Chapter 3: Yellow Daffodils
Hinata strided past the sage green walls, admiring how the hospital absorbed the mid-afternoon sun. Her low footsteps added to the unexpected harmony the medical center had during its time of peace. A cart squeaked down the hall at an even pace, nurses talked in hushed tones with affection, and a reassuring quietness lingered. She smiled to herself as she adjusted her lanyard to display her volunteer's ID card. Her mind was not quick to forget how the village was devastated after Pain's attack, or how the medic nins struggled with what little they had on the frontlines of the Fourth Great Shinobi War. She had seen enough bloodshed to last lifetimes. This rare scene was something she treasured. Today's going to be a good day.
Her fingers fiddled with the edges of her coat as she went down a few more twists and turns. After peeking around a corner, she finally spotted what she was looking for coming out from her office. "Ino-chan!" she called.
Ino's ponytail swayed behind her as she turned her head to glance at her friend. She gave Hinata a small grin. "Hey! You don't usually come in on Sundays," she noted as the two girls approached one another.
"I don't," Hinata admitted, "But Satoshi-san won't be back from his mission until later this week. Kotone-san is still unwell so she asked if I could come in as her replacement for today."
"Ah," Ino giggled, "That Kotone-san is just like you, Hinata-chan. She didn't need to send anyone. We don't have any urgent examinations. Tsunade-sama could have sent a summons in the case of an emergency."
"It's no trouble. The Hyuuga are always proud to serve Konoha," Hinata smiled politely and intertwined her hands.
Ino rolled her eyes with a playful attitude. "Don't say that. You sound like Neji." The two girls gave each other a sly look before covering their mouths as they erupted with quiet giggles. "Well, you have great timing. I was about to start looking for Kotone-san." Her fingers traced the edges of the sheets in the tall stack of papers cradled in her arm. Once she reached the stack's middle, she pulled out a few folders and handed them to Hinata. "These are the tasks that Kotone-san was supposed to do today. Your first patient is waiting in Room 209." Hinata nodded as her friend began to walk backwards down the hall. "Find me if you have any questions!"
"Thank you!" Hinata called out after Ino turned away and rushed down the walkway. She tucked the folders under her arm.
Room 209… 209, Hinata thought as she shuffled her feet to face the other way. She walked back the way she came, admiring the same window, sunlight, and sounds. The girl began to hum a familiar lullaby to herself, a gentle melody to match the gentle day. A smile graced her lips as she neared the opposite side of the building. She lost herself in the notes. Her feet, which acted with grace and poise, were just short of dancing across the floor. Everything was in just the right place. 209… After a few turns, the door neatly labeled Room 209 shone from the wall across from her. She glided towards the room and inhaled softly, replacing her humming with a small grin. She pulled the door open and her smile faded instantly.
A living nightmare was seated on the examination table before her. When he turned his attention to her, his slender hands clutched the corners of the rubbery table with white-hot knuckles. His glare was so intense; his pitch-dark eyes met her gaze with such animosity that she felt that she was staring into a black hole. He ripped the light out of her soul but she couldn't bear to look away, not even as a chill crawled down her spine. The atmosphere he produced was almost like standing in the eye of a storm. His murderous intent radiated through the room like a thick, dense cloud. His detestation for her in his voice struck like lightning. "What are you doing here?" Sasuke scowled.
Hinata's skin felt cold and her face was paler than ever before. She took a shaky breath. "I-I'm here to p-p-perform your examination," she cursed herself for her stutter.
"Where's the usual girl?"
"Sh-She's sick."
Sasuke rolled his eyes and released the tight grip he had on the table. Hinata glanced at the deep indentations his forceful hands had carved into the material and gulped. "Well?" he spat. Hinata's gaze flickered towards him.
"R-Right." She shook her head slightly, her long hair bouncing and fluttering in waves. She stepped out of the doorway and closed the door. Her heartbeat was erratic. Perhaps today won't be as good as I thought… As she walked over to her patient, she stared at the tiles below her feet and tapped her fingers in rapid intervals against her folder.
