Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any characters from Naruto.
She looked back at him with a look in her eyes he couldn't quite read. It was a mix of disappointment, hurt, surprise and wanting. Neji didn't know what to make of it, and he wished she would just talk to him.
But she wouldn't, because she couldn't bring herself to tell him she was engaged to someone else…
Tenten was back at home, in bed, not sleeping. She was lying awake thinking. She truly wished that she could fall asleep so that she would have some peace from these thoughts. Neji had walked her home just like he always did. And the two of them had been quiet the whole way, like they were most of the time.
But this was different somehow. He wanted her to open up and vent like she had so many times before. This time she just couldn't. Most girls would love to be in this situation, it was the next best thing to being a real Princess except for this whole-arranged marriage thing. That was the part she couldn't stand, the part she couldn't tell Neji. Because he was why she didn't want to be the daughter of the Tenkage, and that was something she couldn't just come out and say.
Then she'd come home and her Father had decided to take her out to lunch the next day. He said he wanted to finally get to know her, and make up for lost time. Tenten was actually looking forward to that. She had never had a Father figure in her life before, and now here he was. Of course things could get complicated, him being well known and all. But she would finally get to know her Dad, and that would be worth it.
At the restaurant they were given a private booth, so that they were less likely to be disturbed. Tenten was placed with the better view of the rest of the restaurant while Amaku had his back to them. They had hoped this would keep him from being recognized.
Meanwhile, at the other side of the restaurant, there was a big family birthday party for their prodigy. It was Neji's special day and he'd been allowed to chose the restaurant and invite friends if he'd wanted. Of course, he only really wanted Tenten there but wasn't sure how she'd take the invitation. In the end he decided to play it safe and only invite family like Hinata had for her birthday (until they saw Sasuke but that's another story :D).
Back to Tenten…"So, Amaku-san," Tenten started.
"Please, if you use my name just call me Amaku," He said, understanding that it would be a stretch to ask her to call him 'Dad'.
"Sorry Amaku, but I was wondering what it's like where you're from," She asked.
"Well, we're famous for our swords-"
"Really? I'd love to see them!"
"Oh I'd love to show you my collection, I didn't know you liked weaponry,"
"It's my specialty!" Tenten replied with glee.
"I may have to teach you the Takashi sword technique then," He smiled at her, and she nodded enthusiastically. It finally felt all right to smile after the shock of yesterday.
Back to Neji…Neji scanned the restaurant as they entered more from habit then anything else. When learning to use byakuugan he'd look at everything to get used to the feel. As he looked around the restaurant he saw a familiar face; Tenten was sitting in the back at a booth. He was about to go over and invite her and her companion to join their party when he saw that it wasn't her Mother there with her.
It was a man, about Hiashi's height, that was sitting there with her. Neji could only see the back of his head, but felt like that didn't matter. Tenten was sitting there smiling, and talking to this man openly. Neji felt his spirit's droop as he looked at her, she couldn't open up to him yesterday but she could talk to whoever this man was.
The truth had finally dawned on him; they were just friends. And whoever was with her now was much more.
Tenten was at home talking with her parents happily, feeling like a load had been lifted off of her shoulders. Even if she had to marry a stranger, she finally had a Father. That was worth more to her than anyone could imagine. Besides, Neji could always come visit her, or she could visit him. They would definitely keep in touch, she was sure of it.
"Tenten, can you get the groceries?" Her Mother called from the kitchen.
"Why? I did it last time?" Tenten complained.
"I promise I'll do it next time, please Tenten?"
Tenten groaned and finally took the list from her Mother. She set out at a slow pace, having nothing she needed to be on time for today. It was a pretty autumn day, all of the leaves were showing off their loveliest colors for the season. Tenten smiled as she saw Naruto run by with his following of children from the academy, it seemed like everything was back to normal in some strange way to her. She was finally adjusting to the idea of being the daughter of the Tenkage.
But then she walked into the store, and everything began to happen at once. She set about her shopping like normal, not noticing the stares from people she knew and didn't know alike. Then she got to the check out, and things got really weird.
"Look, it's Tenten!" Ino said and ran over, closely followed by Sakura. "We just heard the news, congratulations." She was smiling just a little too much for Tenten's comfort.
"When did you find out?" Sakura wanted to know.
"What…Are you talking about?" Tenten asked but they ignored her and kept asking strange questions. And as if out of nowhere, people started crowding around her. She tried to get to the check out but she couldn't get past the horde. Tenten was starting to panic when suddenly she was being yanked away from the crowd. Someone had taken her hand and was now pulling her out of the store. As they cleared the store, they picked up speed and ran away from the crowds of downtown Konoha. It was then that Tenten realized who had helped her, it was Neji.
They reached the top of a hill near her house, and he let go of her hand so abruptly that she stumbled. He seemed to be on edge for some reason, but she was grateful all the same.
"Thank you, Neji, I don't know what was going on in there," Tenten put down the groceries that they had run out with and looked at him. He had his back to her and seemed unable to reply.
"Is something wrong?" She asked, and that got a reaction.
"'Is something wrong?' Why didn't you tell me? First I see you yesterday with some guy, and now I find this out?" He thrust a paper at her, returning to his indifferent state after the outburst. Tenten blinked in surprise and then looked down at the paper. It was a tabloid and there was a front page picture of her next to one of Tenkage, describing her current situation.
'Great… Now he knows…' Tenten thought.
A/N: And now I'm going to leave you hanging, I have most of the chapters written because I had a spark of inspiration last night. This also means I can either be nice or wait a very long time to update... Please review and no flames please!