CHAPTER 6

Sasuke would never admit it to himself, but he was getting increasingly disillusioned over his prospects of succeeding in his plan for revenge. The steps were rather simple in theory: step one, ensnare Hyuuga Hinata in an illusory romance; step two, break her heart.

Yet, as more time passed, the more he came to realise that step one was an exceedingly complicated task, and on top of that, its successful completion might not even yield substantial returns for Sasuke himself. Hinata was somewhat of a friend to him now, and while he would also never admit this to himself, he had begun to develop some degree of unease at the thought of trapping her in such a scheme.

However, Sasuke was also a very vindictive person, so he could not settle for letting the pretty demon off scot-free. He had been scrolling through Twitter casually every single day since the cursed incident, and he realised that not only had the distracted boyfriend memes of him not disappeared, the public had gone even further to generate new ones, keeping him very relevant in what he viewed as toxic discourse. He could handle the "this is fine" memes and, if he swallowed some of his pride, the clown memes; but what absolutely set him off was the series of posts juxtaposing his face on Team 7's recent Instagram live with a variety of cat memes. To liken Uchiha Sasuke to some ugly white cats simply would not do! His public image was now shattered to smithereens, and it seemed that even Team 7's strong comeback was unable to erase that recent dark chapter of his life.

And so, after a great deal of observation and judicious planning, Uchiha Sasuke had come up with the perfect Plan B. His eyes followed the pretty demon's silhouette a good five metres or so away, and they zeroed in on her back as she stood still to let the make-up artist do some touch-ups. He smirked impishly to himself. He was not entirely sure if this plan of his was going to end well, but the risk of it failing epicly was not high. With that, he sauntered off to mentally prepare himself for what was going to come.

"K-Kaito-san, please stop what you are doing."

Kaito ignored her plea and caught up to her with a few long strides. He grabbed onto Yui's wrist in an attempt to stop her from walking away but she struggled against him. "Let me go!" she shrieked. Her voice cracked at the end of the exclamation, which prompted Kaito to look into her eyes. They were brimming with unshed tears.

"I can't!" he replied indignantly. "I don't know why I'm being like this either!"

Yui shoved him away and began to scurry off into the distance. Kaito called out to her, but she did not listen. "Masuoka, I'm sorry!" he shouted. This time, she slowed down to a stop. It was her first time hearing an apology from him after all these years.

"I'm sorry," he repeated, as he took step after step to close the distance between them. Yui still had her back to him as she was afraid to meet the gaze of the person that used to harass and torment her in the school hallways.

"I'm sorry for everything I have done." This time his voice was close behind her. He had stopped in his tracks, and from this distance, she could hear his soft pants. "Won't you say something to me?"

Yui swallowed a lump in her throat. She hunched over slightly and brought her hands to her chest. "W-What do you want from me?"

"I…" This time it was Kaito's turn to pause and think. He evidently had not planned to have this conversation. "I just wanted you to know that I regret what I've done."

Yui remained silent for a moment. "Kaito-san… I can't simply forget the past."

"I know," he replied indignantly. "I don't expect you to. But let me make it up to you."

Yui was about to reply when she felt his arms wrap around her possessively. One of his hands held onto her waist while the other held her close to him by the shoulders. It was the first – and most intimate – back hug that she had received in her life. Her eyes widened into saucers at this.

She was about to wiggle out of his grip when he continued passionately, "Let me be your boyfriend, and I'll take care of you from now on."

"S-Sasuke-kun!"

"Cut!"

Immediately after this, Sasuke retracted his hands and shoved them into his pockets indifferently. Hinata turned around and gave him a look of utter disbelief. She raised a trembling hand and pointed it at him. "Y-You…"

"What?"

"You went off-script!" she shrieked, albeit in the most Hinata-like style conceivable. The sadist in Sasuke was only fuelled by her bluster.

"It's called an ad lib," he replied carelessly.

"You w-weren't supposed to hug me in this scene, or say…t-that…"

Sasuke gave her a dramatic shrug. One of the earlier chapters in Volume 4 of Make Out Tactics put forth a very believable proposition that girls preferred straightforward guys as opposed to guys who were ambiguous about their intentions. From a professional perspective, this was a more heart-stopping way of confessing than the awkward ramble written for him in the script.

