A Sorta Fairytale

A/N: Hi peoples! If you guys didn't review, truthfully, I probably wouldn't be typing this right now! So be thankful for those who reviewed, otherwise I would've gotten lazy and not typed at all! I'm really, really sorry I haven't updated in a while, I had to type a lab report and an essay about my teacher walking all in one night (I'm such a procrastinator). And, yes, I did change the title of chapter four.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Chapter Five: Neji's News, TenTen's Tears

TenTen exhaled. Then, slowly, she said, "I. Love. You. And. Have. Ever. Since. We. Were. Genins. Get it?"

Neji was silent. 'On no,' TenTen panicked. 'Something's wrong. He must not love me. If he did he would've said "I love you too, TenTen." And then we'd all be really happy. What's wrong with him?' "Neji-kun?" she finally squeaked out.

Finally he spoke. But what he said was worse than him being silent. "You're really not going to like my news, then."

"Wh-what? What's your news, Neji-kun?" TenTen stammered.

"I'm engaged."

TenTen gasped. "Oh, um . . . congratulations, Neji-kun. Ano. . .who are you engaged to?"

"Egoshi Yukina, of the Egoshi clan."

"Oh, wow," TenTen said softly. The Egoshi Clan was the most prestigious clan of the Lightning Country. Their standards were very high, and they had strict rules. 'Kind of like the Hyuga Clan,' thought TenTen.

Neji snapped her out of her reprise by saying, "They thought it was the least they could do, seeing that we assisted them greatly in their fight with the Wind Country. And because I was the only survivor. . ."

TenTen nodded. 'Oh, yeah,' she remembered. 'It's been less than a week since Neji's return, but it seems like it's been weeks. These past two days have really flown by. Well, that's that. Neji is getting married to a girl that's practically royalty, someone I can't even compete with. If only I hadn't accepted Gaara's proposal . . . I wouldn't be in this mess.'

Neji's POV

'Wow,' he thought. 'What a tangled web the two of us have woven. I shouldn't have waited to see her. I could've gotten to her before that sand freak. Then we wouldn't be in this predicament. I shouldn't tell her how I feel about her. It would complicate things further . . . and I'm getting married. It's too late. For both of us. I have to lie to her. To make sure that this doesn't interfere with my engagement. I can never tell her . . . how I truly feel.' "TenTen," he said hesitatingly, "about what you told me before . . . I don't see you that way. You're my friend . . . my sparring partner. But that's all. I'm sorry." It's easier this way. . .

Normal POV

"O-okay," TenTen said, barely over a whisper. "I-I understand. It would never have worked anyway."

"Yes," said Neji. "Exactly." It's easier like this . . . that way I don't have to deal with this . . . whatever this is . . . whatever it could be . . . because the truth is . . . I've fallen too deep in love with you already . . .

"I have to go," TenTen managed to say as she got up and headed for the door. "I'm really sorry for the trouble, Neji-kun." Her voice cracked, and she hated herself for being so weak.

"No trouble at all," Neji said emotionlessly, as if she hadn't just poured her heart out to him, and if he hadn't just shattered it into a million little pieces.

TenTen nodded and walked out the door. Just like that. Out the door and out of his life. But this time they both knew it: this was the last time. Their last chance. And this time, there was no going back.

Streets of Konoha (With TenTen)

TenTen gasped for breath, but didn't stop running, tears streaming down her face. (A/N: No, not like the anime style thing. This is serious.) Even with all of her chakra directed to her feet, she could only run so fast. Ignoring the looks of sympathy she got from the villagers, she headed toward the old training grounds. She didn't even know why she was heading there, maybe because it was where she had spent her childhood days, training with Team Gai. Maybe it was because it was familiar to her, the place that held the most wonderful memories for her. Whatever it was, she didn't stop running. She had to get there, no matter what. She didn't know why, but she felt like once she got there, everything would be okay. She finally reached their old training spot, sweaty and out of breath.

Suddenly, she heard a voice. A voice she heard way too often. "YOSH! TENTEN, MY YOUTHFUL FLOWER! WHAT BRINGS YOU HERE?"

"Hi, Lee," said TenTen wearily. She had forgotten that Lee still used the training grounds on most days, and she was not in the mood for this. Not right now.

"TENTEN-CHAN! WHAT BRINGS YOU HERE? YOU SHOULD BE ENJOYING YOUR YOUTH! WHY ARE YOU NOT WITH NEJI-KUN?" Then, finally noticing her tears, he asked, "What is wrong, TenTen?"

TenTen sniffed. She really needed to talk to someone, and Lee was here, so why not? "I-I told N-Neji-kun how I felt about him a-and h-he doesn't feel the same way. He-he's getting m-married!" TenTen wailed.

"Oh, TenTen," Lee said, in a much softer tone than he normally, "I'm so sorry! You must feel awful. . ."

"Well, yeah, I do," TenTen admitted. "But there's nothing I can do about it. You can't change the way someone else feels about you. You know that better than anyone, right?"

"YES!" exclaimed Lee, "BUT ONE DAY I WILL PROVE TO SAKURA-SAN THAT I AM WORTHY OF HER LOVE!"

TenTen laughed a little. Normally, Lee would have gotten on her nerves, but today she didn't mind. She just smiled sadly to herself, wondering how Lee could stay so cheerful, and keep hoping that Sakura would someday love him back. TenTen had only gotten shot down once, whereas Sakura had refused Lee hundreds of times. TenTen gave Lee a true, genuine smile this time and said, "Thanks, Lee. For everything."

"YOU ARE WELCOME, TENTEN! MAY THE POWER OF YOUTH SHINE THROUGH!" Lee shouted.

"Umm . . . right," said TenTen slowly. "Well, I'll be going now; I need to get home and cook. I'll see you soon?"

"OF COURSE, TENTEN-CHAN! REMEMBER WHAT GAI-SENSEI ALWAYS SAYS . . ."

"Yeah," came her reply. "Bye."

"GOODBYE, MY YOUTHFUL FLOWER! NOW, I MUST DO ONE THOUSAND PUSH-UPS. IF I CANNOT DO ONE THOUSAND PUSH-UPS, THEN IT WILL BE TWO THOUSAND PUNCHES ON THE PRACTICE DUMMY. AND IF NOT . . ." Lee's voice faded as TenTen walked further and further away from him. She didn't know why, but talking to Lee helped her a lot. Probably because he could empathize so well with how she was feeling, or maybe it was just his cheerful attitude. Of course, she wasn't about to start shouting proclamations of undying love to Neji, but still, now she at least felt hopeful. A little. She'd be okay, and maybe, someday, she'd learn to love again.

A/N: So, yeah, sumimasen (I'm sorry) for the late update, betcha thought I was dead or something, huh? Well, I didn't . . . but I might with all this homework . . . ugh and my scary French teacher that hits people with rulers . . . but at least he's funny . . . kind of. Anyway, see ya in the next chappie!

Luv ya!

xXx, Kyo

But wait, there's more!

Just press the dang button. Seriously, do I need to keep telling you? Are you, like, short term memory loss-ish or whatever it's called? Sheesh. People these days. Just kidding! Really. Don't be mad at me! More reviews mean quicker updates! I'm really serious about that! I'm not just saying that to get reviews, it's true! Also, I really need your constructive criticism, since this is my first fic, and I don't know what I need to work on and stuffs. Just don't flame me!