*Continuing from chapter 16
(S) Unshrouded
Feeling swept off her feet by the view, Hinata holds on to the door frame and takes a deep breath.
As she inhales, her nostrils fill with the wondrous scent of the dazzling flora, all tucked in several small pots, neatly lining every inch of her office. The deliberate arrangement guides her eyes from the corners of the room patterned with chrysanthemums and lilies to the orchids and dahlias on her filling cabinets then finally leaving her imbued with delectation as her pupils set onto her desk littered with tulips, carnations, and without question her favorite, white lion daffodils.
An ache develops in her jaw from being kept agape as a result of the sight, and Hinata closes her mouth and slowly steps inside. With the onset of pleasant memories rushing to her of mornings spent gardening with her late mother as a child, she approaches her desk now with a bright but trembling smile and increasingly soggy eyes.
She clears her vision as she stands in front of her desk and gently touches the petals of her most cherished blossom and instantly remembers the warming embrace of motherly affection from back then. While sauntering around the room giving each plant some attention, her mind drifts above clouds as she reminisces, causing her pained jaw to widen once again from being unable to hide the copious avidity taking hold.
Now with ecstatically vivid eyes, feelings from her discussion with Sasuke quickly get superseded and Hinata excitedly takes a seat in preparation to thank the only person she thinks is responsible for the mystifying spectacle.
Though dumfounded that Naruto got so many of her preferred ones correctly this time in one fair swoop she's far more impressed by his enchanting attempt. However, As she's about to take hold of her phone's handle Anko buzzes and informs her of the arrival of a friend anxiously wanting to talk, and with her mind still soaring high above the ground, Hinata instructs her to send him up without pause.
She stands and lightly runs her fingers through her ponytail. Priming herself to greet who she can only assume is the very thoughtful person who has returned to receive his reward in the flesh.
After a few minutes, there is a soft knock on her door and Hinata walks over smiling jubilantly to let in her guest.
Speaking with a joyful giggle in her tone she begins to open it.
"If you came with more I'm warning you, I'll have to-"
Suddenly with a loud gasp her sentence ends abruptly, and following suit her heart's thumping becomes deathly faint as though her blood is freezing over.
Not only is the person at the door not who she expected but it was no friend she would ever be enthused to see. After all, the man before her was the trigger that set off the arduous tribulation she had found herself wading through alone.
Hinata's breathing stops as earlier thoughts elevate themselves due to the disturbing presence.
Then remembering where she is and feeling just about ready to burst into flames, she uses a few seconds to reclaim a controlled frame of mind and lets out the air that was stifling her lungs with a loud incensed sigh.
He begins reticently "Long time no-,"
"How dare you show your face here," she interrupts in a low but sharp tone.
In quick successions, he tepidly tries to explain "I'm sorry but I had no other way to reach you, I've been trying to get a hold of you for weeks so I had no other choice but to come here. I wanted-"
Having exhausted her patience quota a few minutes earlier she interposes again.
"Whatever it is save it, just leave."
With flared nostrils and a scornful grimace, she begins to shut the door when he pushes against it. He places his arm on the door and his foot in the jam in an attempt to keep it open as he talks.
"Please can't we talk for a sec?"
"Absolutely not!" she expresses in a louder voice.
He sighs at the hostile admonition of one of his oldest friends but tries to give his news to her nonetheless.
"Hinata I did-"
"Get out Kiba! I don't want to hear it," she cuts in brutishly while using the weight of her body to try to nudge the door close.
Trying to calm her down was like water on a grease fire and finally having enough of his foot being smushed he decides to blurt out his reason for coming.
"I did an interview about the affair."
Hinata lets go of the door to quickly cover her mouth and Kiba steps inside and closes it. He sighs nervously while wiping his face and Hinata stares at him speechlessly with tears taking their place in the corners of her now burning hateful eyes.
"I'm leaving town and I just had to tell you before it got released."
Removing her trembling hands from her lips, Hinata releases a gut wrenching groan from having been suddenly stabbed by a hoard of painful memories.
Meanwhile, Kiba closes his eyes and as he thinks about how to approach clarifying himself, he's suddenly pummelled with fists from an outraged Hinata.
"WHY!" she screams ferociously.
He holds her wrists but one of her hands breaks from his grasp and continues to strike him, filled with determination to break his ribcage from rehashing her nightmare in the public eye.