Besides, Volume 3 of Make Out Tactics also taught him that girls liked back hugs. Again, from a professional perspective, it was more romantic to hug the female lead during his heart-stopping confession, as opposed to merely holding her hand. Sasuke was convinced that everything added up nicely, and Hinata had to be wilfully blind if she disagreed with his call.

He took some time to observe Hinata. Her face was as red as a tomato, but she was not fuming at him. Instead, she just looked deeply embarrassed – which was exactly what he was gunning for. It took a great deal of effort for Sasuke to hold back a triumphant grin.

Plan B should not even be considered a punishment for Hinata. If anything it was a mutually beneficial agreement: on one hand, Hinata could receive exclusive fanservice from the hottest member of her favourite band; and on the other hand, Sasuke himself could derive great entertainment from watching the prudish Hyuuga squirm at unexpected moments of intimacy. It all checked out.

His thoughts were interrupted by Terumi Mei who called out to them from behind the set-up. "Hey you two, I liked that ad lib! We should keep that part in for subsequent takes!"

Sasuke did not hold back his grin this time. Even the producer agreed with his newly gained expertise in this field! It turns out that Jiraiya knew what he was writing about all along. On the contrary, Hinata's face paled at the producer's words.

"Why do you look so gloomy?"

Hinata snapped out of her thoughts and gave her co-star a shaky smile. "I-I'm not… I just need to process this…"

Sasuke sighed at this. "It's just a hug, Hinata. And one cheesy line."

She nodded and started to fan her cheeks dramatically. Her eyes were looking off into the far distance, and they were clouded with an inexplicable emotion. Sasuke rolled his eyes at her antics.

They ended up re-filming the last part of that scene half a dozen times, mostly because Hinata forgot how to breathe everytime Sasuke pulled her into his embrace, although the real reason was that Sasuke always added something different with each take, and Hinata's mind simply could not keep up. Once he nuzzled his nose gently against her jaw, and another time he caught hold of one of her hands that was resting protectively over her chest and intertwined their fingers. Hinata felt that with each new take, she was getting closer and closer to a heart attack.

At long last, they were done filming the scene. Hinata wobbled from her position, suddenly overcome by a feeling of light-headedness, only to have Sasuke grip onto her arm. "Hey," he said. Hinata could not help but notice that his indifferent tone was a stark contrast to the voice that he used when he was acting just a few seconds ago. "Are you alright?"

Hinata's eyes slid shut against her will, but right before she fainted she felt herself being scooped up into someone's arms.

That night, Sasuke spent a good two hours sweating it out in the dance studio, as per his usual nightly routine. He headed back to his dormitory for a long shower right after. However, he was surprised to find Hyuuga Hinata sitting on the couch in his living room when he emerged from the bathroom. A glance at the clock told him that it was half past 11. She should not be here at this time, so why-

His thoughts were interrupted midway when she spun around and blinked at him with eyes that resembled a deer's caught in headlights. "S-Sasuke-kun," she greeted meekly.

"Why are you here?" he asked as he walked towards the couch she was sitting on.

"Ano…I wanted to apologise for today."

"What about today?"

Hinata blushed and look down at her hands. "I wasn't very professional. You must have been upset that we had to do so many takes."

Sasuke did not realise this, but a small smile made its way onto his face at her sincerity. He was not particularly frustrated about the events of the shoot, but any lingering feelings of exasperation were promptly erased at the thought of Hinata coming all the way to his apartment just to apologise.

"It's fine. We're both new to this anyway," he said placidly. Hinata let out an audible sigh of relief at his words of comfort. After a pregnant pause, she got to her feet and headed towards the main door.

Just as she turned around to wave him goodbye, Sasuke asked, "Do you have anything on tomorrow morning?" At the shake of her head, he continued, "Go out with me now."

"W-What?" Hinata's cheeks turned a bright ruby red.

"Just to the convenience store," he clarified.

Hinata was overcome with embarrassment for thinking that this man was asking her out on a date. In the end she nodded enthusiastically.

At her agreement, Sasuke went back into his room to find two black disposable masks, his keys and his mobile phone. Not long after, the pair made their way out of the apartment in shoddy disguises. Sasuke could only hope that nobody gave them a second look the moment they walked out into the streets.

