Chapter Two (edited)

Tenten was sitting in front of a table looking at her own reflex on the liquid surface of the now cold green tea. She sighed for the tenth time and took a sip. It was Saturday afternoon, she was with the girls at Konoha's odango shop eating some dumplings. They made it a tradition to hang out and chat at least once a month, this way they could keep the conversation up to date and relax a bit from work. They used to talk about various subjects like how the village was growing, family and friends, common interests they shared, typical female stuff, work, among others. That day the main subject was Hinata's wedding. Yesterday all their friends had gathered to celebrate Hinata and Naruto's union in the centre of the village. However, Tenten's mind was busy thinking about something else which required urgent demystification so, she couldn't keep up with her friend's conversation about the upcoming honeymoon. Her brain energy was focused on trying to remember what she did the night before to end up half-naked on Lee's apartment bed. The thought of Lee's muscular body crossed her mind and her ears turned pink.

"Tenten?" Someone shoved her and waved a hand in front of her face. "Tenten!" Ino raised her voice.

She snapped out of her thought loop and looked at the blonde girl sitting next to her. "Y-yes?"

Ino flashed her a suspicious look.

"You're awfully quiet today and keep on spacing out."

Tenten rolled her eyes and start fidgeting with her fingers.

"Did something happen?" Asked Sakura who was sitting on the other side of the table, facing her.

Her eyes fluctuated between Sakura and Ino, several times. Should I tell them?

"No, I'm fine." She chuckled and starched the back of her head. "Everything's fine." The three girls looked at her in clear disbelief. "What?"

Ino frowned and leaned her elbows on the table.

"Do you really think you can fool us, Tenten?" She pressed.

Tenten stared at them, trying to find a clever excuse for her odd behaviour. After some inner panicking she decided on speaking the truth because her brain was about to explode from overthinking the situation. She sighed deeply, defeated.

"I can't stop thinking about yesterday…" She confessed, biting her lower lip. Well, I guess I could use some advice…

"Yesterday?" Said Hinata, with a shooting but confused voice.

Ino got closer, impatiently waiting for an explanation.

"Why? What happened?"

"Well…" Tenten sighed again. "Do you remember that high-quality sake they poured us at Hinata's engagement party?" All the three nodded "Well…" Tenten's cheeks were suddenly kissed pink. "Thanks to that I woke up in Lee's apartment bed and I can't remember a single thing that happened…" Her voice's volume decreased gradually as she finished the phrase.

Heavy silence. Then…

"WHAT?!" Cried Sakura and Ino in unison making the dishes jump while leaning abruptly on the table. All costumers in the shop turned their heads surprised. Hinata was too shocked to speak.

I knew shouldn't have told them…

"Shhhh! Don't talk so loud!" Tenten put a finger on her lips, wishing for the earth to swallow her up. Now all shop's eyes were glued on them. Great…, she thought annoyed.

Ino, who couldn't control her astonishment at Tenten's statement, quickly grabbed her friends' hands.

"Are you pulling my leg?"

The brunette rolled her eyes annoyed.

"Do I look like I'm pulling your leg?" She grumbled pissed, wishing she had kept her mouth shut about the subject.

The blondie took some time to compose herself again.

"No way!" Ino's expression changed and she gave her a naughty glance while lurching back on her chair. "So, how was he? You know what I mean…" A wide smirk spread across her face.

Tenten's own private thoughts made her blush. It wasn't a soft pink like a healthy outdoors glow, it was beet red. Then the blushing made her blush harder until she was scarlet and roasting hot. "D-didn't I say I DON'T remember anything!" She crossed her arms and looked away flustered. "Stop asking weird questions!"

Ino snickered amused. "What a shame!" She dramatized. "You like him for such a long time, and you don't even remember your first time." She teased, merciless. Tenten felt a sudden sharp pang of embarrassment spreading through her body. Was it too late to take back her confession?

"I hope you used protection. You don't want an unexpected pregnancy." Said Sakura in a doctor's tone. Tenten swallowed, self-conscious that if Lee and she really did something that night, she should watch her menstrual cycle for the next few weeks.

"I think my father would've got really angry if I got pregnant before the wedding." Mumbled Hinata.

The anger that boiled, as hot as lava, deep in Tenten's system exploded.

"Thank you, girls! I feel so reassured now." She gave them a sarcastic smile that quickly swift to a pissed off look. The girls understood they went overboard whit their remarks about the situation.