"Hinata stop,"
"What is wrong with you?!" she cries tiredly.
Feeling remorseful he allows her to beat him with one hand while he softly speaks.
"Please stop just listen to me,"
When his request goes unheard for several more minutes he holds her other wrist then says sincerely.
"I did it for you,"
Hinata yanks her fists back and stares at him with clouded eyes, dazed as she tilts her head side to side sorrowfully.
She responds in a hush "For me? Because ruining my life once just wasn't enough right,"
"No, that's not what I meant."
Her tone gets progressively louder "Then please enlighten me, because I'm having a hard time-"
"Sasuke stole my company…" he interrupts sharply.
Hinata gasps softly however she doesn't respond. Though it's news to her, she's already aware that she never married a saint and this is something well within the usual scope of her husband's faculty.
Kiba takes note of her silence but continues to relay the motive for his action.
"When I tried to report it I got meleed by thugs. His company rebranded all my trucks, liquidated whatever they didn't want, and turned my depots into warehouses… That they don't even use."
She remains silent, waiting to hear the reason he chose to drag her down with him.
"…I can't get a loan, and for some reason every time I scored a job I end up getting sacked a few days after, but I figure he's behind that too. So I finally gave in to a talk show host that was interested in the story. I need the money so I can start over somewhere else."
Hinata chuckles condescendingly "There it is, you didn't do this for me… You were just looking for a payday."
While scratching his head he responds honestly "Yes that was a part of it."
Hinata rubs her eyes as she tears up more and Kiba continues.
"But I also did it to clear your name," he says wistfully.
When she hears this she wipes her eyes and looks at him but Kiba keeps his head held down as he speaks.
"Over half the people in this city still think we actually had an affair and they would never believe anything else because that picture said more than enough."
He sighs then adds carefully "So I told them exactly what happened… That you were a passionately devoted wife who gave me the slap of my life when I kissed her that day… I made it clear that it was a setup by me and a friend because I was misguided into thinking we could have something more..."
"I ended up losing one of the best friends I ever had because old feelings got stirred up on my part… And I apologized for destroying your reputation, and your relationship with your husband… I'm sorry."
Hinata's heartache eases from hearing that her name will no longer be on everyone's chopping block when she's out in public and she sniffles as she wipes away a tear.
Now wanting to hear him explain himself more softly asks "Tell me, after all these years… After agreeing that we're better off as friends, why would you kiss me?"
Kiba rubs his face as he reflects "I don't know, after Tama I was dumb and lonely and-" he breaks to formulate his words, feeling he would ramble otherwise.
He sighs before adding "We were suddenly spending so much time together again and I just thought-"
Hinata replies coldly "You thought wrong… So because your relationship imploded you tried to do the same to mine?"
While bowing his head in dejection he replies "No, I was just hoping that maybe you still thought of me the way I was thinking of you."
Hinata face palms, irritated by his reason and replies with an aggravated sneer.
"Kiba what happened between us might as well have been centuries ago. I didn't move on quickly to get back at you, I moved on because…"
Her sentence cuts off as she glances at the pot of flowers in the corner of the room and her jaw loosens as her mind finally begins to make the connection between them and Sasuke being here earlier.
Aware that she had left her garden a withered relic of what it once was, Hinata found it unfathomable that the demon who ravaged her heart these past few months was capable of taking the time and diligence necessary to bring them back to life.
She quickly turns around and carefully examines the other flowers in the room to check her hypothesis. As she does, she recognizes small detailing on some of the stems, the type of soil as well as the markings on the pots they were all in.
Staggering her initial perception that Naruto could have guessed her top picks so flawlessly.
She momentarily closes her eyes as she feels a subtle ripple course throughout her body, now convinced that she was in fact looking at her husband's handy work, then she leisurely walks over to her desk. When she touches the petals of her daffodils she smiles pensively, taking in the sentiment of the display in an entirely new light.
Hinata's forehead furrows, now being flooded with memories of the man she thought had all but vanished. She holds her chest as her heart begins pounding faster, then soon a tear slowly drips down the sides of her face from remembering that her current situation is far more bitter than sweet.
Keeping her back to Kiba to hide her expression and after a brief sniffle session to regain proper lung capacity she continues softly.