For the most part, neither of them said much, but Sasuke found her quiet company to be rather pleasant. He was constantly surrounded by two loudmouths in his own apartment after all, so Hyuuga Hinata's companionship was a welcomed change.

"Sasuke-kun."

"Hm?"

"Are you hungry?"

"Yeah." They stood under a traffic light, waiting for the green man to appear.

"W-Were you dancing before this?"

Sasuke raised a brow at her sudden curiosity. Why did she need to know these minute details about his life anyway? Nonetheless, he shoved his hands into his pockets and began crossing the road. Hinata followed in step with him.

"Yeah. I could eat a horse right now, but I need to restrain myself as I'm on a diet."

Hinata gasped. "W-Why do you still need to diet when you are so…lean?"

This time Sasuke angled his head sideways to look at her. "It's part and parcel of being an idol, especially when you're the group's visual. Team 7 may lose fans if I stop having abs."

He could not see the bottom half of Hinata's face as she was wearing the black disposable mask that he had given her, but he could tell that she was frowning disapprovingly. She did not say anything more until they reached the convenience store.

The old lady sitting at the cashier greeted Hinata in a cheerful voice. Sasuke watched them exchange greetings and could not help but notice that they seemed familiar with one another. Perhaps Hinata was a regular patron here. At this moment, the old lady shifted her attention towards him.

"Young man, I think I have seen you before, but you don't come here frequently, do you? Are you a trainee?"

Hinata gasped loudly and her arms moved on their own accord to shield the old lady from Sasuke's wrath. The man's eye twitched in annoyance, but for a while he did not say anything. To ease the awkwardness, Hinata turned back towards the cashier and said, "A-Ano, he's-"

"Yes. I'm a trainee," Sasuke replied monotonously and walked off to browse the food selection.

Hinata stared at his back incredulously for a moment before she rushed to catch up to him. She could not tell if he was affected by the old lady's candid remark, but from his relaxed posture, it seemed that he did not take any offense. That was a huge relief to Hinata.

"S-Sasuke-kun," she whispered.

"Hm?"

"D-Do you want instant noodles?" She then pointed towards one particular cup and continued, "This one is really nice."

"I…I can't," he replied, albeit with some uncertainty. He paused and let out a deep sigh. "One of those is close to 400 calories. I'll have to work out a lot to get rid of that."

However, before he could leave the aisle, Hinata tugged on his sleeve. "You could share one with me… I'm a bit hungry too."

Eventually Sasuke relented. As much as he did not want to admit it, Hinata was difficult to resist sometimes. "Which flavour do you prefer?"

Hinata hummed for a moment before pointing at the spicy miso cup. However, Sasuke caught her wrist just as she stood on her tiptoes to reach for it. She turned around to stare at him in confusion. "As your food manager, I suggest you pick something that isn't spicy at least, if you want your throat to live another day," he said.

Hinata gave him the puppy dog eyes but Sasuke was not backing down. Eventually she conceded this point and allowed him to pick a seafood flavoured one for them. Well, at least that one is nice too, Hinata thought to herself.

Against her wishes, Sasuke ended up paying for the instant noodles and two bottles of green tea. They decided spontaneously to eat outdoors at the nearby park, so they filled up the noodle cup with hot water before leaving the convenience store.

"Itadakimasu!" Sasuke held out the cup to Hinata as he let her have the first bite. She smiled at him in gratitude after she swallowed her mouthful. Unfortunately, he should have foreseen that the cup would come with only one plastic fork in it, but Hinata remained unfazed, assuring him that they could share it. Sasuke decided to let her eat her fill first, and he would settle for the remainder.

"When was the last time you did something like this?" she asked after she swallowed her second mouthful.

Sasuke tilted his head to the side curiously. "Eating out, or eating instant noodles?"

"Hm, both."

Sasuke looked to the side and contemplated this question. It had been a very long time ago, and he only realised just how quickly time passed when he could not recall a specific occasion when he was out eating. His parents rarely visited him, as did Itachi, but whenever they did, he would usually eat with them in the lounge of their dormitory to avoid the risk of any of his family members getting trampled out on the streets when he was recognised.

