Light as a feather was she, when he first saw her. Contagious smile on her face and burning hot coffee in her hand, she had run into him. His arrogant side had gotten annoyed immediately, wanting to scold her. A simple girl like her ought to be more careful than to run into strangers and risk spilling hot bitter liquid on them, that would surely leave first-degree burns.

Getting burned on an early Sunday morning wasn't on Neji's agenda.

(Later he would find out she was indeed careless. Not the negligent and irresponsible kind that Neji had first thought of her, but the carefree soul that didn't worry herself sick about the future and what was going to happen. She did not bother herself. All she had cared about was living in the moment and enjoying that moment to the fullest, since one day it would be gone. Everything else was not on her list. Neji thought he had made it there at some point in their story. Oh, how wrong had he been.)

Had he told her about his first-degree burn concept, he would've gotten the chance to see a light eyebrow raise and could've heard her heartfelt laugh. However, not giving him time to even react, let alone respond with something witty, the cheerful girl had muttered a "Sorry" and a "Thank god I didn't spill it this time," (which gave Neji the idea that this was a daily occurrence) and finally had given him one of her genuine apologetic smiles.

Just like that she was gone like the wind, her sunny hair flowing behind her, leaving him no time to scold her or to make his smart remark.

That's okay, Neji didn't feel like arguing with a mere teenager first thing in the morning, anyway.

As surprised (and angry) as he was by this first encounter, he decided to pay no mind to it for longer than he already had. His time was precious and he wouldn't waste it on such trivial matters. She was a simple girl; that was it, he saw simple girls all the time, everywhere he went. Other than her lingering scent, everything else of hers was gone.

That remaining scent, which consisted of lavender and vanilla, engraved itself deep inside his mind.

After the girl fled, he placed his order quickly, wanting nothing more than to grab his coffee and get out of there. He had chosen a not well-known cafe purposely; it wasn't supposed to be very crowded, so he'd be able to get his damn coffee fast.

Surprisingly, he had been wrong. The cafe was quite crowded for such a small and unknown place. Neji figured it was because it was Sunday. A server had offered to sit him down at a table, but he had refused, choosing to just lean on the wall for support and wait for his much-needed coffee.

Waiting wasn't something Neji Hyuga minded. What he did mind, however, was the boredom it brought. He couldn't just waste time not doing anything; he had to occupy himself with something, no matter how unimportant it was. So, he settled for giving a brief look over the people sitting on the tables. Admitting it to himself was out of question, but inside him Neji knew he was searching for a flash of shiny blonde hair. He found one, two, only that it wasn't her. The hair was too short, too dark, too not her.

Maybe she had really left. The girl seemed to be in a hurry, hence almost spilling her coffee on him. As he gave up on ever finding her again, his eyes caught someone else in the process. Unmistakingly signature midnight blue hair and light eyes, much similar to those of his own. His cousin.

She was sitting alone in the shop's corner, although Neji's eyes scanned two coffee cups on her table, one in front of her, and one opposite her. The owner of the second coffee was nowhere in sight; though Neji assumed they would come back soon. Till they came back, he could go and keep her company. After all, it would seem rude to see his cousin and not talk to her.

So he started going her way. "Hinata," he called lowly when he was close enough, hoping she'd hear. Being soft spoken herself, she'd mastered the art of hearing indistinct sounds, making her turn in his direction almost immediately. Her face lit up. "Neji! What a lovely surprise to see you here!"

He nodded. "Likewise. I didn't know you'd be here."

"Oh, I'm just here to meet a friend," Hinata explained, gesturing towards the empty seat in front of her, "She lives in California now, but she came back for my engagement. I think I told you about her?"

Vague memories of different names and faces ran through Neji's mind, trying to remember whether his cousin had mentioned anything about any of her friends coming to visit her for her engagement, but after a while his mind went blank. She had so many friends visiting for her engagement; it was a big deal, after all, so how was he supposed to know all of them? Since he couldn't recall, he just settled for giving her a shrug.

"You don't remember?" she asked, untroubled, "That's okay, she's here now, so you can meet her. She's a great friend of mine."

Neji nodded once more. "What's her name?"

"It's Ino. Ino Yamanaka," Hinata replied cheerfully.

Ino Yamanaka. Such a strange name.

As familiar as it sounded to Neji, he couldn't quite put his finger on where he'd heard it or what she looked like.

However, before he could ask more about her or even meet said girl, the barista called his name for his order. That was the signal that he had to leave. "My apologies, Hinata. My order's done, and I only stopped by to get coffee. I really gotta go, but I'm sure I can meet her another time, though."

"Of course," she replied, "she'll be here all summer so there'll be plenty of chances to meet her."

Neji gave her one last nod of affirmation, bid his goodbye to his cousin and left to go fetch his coffee. As the scent hit his nostrils, he felt at peace; now he could get back to studying. Going towards the door to leave, something urged him to turn around and to take a look one last time at his cousin's table.

That's when he saw her.

Pale blonde hair, slim figure, apologetic smile as she was explaining something to Hinata. The same apologetic smile she had given him when she almost spilled her coffee on him. It was the same girl.

As if sensing that she was being stared at, her eyes shifted slightly, catching Neji in the act. She gave him a brief look before turning her attention back to Hinata, and that was Neji's cue to turn around and leave as soon as possible.

It was her.

Ino Yamanaka.

A/N: hi everyone! i just wanna thank whoever viewed and favorited this story, i really appreciate you all 3 i also made a playlist that i listen to while writing this, because i feel it relates to the story and also gives me more inspiration to write. if anyone wants to check it out or listen to it while reading, please tell me and i'll link it in the next chapter. you can also find the story on ao3! that being said, i hope you enjoyed the story! thank you once again