"It was easy to move on because, I met this man who understood me like no other, and could instantly make me smile just from hearing his voice, who responsively listened to anything I had to say and could melt my heart just from the look in his eyes…"
She takes a deep breath as the words begin to strangle her throat "A man who went against my family so I wouldn't be held down all my life, and emboldened my vision to freely do as I please… Who saw my timidness, and all my insecurities yet religiously told me… That I was perfect."
"He made me feel like I was the only thing he could ever truly need, like I was his welcomed oasis in the desert… I fell in love with that man because it was effortless and I married him because I thought it would last forever."
Now understanding how greatly her own actions steered the course of events, she wipes the tears running down her cheeks and faces Kiba.
She swallows to alleviate the burning in her throat "…I'm sorry Kiba," she adds woefully.
He looks at her confusedly "Wha-,"
"For mistakenly thinking that you found in Tamaki what I found in Sasuke," she interrupts softly with a doleful smile.
"I should have listened to him better when you had your problems, instead of wishfully trying to get you to see her the way I saw him and I'm sorry for getting so close to you when you obviously wanted better companionship… I apologize, for not being proactive and getting ahead of this as I should have and for making so much suffering fall on you."
Kiba tries to stop her from continuing to apologize, feeling that it's heavily unwarranted, but Hinata's heart tones him out as she remembers all the signs she disregarded as simple misgivings from her childhood friend.
Another tear falls from her sodden eyes from thinking how much it hurt Sasuke to see her constantly neglect his concern.
While looking at Kiba despondently she laments "…When my inaction is what led to the destruction of my own marriage."
Kiba grips his jaw then shakes his head in disagreement "You're way too smart to believe that's true… Please don't be so hard on yourself, because I did play a role in this."
Hinata closes her eyes as she bows and Kiba hurriedly walks over and gently holds her shoulders.
He softly tries to reassure her "Come on you've always been an optimist, I know you two will-"
"We're getting divorced," she announces abruptly.
She glances up at him then walks away "I've already had discussions with a lawyer, it's over for us," she adds as she wipes the wetness from her face.
Kiba drags his hands down his face "Hinata I-… I'm so sorry, are you-"
"I don't need your condolences, but I appreciate you saying that. Yes, you played your part but so did he, very well I might add… So it's hard to be hopeful that we can come back from this."
He responds sympathetically "Nothing is set in stone."
"But on paper is close enough," she retorts quickly.
Kiba looks at her ruminatively, trying to think of the right words when their glum conversation gets disrupted by Anko buzzing her.
"Mr. Aoki is here for his assessment."
Having not started her work day mentally up until this moment, Hinata requests for a few minutes before sending him up to get her paperwork in order.
Kiba sighs "I guess that's my cue."
She nods and smiles warmly "For all it's worth, I really hope that you get to make the clean break you want, wherever you end up."
He smiles softly at her knowing this is their final goodbye and cautiously moves closer to her
"Yeah me too, just promise that you won't beat yourself up about this anymore… Take care of yourself Hinata."
Now with much less venom in her heart towards him, she hugs Kiba from a comfortable distance and says goodbye.
When he leaves Hinata begins moving all the flowers from off her desk, adding them to the piles already decorating the corners of the room, trying as best as possible to make it appear somewhat professional.
Her morning swiftly gets busier and before she realizes, it's already time to leave for the day.
Eager to get home she asks for Anko's help to get all the flowers in her car.
While making their final trip from her office to the parking lot Anko brings up how unexpectedly polite Sasuke seemed today versus when he was last here. She describes how much time he took as he kept moving them around, determined to arrange them in a way that closely resembles their location in their yard.
After hearing that, Hinata looks at the pots in her hands then the ones in Anko's as if she's searching for something.
"Did he leave a note?" she inquires
Anko shakes her head slowly and Hinata folds her lips not willing to prod more about his visit, however, Anko then says.
"Although, I'm sure it's nothing but, he mentioned something to me in passing."
Hinata looks at her guardedly when she quotes what she heard "He said, 'they better give her an easier time than they did me, they're all certainly just like her' when we were bringing them in."
Anko blushes as she thinks of how sweet it is to be compared to beautiful flowers, however Hinata pouts slightly then chuckles softly to herself, getting a wholly different meaning from his phrasing.
Figuring that he's referring to her stubbornness at times, Hinata pictures her brutish, strong armed husband who has never gardened a day in his life hunched over in the yard, struggling to strike the balance with chemical and foliar fertilizers to get the more difficult ones to start blooming again.