"It may have been during my trainee days," he replied after some thought. "I recall sneaking out of the trainees' dormitory with Naruto and Sakura to get instant noodles from this exact store. Since then, I've only patronised this place a handful of times because I rarely have the urge to go out."

"Oh? What made you change your mind today?" Hinata asked.

Sasuke had to confess that he did not know. It was a purely impulsive decision on his part. "I just felt like it I guess."

Hinata nodded in acceptance of his answer and continued nibbling on her noodles. She ate so slowly – like a girl – but to be fair to her, she was very demure by nature. It made her rather endearing in a strange way, which surprised Sasuke because he never thought that he was one to be patient with others.

"Are you expected to diet as well?" he asked after a moment of silence passed between them.

Hinata swallowed her morsel of food and replied, "N-Not exactly, since I am not really an idol… But I still feel pressured to watch my diet. I've been trying to lose fat in certain areas for a while now but it seems that I can't no matter how hard I try…"

Sasuke gave her body a quick scan before looking her in the eye again. "You don't seem like you need to lose any fat. What areas are you talking about?" he asked bluntly.

Hinata blushed and began to play with her fingers. She subtly pointed to her chest, and Sasuke finally understood. He rolled his eyes at her. Sakura had mentioned to him and Naruto on one occasion that she was insecure about her small chest; and here was Hinata being insecure about her big chest. It seemed that the grass was always greener on the other side, and women were made to feel like they were lacking in some way regardless of their proportions.

"You don't have to lose weight, Hinata. You look good." She smiled at him prettily, and under the moonlight, her pearlescent eyes shone with a luminescent glow. Sasuke felt his traitorous heart race at the sight before him.

Not long after, Hinata gently pushed the cup towards Sasuke, gesturing for him to eat. He peered into the bowl and noticed that she had left more than half of the noodles for him, but when Hinata did not respond to his questioning gaze, he decided to pretend that he did not realise this.

"I think you should eat more, Sasuke-kun," she finally said.

"Hm, why?"

"You exercise a lot… I don't think you'll put on weight easily."

Sasuke let out a hum in response. "I don't keep to a strict diet outside of comeback seasons," he replied. "But during comeback seasons, I do my best to maintain at least a six-pack just in case I am required to lift up my shirt."

Hinata gave him a look of utter disbelief, but Sasuke met her gaze with an impassive countenance. "What? Don't tell me this is surprising to you?"

She pouted and shook her head. "It isn't… I'm just a bit sad to hear someone say it out loud."

Sasuke appeared completely indifferent to the conversation topic, as if he had already resigned to his fate, and that made Hinata feel even sadder. "Ne, Sasuke-kun… What do you intend to do after you're done with being an idol?"

Sasuke took a moment to think about his answer to this question. It seemed that Hinata was in a rather introspective mood tonight. A short amount of time later, he replied, "I could be a full-time choreographer and dancer. I also considered producing indie music."

Hinata smiled at this. "You did not consider acting?" Her voice had a teasing edge to it.

Sasuke caught on to this and smirked. "You think I should?"

Hinata started giggling. "M-Maybe… You are doing well so far."

Oh, he could take that as a compliment. He could now deduct 10 points off Hinata's current negative score on his imaginary scoreboard. "So are you," he replied.

Hinata visibly preened at his praise, and somehow that brought a certain warmth to Sasuke's chest. "This means a lot to me," she whispered. Her voice was filled with raw honesty.

Sasuke put the finished bowl of noodles aside and poked her in the forehead. She reeled back in shock from the unexpected move, clutching onto her forehead with both hands to prevent him from jabbing her there any further. He looked nonchalant even when she shied away from him, as if it was perfectly normal behaviour.

"We should head back," he said tersely and stood up. He scanned their surroundings to make sure that no one was around before he slowly trudged towards the nearest trashcan to dispose of their waste. Hinata picked up their bottles of green tea and hurried after him.

They put on their masks and made their way back to the dormitory. This time, neither of them felt compelled to start a conversation, but the atmosphere between them was light and tranquil. Sasuke gave the petite woman next to him a side glance and realised that he could get used to this.

H. Hinata: Sasuke-kun, I have something to tell you :(

H. Hinata: :(((

U. Sasuke: What is it?

Hyuuga Hinata sent you an image.

H. Hinata: I think you bruised my forehead…

H. Hinata: :(((