(AN: Someone signed a review using my screen name, just wanted to let you know that it wasn't me, and I thought it was cute, because I dont think whoever wrote it did it on purpose. But I do appreciate the review very much!!!)
This is part two of their plan for each other. Enjoy
Ino just returned from telling her boyfriend to come by her house no later than 7:30 that evening. She went to the kitchen and turned on the oven to warm up the food while she got ready. She then made her way to her bedroom and took out her towel, underwear, and bra. She took out her tie, and brushed out the knots.
"Hey what are you doing tonight?" she ran up to Shikamaru and grabbed his arm,
"Nothing, why? What do you want to do?" he asked, eyeing her suspiciously.
"I have a surprise for you. Come over tonight, no later than 7:30."
"What surprise?"
Trust me, you'll like it." She kissed him on his cheek and turned to leave. Just as she started to move, Shikamaru grabbed her and pulled her in towards in, kissing her sweetly. Wow. "That was unexpected."
"Surprise."
Ino smiled to herself, recalling the sweet memory of what happened just moments before. She turned to the clock on her nightstand, shocked to see that it was 6:00. Crap. I have to hurry. She quickly jumped into the shower and washed her hair. She quickly finished washing herself and jumped out to grab the hair dryer. Thirty minutes later, she applied her makeup and put her clothes and shoes on. She stood in front of the full-length mirror, and inspected herself. Perfection.
After turning down the temperature in the oven, she started setting up the table and cleaned up, starting on the next part of her plan. At 7:20 there was a knock on the door. Ah, he's the early!! Ino blew out the match she used to light the last candle and walked to the door. She opened it just enough to fit herself through and closed it.
Shikamaru stood in front of Ino, gazing at the beauty that stood before him. The light outside gave her an inexplicable glow as she stood there. "Ino… I… you…" Ino blushed and looked away embarrassed. "What?" She found it amusing how Shikamaru was staring at her, leaving him with no words. "Stop being so shy."
"You look so beautiful." He said finally, admiring the girl who stood before him. She had her hair curled, half it down, the other half up in a tight bun, fastened with small, blue butterfly clips. She was wearing a midnight blue kimono decorated with bright red flowers. A gold heart-shaped locket hung from her neck, the same on Shikamaru got her for her birthday the past year. Under the kimono, she had on tight, black satin pants that complimented her legs. Her butterfly sandals gave her enough height to reach him.
"When you're don't staring, do you think we can go inside?" she finally asked. He merely nodded and took a step towards the door. "Wait!" Ino walked up behind him and placed her hands over his eyes. She smells so good. "Ino, what are you doing? Is this necessary?" She took his hand and walked him inside. "Shh, it's a surprise."
Once inside the house, she uncovered his eyes and stood back to watch his reaction. His eyes were wide as he looked throughout the room. It was covered with lit candles that filled the room with the scent of vanilla and roses. There was a single table in the center of the room, neatly placed with plates, napkins, and silverware. She led him to the table and walked into the kitchen. "Oi, Ino, I really hope you don't burn the house down because of the candles."
"Shut up!" Leave it to Shikamaru to make a comment like that. Geez.
Ino walked back into the room with a tray of food and two glasses of grape juice. Shikamaru raised his eyebrows as he glanced at her confused. "Grape juice?"
"Yes, grape juice. Couldn't afford the good wine, and I didn't want to get a cheap one, so I decided grape juice is just as good. Is there a problem?"
"No, no. Grape juice is fine."
They shared their meal in silence, staring into each other's eyes, holding each other's hand. He helped her clear the table when they finished. As Ino washed the dishes, Shikamaru wrapped his arms around her small waist, and began to kiss her neck. "Shikamaru, let me finish the dishes first." She giggled as goose bumps spread through her body. "Why? We can do them later."
"Because it's only a little bit in here. I'm almost done." He continued kissing her until she finished. He turned her around and held her close, looking into her eyes. "Let's go for a walk."
"A walk? Excuse me? You were just hugging and kissing me, trying to get me stop doing the dishes, and now you want to go for a walk?"
"Yeah." He replied as a playful smirk crossed his face.
"Okay."
He took her coat, blew out the candles, and led her outside. Time for your surprise.
………………….
