!"
Naruto chuckled and grabbed his cup of Sprite. "Cheers for Tamaki, for making you love cats—"
"Hey!"
"And also for not being with you just for sex…like the other assholes."
They both laughed and clinked their drinks together.
"Cheers to that, mate."
Kiba whistled as he opened the door to his apartment. The first thing he noticed was one, Akamaru didn't run up to him like he usually does. And two, it smelled like—
"Oh, hey you!" Tamaki's head popped out from the bathroom, a smile on her face. "I didn't expect you to arrive early from work!"
"Wha…?" he stuttered, watching as she came up to him and pecked him on the cheek. "Why are you here?"
"That's rude," she laughed, playfully hitting him on the shoulder. She pointed to his small kitchen and he finally noticed a pot boiling something. "I wanted to surprise you with some ramen but now that you're here, you might as well help!" She enthusiastically took off his jacket and pushed him towards the kitchen. "I brought Snowball too." As if on cue, Snowball came dashing in with Akamaru right behind her.
"Snowball is such a generic name. I'm telling ya!" he joked, laughing when he saw her pout. He felt bubbles in his stomach and his cheeks warmed. He's never had anyone take time out of their day to do something as simple as this for him. Then again, he argued with himself, that this wasn't something simple. This brought a feeling he wasn't familiar with.
"Kiba, let's eat—Snowball don't jump on the couch!" She ran off to shoo her cat. He smiled as she turned back to look at him apologetically.
He couldn't put his finger on it.
"Kiba?"
He looked up quickly from the cat food he was holding to the person who called his name. Hinata gave him a small smile as she walked towards him.
"It's been a while, Hinata!" he exclaimed, putting the food back onto the shelf and engulfing her in a tight hug. He immediately pulled back, smiling sheepishly. "Sorry for the fur. Have two pets in the apartment now."
"I've heard from Naruto."
He wanted to ask her how she's been, about her health, and if things are going well between Naruto and her. Of course he hears it from Naruto—the bastard never shuts up about it—but he always liked Hinata from the moment he met her, though a bit skeptical. She was with his best friend, after all. With recent events, he felt useless on how to help her. How can he approach her without feeling like he was pushing it too far?
"Do you wanna grab coffee?" he blurted out.
Her eyes widened but then softened and nodded. "I drink tea, if that's okay."
He smiled. "Of course, m'lady. Right this way!"
"How've you been?" After half an hour of catching up—from work to school and other miscellaneous things—he finally decided to ask.
"I've been…doing better," she paused, taking a sip of her tea before looking out the window. "Today, I was meant to take care of the store Sakura and Ino owns. But they said to have a day off." She laughed, one that didn't contain the mirth that should accompany it, and he felt his brows furrow. He opened his mouth to ask about it but she continued, "I…I feel like they're being too careful with me now." It was a whisper but he heard it.
"They?" he asked, putting aside his cup of coffee. "Like your friends?"
"And Naruto," she added. "My family as well. It's like they're walking on eggshells around me. It makes me feel…"
"Different, huh?" he finished, leaning back. "Yeah, I get you."
He saw her grip her cup of tea. Her eyes asking, "How?"
"My dad passed away when I was little." He shrugged off the memories coming back to him. He hasn't talked about it for a long time. "It hurt. A lot. It traumatized me and I was sad for a long time. Still am." He began to smile and leaned forward, fire burning through his veins. "But ya know what? I say, 'Fuck off, depression!'" he exclaimed, causing the people around them to turn. He didn't care though. He wanted to help. "I began to tell myself I shouldn't let it overcome me. That I need to fight back. The people around me changed, though." He leaned back, recalling old memories. "They were doing it out of the kindness of their hearts, I know, but I got fed up with it. I told them that I didn't want them changing because of me. That I should be the one to tackle this issue, not them. Little by little, they came around and started to joke around with me again. Hell, it took my sister a while to wrestle with me like old times." He laughed, wiping at his eyes. "Anyway, you should tell them how you feel. They're just trying to help. Communication is key, after all!"
Hinata's eyes held unshed tears and she grabbed a napkin. She quickly dabbed the corners of her eyes and, for a moment, he panicked. He began to reach out, to say he was sorry for being rash and letting his emotions get the best of him, when she smiled. It wasn't a hollow one like the one back in the store. No, this was a smile of someone who's a fighter and was going to eventually climb over the mountain and win.
"Thank you," she whispered. She grabbed his hands and gave them a squeeze. "I can see why Naruto loves you so much. You're so kind, Kiba. And strong."
He chuckled, cheeks turning red from the compliment. "You bet. And you're strong too, Hinata." He gave a reassuring squeeze back. "I'm going to be honest. It's never going to go away…that feeling but you can learn to control it."
She nodded and pulled away. She got up and stretched a bit. He followed suit.
"Thank you once again for the tea," she beamed, walking out of the café with Kiba. "I'm happy I bumped into you today."
"Same to you," he said, hugging her tight. Just as he began to walk down the street, Hinata called out for him.
"By the way," she yelled, a smile on her face, "Good luck with Tamaki! I hope to meet her one day!"
He blushed but couldn't help the smile he gave back. "You will!"
He didn't realize until he got home that he was whistling a happy tune the whole way.
"I love you," he blurted out, looking as Tamaki's head snapped to attention. They were cuddling on his couch, watching a movie, when he began to focus more on his girlfriend who was failing at staying awake. It was then that it hit him. It all made sense now! Why he felt the butterflies in his stomach and why he waits with baited breath for her to come home to him and why he wanted to make her happy as much—or even more—as she makes him and why he dreams of a future with her and he can see it and he—
"I love you," he said again, determined. He watched as tears rolled down her face as she lunged for a hug. They held each other tightly and he felt her tears on his neck.
"I love you too," she hushed, only meant for him to hear.
The tears running down his face landed on her hair and he felt at peace.
He felt loved.