Sasuke scrutinized the bashful volunteer in front of him, narrowing his eyes to try and see past the indigo curtain of hair blocking her expression. He recalled her timid, red-faced look from the previous day. There were few things Sasuke enjoyed more than irritating other people. By other people, he meant Naruto, but Naruto's fangirl would work just as well. He lessened his gaze and felt a smirk creep onto his lips. Well, if I have to sit through this, I might as well make it worthwhile.
Just as she began to regulate her breathing, Sasuke's voice cut through the tension. "You left your dress at my apartment." Heat rushed back into her veins when she was reminded of all the inappropriate thoughts she had about him the day before. Her head sprouted up to gape at him. Hinata noted that his expression had changed. His glare was still sharp, but the tension had dissipated in favor of a tiny devilish smile that did not escape her all-seeing eyes. He noted that her cheeks flushed a deep scarlet and fought the urge to widen his smile. "You can have it back when you bother to return my clothes."
Although Hinata wanted to shoot a mean pout his way, she instead took a soft but deep inhale. I'm better than this, she thought. I didn't spend all that time with Neji-niisan to get rid of this stutter for nothing. She schooled her features into a neutral and polite expression dotted with the trace of a smile. The classic Hyuuga stare with her own personal touch. "Uchiha-san-"
"Sasuke," he corrected.
A sharp inhale. "Sasuke," she emphasized, "I understand things have been… different, between us," she stopped to grab a spare clipboard from the counter before sitting on the stool in front of him, "But now isn't the best time to talk about this. Someone may hear us. May we please keep this professional?" She thanked Kami and every other possible god that she was able to get through her request without a single stutter.
"What's wrong, princess?" he sneered. His elbows laid on his knees to support his torso as it lowered so he could be at her eye-level. "Are you ashamed of me?"
She melted under his stare. As much as she fought to repress it, Hinata's face burned red like a raging fire. The marks on her neck tingled like embers floating in the wind. Sasuke took in the sight and relished it like a cool, fresh breeze after a long day. Still, her speech did not falter. "The faster we finish this examination, the faster you can return home."
When did she get a back bone? His demeanor returned to its displeased state. He leaned back from his knees, now sitting up straight. He looked back at her with half-lidded eyes and his lips dropped into a frown. "Hn."
She gave him a forced smile. "Great," she said as she adjusted the stool upwards so she could meet his eye-level now that he had relaxed. "Please keep your eyes looking in front of you, preferably in one spot." Sasuke obeyed her command, settling his gaze on top of her own.
With a light whisper, Hinata brought her Byagukan to life. Sasuke mentally cringed when the veins around her eye area enlarged and rose to the surface. He was never a fan of the Hyuuga's kekkei genkai; he always found the pupil-less eyes gave the clan an otherworldly appearance. Coupled with the fact that they were almost always deadpan, a younger Sasuke was convinced that they were spirits doomed to roam the land of the living. However, the more he peered into her eyes, the more details he noticed about her. Her eyes were wide and round, not sharp and angled like most of her family members. The edges were graced with thick eyelashes that were a deep blue like her hair. Most of all, he found himself lost in the color, the subtle lavender hue that sparkled like never-ending snow. It calmed him. However, he snapped out of his thoughts as he mentally cringed again when he realized that she was drawing the chakra system in his skull without looking down.
Hinata's brow furrowed as her pencil continued to scribble across the paper. "These aren't your eyes, are they?" she uttered.
"They're Itachi's."
"Ah, I see," she stated without missing a beat, her hand sketching the complexities of his network. "That would explain why the strands closer to your eyeballs absorb chakra a bit differently than the rest of your body…" she trailed off. Although Sasuke's face held its emotionless expression, he couldn't help but feel surprised at the Hyuuga's reaction. Every appointment (hell, every time since his return to Konoha), people gawked at him with pity or stood speechless at the mere mention of his brother. The lies that this damned village had branded onto Itachi, titles like the village traitor and the clan murderer, still made him a taboo subject. But here was Hyuuga Hinata, a mousy little kunoichi who didn't even flinch at the mention of his name.
