Thank you, dear fangirls! – part 2

All alone, Naruto slurped down a bowl of instant ramen. He was depressed. Not even the ichiraku was open on christmas. He had nowhere to go. It was about 8 pm now, the party was most likely over, and even if it wasn't, he definitely wouldn't go back there. Not after he had stormed out of the room with a brilliantly red head clutching his mouth.

God, how embarassing.

With a sigh, he stared out of the window. The people out there were celebrating right now. Unwrapping gifts, singing songs and having fun with their families. He had no parents, no siblings, and probably after that kiss, he had no friends any more. Sakura was going to kill him. Sasuke was going to kill him. Well, they better do it quick, so he didn't have to bear the loneliness of a christmas evening all by himself.

There was a knock on his door and he lifted his head. Who could that be? Iruka was out on a mission and no one else would find the time to visit him on christmas eve. Yet, there it was again, an impatient knock on his door. A small smile played on his lips. Whoever it was, he would make them his new best friend.

When he unlocked and opened the door, he was taken by surprise though. "I-Ino…", he muttered. Ino stared at him, fire blazing from her eyes. He noticed a few other girls behind the scary girl and Naruto knew he was dead.

"Na… ru… toooooo!", Ino growled and stepped into the room before he could slam the door shut. Half a dozen other girls followed her and slowly, they surrounded a trembling Naruto. He could handle any enemy, but furious fangirls were really scary.

He said, "Girls, I… I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to kiss him, it was an accident, I swear!" The girls came closer and Naruto shrieked: "Oh god! HELP!!!"

There was a yelp and then Ino yelled: "Tie him down! This time, we're going to avenge our beloved Sasuke-kun!!!"

***

When Sasuke walked up the stairs, he started to wonder if it had been a good idea to come here. Maybe he should have taken Sakura's offer instead of visiting Naruto, of all people. But he didn't feel like watching a happy family. And he couldn't stay at home because of that damned heating, it had been so freezing cold that even he hadn't been able to ignore it. Naruto was the only one who didn't have a family either. He surely wasn't celebrating this stupid holiday. Sasuke would just ask the blonde ninja to let him sleep on his couch for a few days. He could handle that.

What he couldn't handle was the sight he was greeted with when he pushed open the door. Sasukes eyes widened. In the middle of the room, there was Naruto. Tied neatly to a chair. He was wiggling effortlessly against the ropes and muffling curses beneath the duct tape over his mouth.

Sasuke closed the door and walked up to Naruto. He grabbed an edge of the duct tape and ripped it off cruelly. "GAAAAAAH!! Sasuke, you bastard!!", Naruto yelled. „That hurt!!"

„Wuss," Sasuke muttered. „Would you care to explain what happened?" Stubbornly, Naruto looked away. Sasuke grinned and folded his arms across his chest. "Well, I have a lot of time. I won't untie you until you tell me."

"Okay, OKAY!", Naruto growled. "Ino and some other of your stupid fangirls did it, okay?! They were angry cause I… kissed you…"

"A-ah.." Sasuke muttered. He noticed the faint blush on Narutos cheeks. So that kiss was the cause of this. Sasuke decided that he was going to have a talk with those girls after the holidays. He couldn't have Naruto harrassed by them.

"I told you what happened, so will you untie me now?", Naruto complained.

Sasuke reached out to untie his friend, when a thought came to his mind. Naruto was unable to move. Maybe this was his chance. His only chance. Naruto wouldn't be able to hit him or run away. He was forced to listen. "No." He knew it was a big mistake.

"WHAT? Sasuke, you bastard!"

Sasuke took a step closer to his friend. "Naruto, I need to tell you something first." He bent down until he was at about eye-level with the tied-up boy. Sasuke placed his fingers around Narutos chin and tilted his head up a bit. And then he leaned in to place a soft kiss on the blonde's lips.

***

Smile for me – part 2

Sakura was seated on the couch and eyed Kakashis apartment curiously. It was surprisingly clean and she was uncomfortably reminded of Sasuke's rooms. There was no christmas decoration in here either. But this room isn't as cold as Sasuke's room. Although there are not many private things in here either, there is a certain feeling of warmth to this place. It feels like someone is living in here, other than Sasuke's apartment which always appears like it's been abandoned weeks ago.

Kakashi returned from the kitchen and handed her a cup of tea. She thanked him with a warm smile.

He sat down next to Sakura. "So, are you going to tell me why you're all alone on Christmas evening, crying your eyes out?"

Embarassed, Sakuras head dropped. She didn't want Kakashi to see her crying. And she didn't want to talk about her silly problems. He was going to laugh about her ridiculous little teenager problems. Kakashi never took anything seriously. He said: "It's because of Sasuke, right?"

Slowly, she nodded. And the words just spilled out of her. "I decided to give up on Sasuke-kun. He's… in love with someone else."

She buried her head in her hands. Tears came to her eyes once again and rolled down her cheeks. She didn't want to cry in front of her teacher. But she couldn't stop herself. It hurt. It hurt to know that she could never be with him. The couch shifted as Kakashi came closer to her. When his hand touched her shoulder, she winced.