"Sorry…" They apologized in unison.

After a minute of silence, Sakura looked at her with hope lightening her eyes and suggested: "Maybe your memory will come back if you retrace your steps from when you left Hinata's wedding party to Lee-san's house."

Ino nodded in agreement. "Yes, maybe you can go with Hinata to where the wedding party took place and try to remember the last things you did before leaving it." She said, feeling a bit excited and certainly very curious.

Tenten sighed, feeling powerless, and glanced at Hinata.

"Well, I can give it a try…"

000

"…998, 999, 1000!"

Lee dropped to the ground and rolled over his body to look up at the sky. The green grass was touching his back gently and he could feel the wind blowing over him, tousling his black hair. He ran his hand across his forehead, tears of sweat ran down his face and body. He had been exercising non-stop the whole afternoon since the morning's crazy mishap with his teammate. Lee still couldn't believe what happened in the morning was real. Did Tenten really sleep on his bed all night long? Did… did they touch each other? Damn! He flushed frustrated. I can't think about this now, I have to focus. Yes, focus! Lee shook his head in an effort to empty his mind, he needed to clear it from such distracting thoughts and feelings, so he stood up at a glance and started to do handstand push-ups with only his thumbs.

"1, 2, 3, 4…"

While Lee was busy keeping Tenten and her youthful body out of his mind, two other ninjas stepped into the training fields. One with a shiny bowl-style haircut and remarkably thick eyebrows was sitting in a wheelchair, while the one with spiky silver hair oriented to his left-side was pushing it from behind.

"Hm, working hard as usual." remarked the one who half-covered his face with a mask, putting his hand on his chin.

"That's my Lee! Hahaha!" Guffawed the other one enthusiastically and gave him a shiny smile that could eclipse the sun. The silver-haired ninja sweat dropped.

"… 30, 31, 32…" Lee increased the speed of his handstand push-ups, but suddenly an image popped up in his mind making him fall to the ground. "Argh! Why am I thinking about her legs now?!" He cried rubbing his hair flustered and quickly switched to sit-ups.

Both ninjas glanced at each other utterly confused with his last line. Legs? What could he mean by that? The ninja on the wheelchair approached Lee, but he didn't notice his presence, too focused he was on his training.

"Lee?"

"…20, 21, 22…" He was drenched in sweat.

"Lee?"

"… 26, 27, 28, 2-"

"LEE?!" The man shouted at the top of his lungs making Lee's heart jump out of his mouth on alarm.

"Waaah-! Gai-sensei?!" Lee quickly stood up and scratched the back of his head. "I-I'm so sorry I didn't hear you!" From the corner of his eye, he noticed another person standing behind him. "Ah! Kakashi-sensei!"

"Yo." The last one gave him a faint smile and lifted his right hand to greet him.

Maito Gai placed his hands on his hips and gave him a displeased look.

"Lee, what kind of unyouthful alertness is that?" He scolded "What if I and Kakashi were spying enemies from another village?"

Lee's body stiffed and he bowed several times.

"I'm so sorry Gai-sensei!" He cried.

"You'd better…" Continued his sensei, but Lee stopped listening after he spotted an Icha Icha novel volume on Kakashi's hands.

Lee had never read any volume of the series, but he was aware that its content was about the passionate love between man and women. Passionate love… His thoughts automatically flew back to a half-naked Tenten sleeping on his bed. Argh! What's happening to me?! I'm going crazy!

"LEE?!" A clenched fist collided with his face and his body crossed the air until he fell on the ground some meters away from the spot he was standing seconds ago. "Are you listening to me?!" Shouted Maito Gai. Lee ran his hand across his face and found his nose was bleeding.

Kakashi who was reading his book was taken aback by his friend's action. Poor fellow…

"Aren't you overreacting a bit Gai?" He crossed his arms in front of his chest. "To me, it seems like something is deeply troubling your student." Gai frowned and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Hmm. Now that you mention it, he was muttering something about legs."

"If I didn't mishear, I think he said something like: thinking about her legs."

Gai blinked twice.

"Her legs?"

"Her legs." Emphasized Kakashi.

Maito Gai looked back at his pupil who was pinching his nose to stop the nosebleed and observed him. He was training shirtless, which wasn't customary, he had been speaking weird things out loud, his ninja alertness was very loosened, his focus of attention was definitively somewhere else.