Sasuke couldn't tell how much time had passed when she deactivated her Byakugan and her veins receded under her smooth skin. She took a moment to flip through his folder, scanning over the documents with attentive care. He peeked at the drawing stationed on her lap and felt his fingers curl at the disgust it gave him. The picture reminded him far too much about his past with Orochimaru.
Before his bitterness could flare up again, Hinata broke him out of his reverie. "Well, according to your records, your brother's eyes were only about a third of the way attached to your chakra network when you returned home after the war, causing serious symptoms such as temporary blindness, intense pain, excessive bleeding, and instability of your Sharingan. As of yesterday, you answered that you were no longer experiencing these symptoms." She glanced upwards at him for confirmation. He gave her a slight nod and let himself be entranced by her eyes once more. The moment was too short to satisfy Sasuke because she bowed her head again.
"As of today," she dragged the pencil across the report from yesterday as she spoke, "I would say about seventy percent of your chakra network is rehabilitated. Although the healing sessions will certainly take a while to complete, there's no doubt that they're working. You won't be needing the surgery," she gazed up at him once more, flashing a small but genuine smile.
"Tch," was his only response as he refused to face her. He leaned back on the examination table, his body held up by his arms planted behind him.
Hinata sorted the papers back into the folder and gathered the rest of her belongings as she lifted herself off the stool. "Let me know if you have any questions, but otherwise, you're free to go." They avoided each other as she stood. She kept her gaze firmly planted at her feet, tucking the folders under her arm in a rushed manner as she strided towards the exit. The silence between them was thick and restless as if their unspoken thoughts had found an alternate way to materialize themselves. Her hand reached to the handle, wishing to put this whole ordeal behind her without anymore-
"Hyuuga," he called for her in a hoarse mutter.
-interruptions. Stifling a sigh, she turned her head over her shoulder. "Yes, Sasuke?"
He bit the inside of his cheek, letting his mouth fill with a sour taste. "If you've always been head over heels for that dobe… Why settle for me? Did you accept he'd never notice you?" His eyes flickered to her face.
Sasuke did not expect the piercing wrath across her face. Her cheeks were tinted pink, yes, but her eyebrows scowled, her lips frowned in a full pout, and her eyes revealed a sharp iciness that no one could have expected the girl to have, perhaps not even herself. He knew the feeling all too well; it wasn't the helpless, tear-stricken face he had seen her dawn in her youth. It was pure, undiluted hurt. A look that could kill. With one swift motion, Hinata turned away from him and stomped out the door, leaving him in the stifling stillness. More than once today, Hyuuga Hinata had surprised him.
Hinata nearly sprinted down the empty hallway. Her teeth sank into her bottom lip and she aimed all her attention on the stinging sensation it provided. She knew if she didn't ignore how her cheeks began to burn or how her tears threatened to spill over, she would lose all control. She replayed his question over and over in her mind, his deep, silky voice taunting her. I wish I knew, Sasuke…
She retraced her steps and turned corner after corner away from the man who kept tormenting her thoughts. As she approached where she had found Ino about an hour earlier, she tugged down the sleeves of her lab coat and brought them up to wipe away the moisture around her eyes. Her eyes peeked out over her fists and frantically scanned the doors for the label she was searching for. At last, she halted when she found a plaque that read "Haruno and Yamanaka". Her hand fumbled around in her coat pocket before shoving a key into the lock of the door. She threw herself into the room, yanking the door shut with a slam and shoving her back against the nearest wall. Her head was tilted back and her eyelids were scrunched shut as tense as her fists that crumpled in exasperation at her sides. A long sigh released from her lips.
Whenever she had time to volunteer at the hospital, Sakura and Ino made certain that she knew she was always welcome to join them for breaks, lunches, or any other down time, hence Hinata's key to their office. She made sure never to intrude into their personal space (It's improper, she had thought to herself), but today was an exception. It was a little too early in her shift for a break but there was no doubt that she needed a moment to recover from her draining interaction with the Uchiha.