As Hinata drives home, she glances in her rear view intermittently and smiles wider each time from knowing she'll soon get to wake up surrounded by vibrant color in her otherwise monotone suite.
When she's just about reached her destination, a notification comes in on her phone and the noise reminds her that she hasn't thanked Sasuke for such an overwhelmingly kind gesture.
She quickly pulls into her parking spot and when she takes up the phone to call him, she realizes that by this time he would be out of office and she'll have to unblock his cell number to reach him.
Although she hesitates, the magnitude of his gesture has more than earned an appropriate show of gratitude even if it's unsolicited.
Meanwhile, Sasuke who had not long arrived home sits on his couch rubbing his neck. He pours a drink to unwind after a long day spent speculating with Jugo and putting measures in place to better monitor transactions done in the company's name.
Now with his mind meandering, he taps the glass while jadedly scanning through channels for something to attract his interest, and just as he's about to take a sip his phone goes off causing him to let out a frustrated groan.
He yawns as he sluggishly reaches for it thinking he's about to be bothered with more tedious office politics. However, he intuitively clutches the phone with wide eyes, going into a small shock from seeing the caller ID.
In preparation to answer his wife, he clears his throat then takes a deep breath.
"Hey."
"…"
"Are you there?" he adds.
His tone was smooth and relaxed in a familiarly pleasant way and it adds to her tranquillity after her talk with him earlier today.
After taking a quick breath she softly replies "Can you hear me?"
He responds casually "That's much better, how are-"
"I hope this isn't a bad time."
Sasuke puts his legs up on the couch to get in a better position "No not at all, I was about to keel over from boredom if it wasn't for you, so thanks a lot."
She smiles slightly then again tries to control the tone of the conversation "I would have called sooner but my day got hectic."
He responds thoughtfully "Well you did say you have a million things to do, but it's really good to hear your voice."
Getting a bit choked up, he coughs then adds "I know you wouldn't call me just for a chat though, so what's this about?"
She replies unmoved "I just wanted to say thank you… For taking care of them, I don't know how I can repay you."
Sasuke smiles faintly "That's not necessary, it's no big deal."
She turns slightly and looks at her daffodils "I know you aren't very sentimental but it is to me, I really appreciate it... Thank you so much Sasuke."
Feeling that the thanks is unearned he intentionally downplays what he did.
"Hina they're yours I just picked up where you left off, so really it's nothing… I know what they remind you of so I just wanted you to have them close. You're a lot better at it than me anyway," he ends with a slight chuckle.
Hinata smiles with softening eyes "I'm not trying to feed your ego but they look incredible, and I really appreciate not having to start from scratch."
Sasuke smiles to himself from learning that he finally got something right, and her being amiable gives him a moment of peace.
"I'm happy I could be of some use to you."
Wanting to wrap up their conversation as soon as possible, Hinata responds in a way that signals she'll be ending the call shortly and Sasuke quickly tries to keep her on the line.
"So, are you still at work?"
In her eager state she replies without thinking "No I was just about to bring them up to my apart… ment," she smacks her forehead as she ends.
"Apartment?" he restates calmly.
Hinata hisses under her breath after realizing her blunder, she's just narrowed his list of search options if he's still trying to track her down.
"Um… Yeah, I leased one."
Sasuke replies in a lowered tone "I didn't know, I'm sorry if I brought too many."
To her surprise, Sasuke showed no interest in doubling down on her whereabouts and it makes Hinata breathe a sigh of relief.
Although hearing her say that gives him some reprieve that she hasn't been bunking with Naruto, he keeps his expectations managed and doesn't take it as a meaningful sign.
Instead, he responds supportively, from understanding the reasons for their separation.
"In that case, if you want I can drop off some whole sleep fertilizer at your office tomorrow, since you probably don't have space to plant them anywhere."
She questions as her brows furrow puzzled "Drop off what?"
He reiterates his words quickly and Hinata's eyes widen.
Though he is way off the mark he said it with conceitedly outright confidence and it educes a moment of normalcy between them when she tries to hold in her giggle.
As her imagination of him struggling to do the unthinkable runs loose again, she covers her mouth as it scratches her throat.
However, Sasuke manages to hear her muffled titters, and having thought that he would never hear her laugh again he sits up on the couch and a grin creeps across his face.
Though his attempt to impress her with his newly acquired knowledge has failed, Sasuke feels comforted by the joy in her voice streaming into his ear and presses the phone closer to his face.