"Lee, did something happen?" Lee looked at his sensei and blushed.

"Ah, no! Nothing happened!" He chuckled and shook his head embarrassed.

You're the most unyoutful liar I met. Gai-sensei sighed.

"Common Lee, you think you can fool your sensei!"

"No!" He exclaimed "I-it's not that I'm trying to fool you! I-it's just… erm…" Lee tried to make up an excuse that would explain his odd behaviour, but his brain wasn't showing signs of wanting to cooperate.

"Does it have to do with her legs?"

"W-what?!" Lee almost jumped from embarrassment after hearing those words. Did I say that out loud?!

Gai-sensei placed his hand on his knees and gave him a black look.

"I'm not leaving until you fess up!"

Lee gulped and looked up at Kakashi-sensei silently asking for help, but the silver-haired ninja only shrugged. He couldn't deny he was a bit curious too.

"So…?" Insisted Maito Gai.

Lee knew it was his defeat, but even so how could he explain such an awkward moment of his life so nonchalantly?

"Erm, well…" He began. "Cannot we just let this go?" He tried but was welcomed with a scowl. Lee rubbed his head. "Ok, ok!" He chuckled sheepishly. "Well, it's just that this morning was a bit… crazy."

"Crazy?" Gai frowned.

"Y-yes, hahaha!" Lee's face turned red, and he took a deep breath before saying the most embarrassing description from his mouth. "W-well, it's not every day you wake up with an unexpected person sleeping half-naked in your bed…" Did I really say that? He just wanted to dig a hole and die.

Gai-sensei and Kakashi blinked twice and then opened their mouths dumbfounded.

"W-what?" Babbled the first one. "You s-slept with someone?" Gai couldn't believe his Lee took the step to adulthood.

"No! I-I mean, I'm not sure. It's just that, that I don't remember…" His voice volume decreased as he spoke.

"You don't remember? What do you mean?"

Lee looked at him heart-broken and pouted.

"Gai-sensei what should I do?!" He cried, tears running down his eyes. "What if I dishonoured Tenten?!" He sobbed and kneeled at his sensei feet pleading for a solution.

"Tenten?!" Exclaimed Gai and Kakashi.

"What about my lotus flower?" Asked Gai surprised.

"I think I s-slept with her…" All his body heated-up after pronouncing those words. "I-I mean, I'm not sure, but she was definitively sleeping beside me this morning…"

I should get out of here…, thought Kakashi to himself, I feel like I'm watching some kind of tv drama. He didn't sign up for a young adult drama show when he decided to spend part of his only day off from his Hokage's duties with his friend.

Maito Gai couldn't believe what he was hearing. Did their two beloved students really achieve the full blossom of youth? Bellow his astonishment some overjoyed feelings reached the surface. He knew they had become even closer after his unfortunate teammate's death and he was also aware of his lotus flower crush on his pupil. Even though she never said anything he had been conscious of it from some time now, but he had never seen her trying to make her feelings clear. Maybe Naruto and Hinata's wedding had made her think about confessing her secret love. Even so, he still agreed that sleeping together was a bit of a rushed first step.

"Lee, how can you not remember your first time?"

Lee felt like someone had suddenly turned on an internal heater inside his system, and made his skin turn red as a beetroot. He just wanted the earth to open and swallow him whole.

"Lee?"

"Gwaaah! I don't know! I'm going crazy trying to remember something!" He cried and scratched his head enthusiastically.

Gai-sensei put his hands on his pupils' shoulders and looked at him very seriously.

"Lee, you couldn't possibly have been drunk, right?" Lee looked up at his sensei unsteady. "I specially told Tenten to make sure you didn't touch a single drop of alcohol."

Lee frowned at the uncertainty.

"I don't remember having any alcohol." He mumbled, hesitant.

"Lee, you have to investigate!"

And here we go again… Kakashi sighed and opened his book.

I'm so sorry for the late UpToDate! ^^"

PLEASE REVIEW!

Celo: You're totally right, I switched their names. Thanks for pointing it out, I already corrected it! And regarding your question, well you'll have to wait one more chapter to discover it X3

Guest: I'm sorry for the late UpToDate, I had a bit of a writing-block but I'm back. And don't worry I'm not planning on abandoning this fanfic. I'm going to finish it.