***

Kakashi felt a sudden wave of sympathy wash over him as he saw her crying. So she had finally understood that Sasuke didn't return her feelings. The Uchiha boy was so obviously in love with Naruto, even Kakashi had noticed it. And he wasn't exactly the sensitive type.

He shifted closer to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. She winced and stared at him with wide eyes. He smiled beneath his mask and said, "Don't cry, Sakura. Sasuke may not love you, but you mean a lot to him as a friend. And Naruto is your friend too. You should go home and celebrate this evening with your family."

She shook her head no. "I don't want to go home like this. They would just ask questions and I cannot face that right now."

Her face was flushed and her eyes were red and puffy, and yet Kakashi couldn't help but find her utterly attractive. She was not only cute. It was today that he realized she had grown into a young woman. Kakashi sighed inwardly. He definitely had a weakness for sad young girls and he was far from unselfish when he said softly: "Then stay with me for a while."

Her green eyes stared at him. "Really? D-don't you have anything else planned?"

"Nah, I was going to have a relaxed evening and read a little."

Her eyes filled with tears once again and then she threw her arms around his neck, pressing her face against his broad chest. At first, Kakashi was taken aback, but then he hugged her and let her cry. "K-Kakashi-sensei…," she whimpered. "Why doesn't he love me? Am I that ugly? Why can't I compare to Naruto?"

He stroke her back softly. "No, Sakura, you're a beautiful young woman."

She sniffed. "T-Thanks…" She lifted her head to look at him and Kakashi just couldn't resist the urge. He pulled down his mask which intensified the surprised look on her face, and then he kissed away a tear from her cheek. She was just too cute.

He kissed the same spot again and then moved down, placing small kisses on her soft skin until he reached her mouth, where he hesitated for a moment. This wasn't right. She was his student. And probably she was going to slap him and run away if he went that far.

But her eyes were half-closed and the tears had stopped. Against all reason, Kakashi closed the distance and kissed her on the lips.

***

Don't call me brother – part 2

Neji was so lost in thoughts that he didn't even hear the soft knock on his door. The door opened and a shy voice asked into the room: "Neji-niisan? C-can I come in?"

"Hn." He recognized her voice even before the door was pushed open.

She entered the room. "Neji-niisan, it's a pity you disappeared so quickly. I… I didn't have time to give you my christmas gift."

Neji rolled his eyes. Another present? He didn't want any of those. He just wanted to be left alone. But Hinata walked over to his bed where he was seated and placed something next to him. She stared at it blankly. It was a golden cage. And inside, there was a bird, as white as snow. "What is that?", Neji eyed his "present".

"I bought the poor thing at the market," Hinata replied. "It reminded me of you. A bird in a cage."

He shook his head. "I don't have time to take care of an animal. I'm always out on a mission."

"I know," Hinata replied. "I thought we could set it free when it's a little less cold outside." She took a deep breath and then she said: "It doesn't belong into a cage. It should be free, that's why I gave you this present. Because you are a caged bird as well. You need to be free too."

Neji searched for something mean to say, but he couldn't find any words. She was right. It was a thoughtful gift, in fact, it was a symbol to show him that she understood his dream of freedom. He opened the gate of the cage slightly and stroke the bird with a finger. It thanked him with a chirp. He smiled slightly at her and said: "Thank you, Hinata-sama."

A blush spread on her cheeks and she avoided his gaze.

***

Hinata was relieved to see an honest smile on Neji's face. It was what she admired about her cousin. He was always honest, in his words, his actions and his body language. He was the opposite of her, strong-willed and self-confident on the outside, and yet there was still a child beneath all of that, a crying child who had lost his father.

"Hinata-sama," he said and startled her. "Why are you here instead of celebrating with your family?"

"I didn't want you to be lonely."

"Why do you care?"

"I like you, Neji-niisan. I wish you could have been my brother, able to be the Hyuga heir. Then maybe you wouldn't have hated me, Neji-niisan." She didn't know why she was saying this. But he listened to her quietly, without interrupting her. No emotion could be seen on his handsome features. "You are… stronger than me. I'm a failure but you're the Hyuga prodigy. I want to be at least a little like you."

His brows furrowed and Hinata realized that she had said a little too much. "D-don't hate me, Neji-niisan. I like you much much better when you smile."

She spun around to leave the room, but before she reached the door, he grabbed her by her wrist. His touch sent shivers down her spine. And then she heard his soft voice. "I don't hate you, Hinata-sama." God, what was happening to her? His touch made her feel so… good and warm… She turned her head to look at him. Something in his eyes had changed.

"Neji-niisan…"

"Hinata-sama. I would never want to be your brother. Because…" He let go of her hand all of a sudden, as if he was taken aback by his own actions. "You should leave now, Hinata-sama. Because if you don't, I might do something wrong."

Hinata nodded sadly. For just a moment she had thought he was about to tell her that… no, impossible! Neji didn't have any feelings for her, right? She grabbed the doorknob, but then she made up her mind. She didn't want to be a coward. He meant a lot to her. And if he didn't have the courage to say it, she was going to. Even if he was going to hate her afterwards. "No," she said determinedly. Hinata turned around and forced herself to look straight into his eyes. "Neji-niisan. I have to tell you something!"

…tbc…