"No please go on," he adds softly, encouraging her to keep laughing at him.
Hinata smiles as she corrects him "It's slow release."
"But that's what I said."
"Sure you did," she replies with a snicker.
He chortles "You know what they say 10th times the charm."
"I don't think they say that," she replies playfully.
"But they mostly do right?"
Hinata shakes her head "Wrong."
Sasuke chuckles softly, thrilled that she played along for a bit. He then insists.
"But listen, please don't bother buying any, I might have bought way too much before knowing it was for potted plants. So I can drop off as much as you need."
Hinata though apprehensive, accepts his offer and as Sasuke feels the tentative atmosphere returning he decides to use the opportunity to make it known that he won't be trying to cross any boundaries.
He states simply "If you need anything else from ho- the house… Anything at all you left here and you need for work or your place, just text me and I'll leave it at your office, okay?"
She replies warily "But you-"
"Hina, it's only us talking, so leave but out of this. I'll be happy to do it," he interrupts.
Appreciating his genuine effort to ensure she's contented though they're separated, she takes a few seconds to think about the list of items she's been needing.
"…Okay, but-"
"Huh?" he interrupts.
She giggles softly before correcting her structure "I'll have to get back to you on that."
"That's fine," he replies warmly.
The phone goes silent for a while and Hinata now feeling comparatively more at ease talking to him, decides to share the news Kiba gave her earlier today.
When she tells him, Sasuke sighs, thankful that she won't have to face any further scrutiny for what he fully believes was just a misunderstanding. However, he also knows this won't bode well for their relationship.
"Well I hope you know that I didn't need any convincing," he says in a probing manner.
She replies quickly to remove any doubt "I know that, you've made it clear that you believed me."
Mindful that this will also make it a lot easier for her to date publicly without fear of backlash, Sasuke gets ready to point out the benefit to her when she says.
"Aren't you worried about what this will do to your business?"
When he hears her say this he grips the phone tighter and smiles softly, moved to know that they still share that reverse sense of thinking about each other.
"Not really," he says assuredly.
"Seriously?"
He chuckles at the hint of concern in her tone "I've been getting so much flack ever since I started this company, a little more won't send me over the edge. Besides, money stops most nonsense."
Though her decision to end their marriage still hasn't been overthrown by his recent actions, having accepted some responsibility due to her talk with Kiba, she feels that she at least owes an apology for her part in this turning out the way it did.
"Sasuke, I… I'm sorry."
"Watch it now, that's my line," he quips.
She giggles a bit then shakes her head to concentrate on her words.
"I'm serious, I owe you an apology," she says with sincerity.
Sasuke appeals to her "Stop doing that I already told you-"
"Please just let me say this," she cuts in obstinately, feeling the need to get it off her chest.
He hears a hint of sadness in her tone and it leaves his thoughts scrambling to think about what she could be sorry for, when Hinata continues.
"I'm sorry for not listening to you about Kiba. You saw the signs, you tried to show me... And I repeatedly disregarded your concerns."
She rolls her pupils in a circle to keep in any unruly tears then continues "You were my husband and I didn't put you first, I didn't try hard enough to protect what we had, so I'm sorry… For not coming to you, for not properly putting your mind at ease… And for not being a better wif-"
He interposes softly "Don't…"
Hinata shudders as she inhales and when she composes herself he continues slowly so she hears him clearly.
"Don't finish that… You were and you're still, the most amazingly wonderful wife I could ever ask for. So don't you ever say that to me… Because you already know what I think about you."
She gulps, finding it farfetched that he could possibly think that about her after everything that's happened.
"Still?" she questions.
He replies in a soothing tone "I can't deny the way I feel… So yes, absolutely, in every way."
Hinata becomes quiet, covering her mouth while deep in thought as she feels an upsurge of emotions, on the other end Sasuke wipes his face, hoping that his words got through to her.
Feeling tense from the continued silence, he licks his lips as he prepares to tell her something that used to leave her with refulgent eyes, which made him consider them the only thing that glitters to definitely be gold.
Even though he's now cautious about receiving a bad reaction decides to give it a try.
"Hina… I-"
"I have to go…" she interrupts quietly, feeling that if she doesn't the conversation will veer further onto something she's not yet prepared for.
"I'm tired and I haven't left my car," she adds.