Ugh. Uchiha. Her eyes flashed open with a burning ire. She was officially ticked off! She could deal with his "I-hate-everyone-and-the-whole-world-too" attitude or his insensitive taunting, but both?! Hinata wanted to scream. Not once in her life had any one of her comrades disrespected her in such a way, not even Kiba with his brashness in their genin days…
The memory of a shirtless Sasuke leering down at her from his bed involuntarily shot into her mind. She was overwhelmed by her blush now, the warmth trickling all the way down her neck and up the tips of her ears. Even her knees wobbled a bit. Her hands sprang back up to her temples as she attempted to rattle the thought out of her brain by shaking her head the same way Akamaru shook water from his coat. Her head was tossed back again, bumping the wall with a soft thud as she muffled a scream into her sleeve-covered hands. Stupid! Uchiha!
Her shriek was unexpectedly cut off by an airy squeak when her eyelids jolted open. Please don't tell me Sakura and Ino saw all that… Using her fists to shield her embarrassed face, she surveyed the room. On the right was Ino's chair and desk which was plagued by many folders and records in untidy stacks. On the left was Sakura's area, which was pristine and organized down to the most minute detail. Both areas were adorned by discarded winter coats to denote the girls' recent presence, but much to Hinata's relief, neither kunoichi was sitting in their office seats. She breathed another sigh and slumped against the wall, her biggest supporter at the moment.
As her body relaxed, she spotted something bright and colorful on Sakura's desk. She blinked rapidly in disbelief. On the closest edge of the polished wood was a glass vase containing a stunning, wide bouquet of daffodils. The radiant yellow blooms were tied together by an orange ribbon around their thick stems. Hinata wouldn't have given the flowers a second glance during the springtime but Konoha was in the middle of one of its coldest winters in decades. After years of pressing flowers, she knew that daffodils only bloomed in winter's last months right before spring was ushered in full. Although she had no doubt in the Yamanakas, there was hardly a chance that their greenhouse had daffodils on hand at the end of December. That meant that any daffodils would be ordered from a warmer location like Kusagakure. An order like that had a hefty price attached to it.
Hinata furrowed her brow at the flowers. For some strange reason, the daffodils really seemed to irk her.
Her thoughts were abandoned when the door swung open without warning, causing the Hyuuga to jump in surprise. There in the doorway was Sakura holding a few papers and a styrofoam cup. "Oh, Hinata! So that's why the door was unlocked," she nudged the door shut with her hip after moving into the room, "I thought you didn't work Sundays?" she tilted her head.
Hinata responded with a sheepish smile, juggling her attention between her pink-haired friend and the vase on her desk, "Hi, Sakura-chan. I-I don't, not normally. I'm here in Kotone-san's place."
"Ah," Sakura acknowledged with a nod. She traced Hinata's line of sight back to the golden petals. "Oh, are you looking at the daffodils? Aren't they perfect?" Sakura's cheeks were flushed with a pink as light as her hair and her lips grew into an unrestrained smile. "You know, sometimes life can feel like it's all falling apart," she looked down and paused for a moment to gather her thoughts, "And then it turns out all that pain was really just a blessing in disguise." Sakura beamed at her. She had such a far-off look in her olive eyes that they shimmered like emeralds. Her yearning grin was so wide, Hinata would have thought she was still a lovesick Academy girl, not the Hokage's prized apprentice.
Left speechless and clueless, Hinata averted her gaze back to the bouquet as Sakura waltzed back to her desk. The rosette was only thrown out of her daydream when she noticed Ino's desk and muttered something about the blonde girl's physical inability to keep things neat. Hinata didn't even register her voice. The Hyuuga was stuck in a trance conjured by the seemingly innocent flowers. A haze covered something in the back of her mind. Daffodils… Daffodils…
And then she remembered.
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Another chilling gust of wind rushed past the three shinobi shivering their way home in the dead of the night. Hinata shuddered further into her lavender overcoat as she took the time to wrap her ivory scarf tighter around her neck and lower face. The sake had done an excellent job raising her body temperature a bit, but the warmth provided by the alcoholic drink was no match for one of Konoha's coldest days of the year. Fortunately, the snow had let up before they began their trek home and only the smallest flecks were floating down from the clouds above.