Ino and Shikamaru walked to the park, and sat down on the bench. They held each other close as they looked up into the stars in the sky. Ino saw a shooting star, so she closed her eyes, and made her wish. She sighed as she rested her head on his shoulders. Shikamaru wrapped his arms tighter around her, kissing her on top of her head. "This is nice." She said as she snuggled in closer to him.
Suddenly, she heard music playing. No, not music, singing. Men singing. Confused, she opened her eyes. Fireflies seem to have appeared all around. It wasn't a lot, but enough to set a mood. She looked down around them, bouquets of brightly, colored wild flowers were surrounding the bench they were sitting on. "What the…" How'd those get there? Ino was looking really confused as she turned to face Shikamaru.
"Ino…"
"Shikamaru, what's going on?"
"Ino, there's something I want to tell you."
"What? Wait, you're not leaving again, are you? You just got back…"
"Ino."
"…and you've barely gotten out of the hospital…"
"Ino."
"…I'm going to have a word with Naruto and Tsunade. They're really going to hear me out…"
"Ino!"
"…because this is getting ridiculous…"
"Ino!" Shikamaru clamped his hand over her mouth. "I'm not leaving. Geez, can I finish what I wanted to tell you?" She nodded and he removed his hand.
"Ino, I wanted to tell you this for a long time, and I never could figure out how to say it. So I figured I'll just tell you straight out, but first I want you read this. It's a little poem I wrote over the years." He reached in his pocket and took out a folded piece of paper. It looked as if it had been opened and re-opened many times. "I take this with me when I go somewhere. Here." Shikamaru handed her the paper.
"Okay."
She unfolded the paper.
My first, my last, my everything,
And the answer to all my dreams.
You're my sun, my moon, my guiding star.
My kind of wonderful, that's what you are.
I know there's only one like you
There's no way they could have made two.
You're all I'm living for
Your love I'll keep forevermore.
You're the first, my last, my everything.
In you I've found so many things,
A love so new, only you could bring.
Can't you see if you,
You'll make me feel this way,
You're like a first morning dew on a brand new day.
I see so many ways that I can love you,
'Till the day I die....
You're my reality, yet I'm lost in a dream.
You're my first, my last, my everything.
I know there's only one, only one like you
There's no way they could have made two.
You're the first, you're the last, my everything.
Ino looked up to Shikamaru with tears in her eyes. "That was so sweet. And so very unlike you to express so much. I love you."
Shikamaru took Ino's hands and held them close to his heart.
"Ino. I love you, but you already knew that. You're everything I could ever ask for. My heart skips a beat when I see you smile. I get butterflies every time I think about you. When I was away, half of me was missing because you weren't there. I hated every time that I had to leave. But knowing that I would be coming home to you made me that much stronger, so I would finish that much quicker. Ino, I love you. I want to spend my life with you. I want you to be the pillow I come home to."
Shikamaru pulled out a small box and opened it. Inside was a silver band with a single, pear-shaped diamond. He took it out and held it to her. "Ino, will you marry me?" Ino looked up to him with tears in her clear eyes. She took the ring from him and slid it on her finger. She then embraced him tightly. "Oh yes, Shikamaru! Yes!" she said through her joyful tears.
Naruto held Sakura closer as they watched their friends from a distance. "Why can't you be like that, Naruto?"
"I am, I just have a different way of showing it." He gently kissed her and held her lovingly.
Kiba and Hinata, and Lee and Ten-Ten looked much the same, taking in the romantic atmosphere. Ten-Ten looked at the guys, "I didn't know you guys could sing so well." The boys blushed a deep red color. "Yeah, well…" replied Naruto as he scratched the back of his head.
Neji, Chouji, and Shino saw back and smiled. "There's going to be a wedding soon."
"Whoa, that's the second time I heard you speak today."
I know this was probably too... uh... sweet for some people, but I wanted to do that. Wanted to show the romantic side of the guys. This is actually the last chapter of the story, but there is an epilogue coming soon. I think you'll like it. Please review, the more reviews I get, the more I'll write. I promise. I'm going to wait until i certain number of reviews before I post up the next update. :) I'm kidding.
P.S. The poem is actually a song by the great Barry White, My Everything. (i love me some Barry .... in a non-weird sort of way)
Epilogue Coming Soon