Sasuke feels a little downtrodden but replies understandingly "Right, don't let me keep you."
She quickly bites her lip then requests in a kind tone "Could you drop off some of my tools with the stimulant? I don't have any here,"
He smiles broadly "Of course, I'll bring them tomorrow before I head in."
Likely to not catch him when he makes his next delivery she thanks him in advance and he tells her good night.
When she hangs up Sasuke sinks into the couch and breathes deeply into his hands.
With his renewed outlook, he finds it much more freeing to let the chips fall gradually and though he's patiently keeping his eyes on the prize, he can't help but be a bit more spirited after sensing a small improvement in their dissonance.
The weekend
Hinata ends the call with the property attendant who guarantees that they will send someone soon to remove the furniture from her balcony as requested. While waiting for their arrival, she takes in the view from her living room and gets more and more excited to fill the soon empty space with all her blossoms.
Having all the time in the world today to attentively tend to them, she gets her full gardening gear ready thanks to Sasuke dropping them off without much ado as promised.
After wrapping her hair in a bun, she opens the sliding door to her balcony then lugs the bags of fertilizer and her tools onto it.
While looking for her gloves, she apologizes to her plants for taking so long to remove them from their confined containers.
Then while she's humming melodiously as she readies the larger plant boxes Hinata hears a knock at the door, and assuming it's the people for the furniture she rushes over to let them in.
However, when she opens it she draws in a soft breath and remains quiet.
Though Naruto notices her spooked visage he smiles fondly from seeing her.
"Am I here too early?" He says as he lifts a cup holder with two coffees.
She shakes her head side to side quickly "No, sorry I… Please come in." she says as she opens the door wider.
Naruto hands her the holder as he steps inside and when she places it on the counter he indicates which one is hers.
She thanks him, and while she begins to drink he speaks to her.
"Sorry for dropping in, I wanted to surprise you since we didn't see each other last weekend. I was hoping we could-"
He stops when he sees Hinata bolt over to the sink and spits out the much too bitter brew then rinses her mouth.
He panics "S-sorry, I didn't think I added that much sugar."
She shakes her head and chuckles as she wipes her mouth "No quite the opposite, I don't take it like this at all."
"My bad I didn't know."
She replies supportively "It's ok…"
For a brief moment, she watches Naruto expectantly, but their eyes stay divided as he takes a mental note of the therapist's card near the entrance.
She winces a little before grabbing the coffee, which she then dumps spoons full of sugar into and a bit of cream to get it just the way she likes. To Naruto however, it looks like she's practically turning it into a cup of syrup.
She takes a sip then ahhed in satisfaction "Much better,"
"I don't think that's coffee anymore," he retorts, causing her to smile shyly.
He adds as he scratches the back of his head "I forgot how much you have a thing for sugar."
"Really, it's fine," she says considerately.
He finishes what was left in his cup then resumes his previous ask.
"I was hoping we could do something together this weekend, what do you say?"
She starts walking over to the living room "Actually I'm a little busy today."
Naruto follows her while nervously thinking he might have messed up by being too busy this week but gets what she means when he sees the hoard of exquisite flora piled around the door of her balcony.
He scratches the back of his head "Was I taking too long to get the ones you like?"
"No, that's not it at all… It's just…"
She stops to think of how to tell Naruto that he doesn't have to bring her any more bouquets since Sasuke could drop off any more she needs. However, Hinata zones out when she sees the sunrise hit the dew covered petals.
While waiting for her to finish the response he soon notices that her eyes have turned into shimmering pools of sunlight, dancing with radiance in a way he's never seen before. It was as if she got lost in her own little world, one that he isn't familiar with.
He looks at her a bit longer, deep in thought, then waves a hand in front of her.
"Earth to Blu come in."
As she steps out of her trance and looks at him, Naruto sees the brightness within her eyes dulling and though she's not aware, he internalizes it deeply.
"Where did you just run off to?" he asks.
"…Sorry I've just been looking forward to getting this done this weekend."
He sighs knowing that he only has proper time on the weekends to be with her but remembers the exhilaration she evoked every time she spoke about her hobby.
He smiles hazily and replies understandably "No worries."
Seeing his disappointed expression makes her think quickly to make amends.
"I'll make it up to you though… I'll take you for lunch next week."
He lifts a brow "All week?"
When she sees the eager look on his face she nods cheerfully with a reticent giggle.