However, Hinata did not actively recognize any of these natural obstacles as her pearlescent eyes were engrossed at the sight of her first crush trudging along beside her. Naruto showcased his cheery disposition for the five minutes they had been walking. He carried the conversation by telling stories about the multiple times his beloved master, Jiraya, got kicked out of a bathhouse for being a pervert. Hinata didn't mind at all. She beamed at him and laughed at every single joke with whole-hearted delight. Despite being drunk, her smile only faltered when she realized that Sakura's face was lost in thought with a permanent frown. Naruto was looking straight ahead and continued talking, oblivious to his teammate's mood. Before Hinata could ask Sakura if she was feeling alright, a sharp voice cut through their conversation.
"Dobe. Sakura."
The three pedestrians snapped out of their step to stop and turn to face the newcomer. A few meters away stood Sasuke with tiny snowflakes adorning his ebony hair, with a minute exhale like he had run a bit to catch up to the group.
"Ehhh? Teme?" Naruto whined, "Don't tell me you're leaving the party early too?"
Sasuke took the opportunity to begin closing the gap between them. Per usual, he ignored the blonde's comments. "I need to speak with you, Sakura."
Naruto's jaw practically hit the floor. "What? Now? You can't just tell Sakura-chan to do whatever you want and expect her to listen to you-"
"Okay," the rosette beauty cut him off. Her brow was low and encroaching on her eyes, giving her a serious and determined look. "Stay here, Naruto. I'll be back in a second." The pair made their way to the right of where Naruto and Hinata were standing, going all the way down the short path and then turning the corner without so much as another word.
Hinata stood there in bewilderment that showed as a hint of confusion in her face. She felt like she had somehow intruded on a Team 7 secret that she wasn't supposed to be aware of. She glanced over to her number one inspiration for guidance. After Naruto blinked a few times in disbelief, Hinata noticed that his expression contorted into one of despair and strangely, hurt. Naruto quickly brushed off this uncharacteristic attitude by letting out a nervous chuckle and springing his arm upwards to scratch the back of his neck. He faced Hinata with an anxious grin. "Sorry 'bout that! Teme forgets how to have manners sometimes. Hehe… Why don't we go sit on that bench over there? We should let our feet rest for a bit, heh." He scratched his neck a bit harder.
Although she was concerned about her crush and one of her closest friends, Hinata decided that it wouldn't be right to ask about the subject when it seemed clear by Naruto's reaction that he wasn't ready to talk about it. Respecting his wishes, Hinata offered her own miniature smile and a nod as her acceptance of his suggestion. Naruto hooked his arm with hers and escorted (well, more like enthusiastically dragged) her to the nearby bench, making her face gleam a bright pink color.
Once they approached the wooden seat, Naruto unhooked their arms to brush the fresh snow off the bench. As they lowered themselves to sit side-by-side, a tranquil stillness filled the air between them punctuated by the occasional howling of the wind. Hinata couldn't help but steal a few peaks at the blonde man beside her. I can't believe I'm with Naruto. All alone. Her cheeks reddened more as her lips gave way to another ditzy grin. She tilted her head downwards so that her indigo hair would block her starstruck appearance from the young man.
A couple more moments of comfortable silence passed between the two. Naruto shuffled in his seat before letting the leg closest to Hinata bounce up and down with nervous energy. He exhaled a soft sigh through his nose before facing her. "Ehh, Hinata? Since we're here, do you mind if I talk to you about something important?"
Hinata's breath hitched in her throat. Her eyes widened and froze into place much like her mouth that had locked into a small "o" position. It's finally happening. Naruto is finally responding to my confession. It's finally happening! Hinata's cheeks flushed an even more violent shade of red.
She took a spare second to flutter her eyelashes before taking a deep breath and schooling her features back into an expression of polite neutrality. Her blush faded away as she straightened her back and turned to meet his gaze. All of those years living in a prestigious clan that prided itself on its members' unreadable and emotionless masks had finally rubbed off on the heiress. "Of course, Naruto-kun," she replied with just the slightest twinkle of awe in her gaze.
