This was a sight that would leave a bitter taste in her mouth.
And yet, her day seemed to have started out so well. But, never, ever, could she have imagined, coming back from her stroll through Konoha, to be greeted by such a sight.
What exactly did she expect?
Nothing, if only to be loved in the same way as she loved him.
Was that too much to hope for?
The bar was not set high.
Did she wish for loyalty? Yes, from Naruto, she wanted nothing else.
That he would one day betray her in such a way, was something she would never have imagined.
He was so engrossed in what he was doing that he didn't even notice her.
Tears came to her eyes, and she couldn't hold them back any longer, so they rolled down her beautiful rose-tinted cheeks.
"I missed you so much," she could hear him say.
She would never be able to forgive him.
She believed he loved her.
He'd shouted it loud and clear for the whole world (and even the moon) to hear.
Had he lied? Did he feel sorry for her and was that the reason why he put up with her day after day?
Sakura warned her. He would come back to the roots as soon as he got the opportunity.
She remembers her smirk when she told her:
"You'll see, it won't last long until he goes back to conquer his first true love."
She should have listened to Sakura.
But what else was she supposed to do?
She only asked him to do one small thing and that was to be honest with her. He just had to tell her the truth, and maybe, just maybe, she would have even let him, if that was all that was needed to make him feel happier.
Yes, Hinata would have allowed him to betray her and humiliate her in such a way, if it was to keep his cheerfulness.
"I promise you, Hinata, that nothing and no one will be able to tear us apart." These were his exact words.
What more did she have to do?
She should have never trusted him.
What was she going to do now?
She was pregnant with his child. Six months of indescribable happiness, ruined in a single split second.
"God, I'll never leave you again." Wasn't he ashamed of himself? To say such obscenities while she was just a few feet away from him, in their shared home? She could hear him moaning.
Hinata thought she was his everything. Were they just empty words?
She needed to put an end to this humiliation.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." She cleared her throat to make herself heard.
Suddenly he turned around, fear written all over his face.
He was caught red-handed.
"Hinata, I-..." The thing he held in his hands fell to the ground, shattering into a thousand pieces like her heart had just moments ago.
"There's no need to say anything." She couldn't look him in the eye, let alone stand in front of what must have been his one true love.
What an illusion!
She knew better than to ignore the small voice in her mind telling her not to be so hopeful.
Because how could she ever possibly compete against...
"Hinata, please, it's not what you think, I-..." A humorless sneer escaped her lips.
"I was so naive to think that you loved me." She shook her head, realizing how foolish she was when it came to Naruto.
"Hinata..."
"Keep your apologies to yourself. I've suspected it anyway, for some time now. Maybe it was too much to ask you to keep your word."
"You know very well that I always keep my word! It was an accident, a mistake that will never happen again, I promise!" Shirtless for all the onlookers to admire, draped only in the blanket, he stood up from the couch, pushing his lifelong love away to reach for her.
He meant to take her in his arms, when she pushed him away, no longer able to deal with him, with her back to him.
"We had a deal." she whispered, a hand over her mouth.
"I know..."
"Why are you hurting me like this?"
"You have to please understand me, Hinata. You..."
"How could I? Didn't I give you everything of me? Even a child! And you still expect more..." she whispered, her voice breaking.
"Yes, but..." He pulled on his hair, himself not knowing what possible excuse to pull out this time.
"But what?"
"I don't know! I... I can't help it. I'm dumb and the only person who's suffering in this situation is you, but..."
"I thought you loved me. How could I be so blind?" She wanted to run away from this horror that smelled so much like betrayal, stinking up their apartment with its overwhelming scent.
"I love you. But I also love..." He sighed. "Hinata, believe me if I say that was the last time. I swear to you."
"Another empty promise, you mean? I didn't think you could hurt me much more than you did already."
Seeing that she would never understand his point, he gave her a few minutes to calm down.
She was carrying his child. He didn't want to see her hurt but how could he say no, in the face of this temptation that crossed his path every day.
"I will never forgive you," she repeated once again.