"That sounds great but be careful, I just might get used to it," he says elatedly.
Hinata smiles fondly at him then walks over to the balcony, and Naruto follows her wanting to have a closer look at the display.
He takes up her orchids and examines it "So, which one is the revered favorite?"
She animatedly walks over to the pots of daffodils and takes one up then turns to him, showing it off like she's trying to strike a deal.
"What do you think?"
"What do I think?"— Naruto looks at the sheer quantity of flowers scattered all over the floor— "It doesn't seem like you have much room for criticism here."
She giggles and as she does he rubs her chin.
He smiles warmly at her "They're really beautiful,"— he grabs one of the pots of carnations then adds—"I thought I searched everywhere, where did you find all these?"
Hinata slowly bends down to put the pot back on the floor, feeling a bit nervous about the coming reaction to what she's about to say.
She looks at him warily "…Um, Sasuke brought them for me."
Naruto takes a second to respond as he thinks "He did this?"
"Well, I grew them but he's been taking care of them since I've been gone, he wanted me to have them close," she says while gently taking the pots out of his hands.
He scratches his brows to stop them from furrowing as he replies with some suspicion.
"Oh… Well, that's noble of him. I guess he's isn't as soulless as I thought."
Hinata smiles faintly with her lips folded and bends down, putting the pots back on the ground.
"Hmm… So, I don't think I'll be in need of any bouquets for a while."
Naruto remains calmly unaware of the deeper significance, and though feeling a personal hit he doesn't read into it further. This does little to alter the perception he has about the pair's relationship.
Even though he's keeping an open mind since she's already been in talks with her divorce attorney, he prods her.
"Is your lawyer finished with the petition?"
She responds quickly "No but, I won't be needing him much anymore…"— Naruto looks at her confusedly and she adds—"We had a talk and Sasuke's willing to settle out of court."
Naruto's lips widen into a smile "That's great news, so it should be over in no time."
Feeling much chipper, he gets closer to take her in his arms when Hinata addresses his concern before giving him the chance to question her.
"But he's going through something, so I just want to hold off for a bit. I don't want to add to what he's dealing with," she says.
His smile slowly drops as responds "You, don't actually believe that… Do you?"
"It's not an excuse," she rebuts calmly.
He chuckles thinking that she's joking "Come on what are the odds that-"
She interrupts firmly "It's not, I know what it is, he doesn't like talking about it and he wouldn't bring it up if he wasn't serious."
Naruto sighs as they look at each other and begins to sense a shift in the room from her adamance.
Wanting to prevent exposure to Sasuke's struggle, Hinata vaguely explains to him the purpose for the card and ensures to mention that they're not a marriage counsellor.
"Okay… Is there a timeline for this? Or…" he questions as he rubs his head.
Hinata shakes her head slowly and Naruto steps back a bit as he puts his hands in his pockets.
"You're still planning on divorcing him though, right?"—he looks at her closely, watching for any hints of doubts then says— "Or was this enough, to heal all the wounds?"
"I'm a big boy, I can take it," he adds with dismal eyes.
She takes a second to moisten her lips then replies tepidly "…I would be lying if I said that this doesn't make me happy, but I'm not that naïve to think that way so easily. I'll get the contract reworked in the meantime."
After breathing a sigh of relief Naruto clears his throat then walks over to her and embraces her gently.
"I know you're compassionate, it's one of the many things I admire about you… I'm sorry if it seemed like I was mocking you there, I didn't mean to put you on the spot. I just wanted to be sure this wasn't another attempt to toy with you."
Hinata squeezes her lips together tightly as she lightly holds onto the back of his shirt "I get it, but he did something nice and I appreciate it, a lot," she says honestly.
Naruto's heart starts beating faster as sirens sound off in his head. However, his expression remains placid, as he considers all the cards stacked up against Sasuke.
He kisses her on the cheek and when they become florid as usual, it provides him with a bit of reassurance that the feelings she developed for him haven't faded just because of this one act of kindness.
Soon after, Hinata gets a call informing her that the movers will be arriving soon to take the furniture and when he hears that, Naruto decides to make his exit.
However, after everything that happened, for the first time, when he kisses Hinata on the forehead as he takes his leave, he feels an inescapable sense of uneasiness.
Hope you enjoyed the read!
Holy crap! Welcome to all the new followers thanks so much for the favs as well :)
Update delayed for maybe another week.
Happy reading till next time :)