Naruto flashed his iconic grin back at her while his leg continued to shake the rickety bench up and down with it. "Well, you see… I…" An airy chuckle escaped his lips. "I've been thinking about something. Which is strange, I know, I don't really ever think about things before doing them, but I was thinking and I realize that there's someone I know who's become precious to me. That's not to say they weren't already precious to me! They always were, it's just that I realize now that they're more precious to me. They're amazingly, especially precious, more than anyone else, and, and-" He took a moment to cease his ramblings. Hinata edged closer to the anxiety-riddled jinchuriki until she was only mere inches away from his face. She was fixated on his cerulean eyes, the same eyes she had often dreamed of. She couldn't help but let her mouth gape slightly in wonder at the man she had adored all her life. Naruto's attention darted away for a split second. His leg stopped. "What I'm trying to say is…"
"I'm in love with Sakura-chan."
Something within Hinata snapped. Although her rigorous political training had prepared her to express no weaknesses in her demeanor no matter the situation, she watched as her entire world came crashing down. Internally, the news had astounded her straight to her core. She could feel the warm sluggishness of the sake slip away from her body as she sobered up in seconds. Her body grew numb with an overwhelming chill spreading from her fingertips all the way up her spine. Her stomach lurched forward as each jittery butterfly was replaced with a block of lead. The air bit at her skin and felt like ice water in her lungs. She wanted to scream, cry, and unleash almost eight years worth of emotional frustration upon him. It was as if her whole being was submerged in ice water. Worst of all, she wanted to drown.
Naruto placed his attention back on her once again. She reacted with a sheepish upward tilt of her mouth. "And I just need advice, you know? I've confessed to Sakura probably more than a hundred times, but this time I really mean it." Hinata dug her nails far into her left hand. "I would've asked Ino, but I didn't want the whole town to know by sunrise. Plus, I know you and Sakura have become close friends recently and I just felt like you would know. You're so kind and you're always taking care of others, always noticing what they like and what they don't like. So, what does she like? How do I ask her out so that she says yes this time?"
She clenched her teeth and shut her eyes to gather her thoughts. When she opened them, she was greeted by a spiky ball of determination. Sure he was nervous, his face was pleading and begging her to give him any information at all to win the Haruno's heart. His leg resumed to bounce at an accelerated pace. But when she dared to meet his stare, all she saw was the hero's unwavering spirit and dedication to his proclaimed love. She saw his nindo in the flesh, his promise to never run away and never go back on his word. A promise that she had always wished would be directed to her someday.
Hinata glanced away so that she was making full eye contact with his jacket collar. "She likes big romantic gestures." Her voice lingered in the frozen air. "Sakura's independent, strong, and she would never confess it to anyone other than her female friends, but… She's a romantic. She likes giant bouquets of flowers. She loves daffodils. She likes fancy dinners, especially from that restaurant by the village square that sells the foreign food from Kumo. Her favorite dessert is dango. Take her somewhere beautiful or meaningful to you. Somewhere outdoors. Plan her a picnic there and get her daffodils." Her throat gulped noiselessly. "But most of all, be honest with her. Tell her everything you're feeling, every little detail about her that makes you cherish her and tell her how willing you are to make her happy every day."
Naruto's eyebrows had risen far beyond their usual position. His surprise swiftly dissipated into his iconic full-fledged grin. He grasped Hinata's hands with a tight squeeze, forcing the Hyuuga to dart her attention to his face one last time. "Thank you, Hinata! I knew you were the right person to ask! I owe you, big time!-"
"You bastard! You heartless bastard!" Sakura wailed, followed by a lingering smack.
The Uzumaki whipped his head around to examine the road his two teammates had traveled down. Hinata was unphased. With only a quick glance in her general direction, Naruto affirmed, "I better go check up on those two. Wait right here." He sprung off the bench and launched into a heavy sprint towards the echoing voice. Hinata craned her head to watch the man she had loved all her life leave her in the dust and take the shattered pieces of her heart with him.