"Hinata, it's too much to demand of me. I'm sorry, and I know I told you that one day I'll get over these damn feelings, but..."
"Say it. Just be honest with me and with yourself, for once. Say it, Naruto."
He took a deep breath before ripping off the band-aid. He owed her the truth. "I tried. I really did. I pushed those feelings from me, convincing myself that it was enough what you do for me every day. You're the best, everything you do is perfect. But there's one thing... one thing you can't give me..."
"How many times Naruto?"
A sigh escaped from him. He didn't want to hurt her any more than he already did.
"Say it!" She raised her face towards him to look deep into his eyes. His sky blue eyes that she loved since she was four years old.
"Twice a week." Her big doe eyes brimmed with tears and this time she couldn't stop the sobs from coming out.
After a few minutes, she said, "I never had a chance against...?" She didn't need to say whom she meant. No need to inflict more pain on herself.
"No..." he denied shamefully.
She nodded, realizing that this talk was never going to get anywhere.
"I..." She tried to keep a brave face, but to no avail.
"Maybe with a little practice, I'm sure you'll be able to keep up with..." But the thing he couldn't understand was that she didn't want to impersonate anybody. She was her own person, with her own talents.
"How in the world could you possibly ask such a thing...?"
"Hinata, I don't want to say it's your fault, but..."
"You're pushing it too hard, Naruto." She saw how he wanted to say something, but didn't dare. He opened his mouth several times, though he closed it again, looking to his right, begging the other person, who hadn't said anything until now, to help him. But this one could only shake her head, accomplice of his acts.
Hinata who couldn't even look at him, glanced towards her.
"I didn't think you'd really do it." Sakura lowered her eyes to the ground. She felt bad, but what else was there to do?
She wanted to cheer him up. He needed the one thing Hinata couldn't give him.
"Hinata..." How could Hinata have ever guessed that Sakura would actually betray her?
"I really thought you could resist her. I'm ashamed of you. Ashamed to call you my husband and to call you my friend." And again, Hinata broke down in tears.
Naruto, unable to bear this whole situation any longer, took his wife in his arms.
"I'm sorry. I knew it would hurt you and I still betrayed you. I'm an asshole." She wanted to push him away, but she couldn't, as he held her with such force that she was unlikely to escape his embrace.
"What I don't understand is why you can't like my ramen! What does Teuchi have that I don't?" Naruto didn't have an answer to that.
His wife was a bit (very) sensitive lately.
And yes, he knows that he had promised her not to eat so much ramen at Teuchi's place, because she wanted to show him all her delicious recipes.
But how could he pass every day in front of Ichiraku, without smelling that rich smell?
Besides the unlimited ramen!
It was a well-kept secret between only a handful of people. Not even Sakura knew about it until this moment!
"What's your reason, Sakura?" Sakura never heard Hinata address her in that way before. Now she was even more mad at herself.
"Hinata, you know we were holding this bet. And it was the perfect opportunity, since you were at Kurenai's and Naruto was sick. He needed his bowl of noodles." The doctor felt sorry for Hinata, but the idea seemed brilliant at the time. Sore loser that she was, she could never have accepted this defeat against Hinata.
"I see..."
"Forgive me Hinata. It's all Sak-..." Naruto failed to finish his thought as Sakura punched him in the face with full force. Now it was all her fault even though he betrayed Hinata countless times before? What a fool!
"I'm leaving now. Oh, and Hinata?" The Hyuga could only watch the broken bowl of ramen on the floor, unable to take her eyes off of it.
"Hmm?"
"I'm sorry, but you'll owe me a ticket to the onsen. A bet is a bet. And your next hospital appointment is next Tuesday. Don't forget." The rose flashed her a wink before disappearing at lightning speed through the front door.
Had she overdone it? She wiped away the tears that were partly genuine.
However, he deserved it.
How many times did he come home, eating only one portion of the food his wife lovingly prepared?
This would serve him as a lesson.
The first true love is hard to forget, Hinata noted.
Damn ramen from Ichiraku!