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Hardly any time had passed when Hinata's jaw slacked with shock and the files from her hand slipped. A myriad of papers rained down onto the floor, causing the now sitting Sakura to glance up from her paperwork. "Hinata-chan? Are you okay?"
Hinata hurled her head down before the tears streamed down her cheeks. Her navy hair draped her face as she dropped to her knees to gather the scattered sheets in a hurry. "I-I'm fine," she managed to croak before swallowing a few sobs, "I just forgot something I n-n-needed to do."
As Hinata sprang from the floor, Sakura called out, "I'll see you tomorrow at the ice rink then?" only for the girl to bolt out the door and collide with a firm yet soft surface.
She leaned her head up to be met with dark eyes. For a moment, she was paralyzed. Sasuke caught her by the shoulders, his face warped by the slightest bit of confusion on his usually stern face. But the longer she stared into his deep, all-consuming eyes, she found something she never expected to find: a hint of concern. The normally quiet voice in her head screamed at her to collapse into his arms, to melt at his touch. Something in her head almost clicked into place; it was like a part of her knew his embrace was warm and comforting… She was beyond overwhelmed now. Her vision was blurry with tears and her throat suffocated with uncontrollable sobs. Without a second thought, Hinata ignored the voice and twisted herself free from his soft grip to dash away.
Her head was bowed and her face hidden behind her palms. Her loud footsteps echoed down the vacant passageway before turning into a series of scuffs as she neared the door she was searching for. She pulled the door open and closed it in one swift motion after sliding into the closet. A few broomsticks clattered as she collapsed onto the crowded floor. Leaning forward from the wall, Hinata brought her knees up to her chest and buried her face between her arms. A flood of tears flowed down her face. Her cries were quiet but pained and reverberated in the narrow space. She ran her fingers through her hair, clenching the dark locks in desperation. The agony sent shivers throughout her body and the chilling numbness in her fingers from that night returned. The normal Hinata would listen to the quiet voice in her head, telling her to be kind and supportive of her friends. But the fact that her childhood crush never acknowledged her or her confession after years of waiting left her frozen to the core.
Today is the worst day of my life.
AN: (sorry it's so long there's a TL;DR at the bottom)
First off, I'd like to say thank you to everyone for keeping up with this story and waiting patiently. We've hit over 1000 total views on this fic and I can't tell you how surprised I am.
I'm sorry that the second chapter was messy. I completely forget to mention that there was a flashback in a flashback, and I wish I wrote it in a way that flowed better. As my first multi-chapter fic, I just want to warn you that it will probably continue to be messy. The pacing on this one is faster than I'd like, but I wanted my first fic with chapters to be short and sweet. Kind of like a learning experience, so bear with me.
To clear up some questions, this fic does not exactly follow canon. It's more like an alternative timeline with minor changes, the notable differences being: Neji is alive, Naruto and Sasuke have both arms, Sasuke does not have the Rinnegan, and Sasuke's (techinically Itachi's) eyes are the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan but the damage lies in the overuse of the chakra network connecting the eyes to the rest of his body. Think of it as a transplant symptom and the pathways weren't bonded well enough, like ill-connected or deteriorating wires. The reasons for these changes was just ease of writing as I didn't really want to deal with the exponential power scaling that happens in the War Arc. And also because I like Neji. Thanks so much for your questions because they give me a chance to explain how my crazy brain works.
As for the update schedule, it's going to be every other Saturday from now on. Yes, yes, I know it sucks but I start my first job soon, I started taking medication that has rendered me really sick on some days, and I visited home so my writing schedule is kind of all over the place. But this story will have an ending so don't worry.
TL;DR: Thank you guys for everything, this story has minor changes from canon and will probably continue to be a bit messy, and updates are now every other Saturday.
Fun Fact: I actually lied about the daffodils. Did you know that they can actually survive below freezing? The Yamanakas probably could have been able to grow them, especially in a greenhouse, but I just wanted to add to the amount of effort it would've taken to get them.