It might had been very obvious from the start (maybe there was a fine print somewhere), but blind hope had not made her see.

It had been hours since she woken up to face what her subconscious mind made her do. Despite doing things that she shouldn't, nothing occurred. No one's life was tied to anything (whatever that implied).

There was just silence, waiting and a ticking clock making her mark the time, making her aware that she had wasted a perfectly good day of working and making profit in the shop instead of sulk in her house. Her absence didn't go unnoticed. Some of her regular clients came to her door knocking, one of them young Himawari. At one point her former teacher and teammate too, but she ignored them all. She did not want to have to explain herself. Tenten just wanted to be by herself and pout in peace.

She didn't know what she was expecting. A reunion perhaps, maybe an embrace. All of the years after his death returned to her, possibly his ghost coming to see her one more time. She was expecting something, not nothing. At the end, nothing was what hurt the most. No, it was expectation. For it is this that cuts deeper than a kunai.

Expectation kills dreams.

Neji had once told her that. They had barely been assigned as team members, barely knew what they were like. Guy Sensei had made them all lay under the cover of the night to look at stars. She remembered not knowing what the objective of this doing was for but was fond all the same at looking at the vastness of the sky and the infinite lights flickering on and off. Tenten was trying to spot a shooting star, whimsical she had always been, and when she spotted one, she closed her eyes and made a wish.

"Stars aren't magical, you know. They are just balls of gas," he said stoically, never once taking his eyes out of the sky. His expression not impressed.

Tenten was too stunned to say anything. She just stared at the infinite unknown, her heart racing as reality hit her. She tried not to let her voice reveal how crushed she was, "A girl can dream, right? I will still be expecting my wish to come true."

"Expectation kills dreams. It's better not to expect. Either way, it won't come true. Life and destiny don't work that way."

Tenten turned to her new teammate, sure she was never going to get along with him. Jerk, she thought as she rolled her eyes at him.

It was starting to get dark out, the sun descending once more to the earth beneath. Tenten felt herself being lost in the crevices of her mind again, her heart giving out to the despair consuming her. She didn't know what was worse, having or not having, dreaming or not dreaming, expecting or not expecting. It was all the same thing.

There was a knock on her door. "Tenten, youthful friend of mine. Are you in your house? Why oh why have you been avoiding me!"

Tenten felt herself get annoyed again.

"You are not going to open the door for me?" Lee chippered ever so enthusiastically.

Tenten kept quiet, knowing that if she did, sooner or later he would leave. And so, after bickering with himself for half and hour, he left promising he would return once again tomorrow. Tenten was already bracing herself for that. Although, Tenten assumed she would be over her ruined expectations tomorrow. Once she picked up her shattered dreams off the floor, that is. Gosh. She never knew she would get so sappy over such underwhelming nothing.

Tenten never thought she would be anxious about water three weeks after their fight with Kisame (she should be over it, shouldn't she?), but alas here she was having panic attacks just by the mere thought of drowning. Even a measly cup of water caused her to hyperventilate. She had resorted to showering every two to three days, fast and quick, thoughtless. It was disgusting, she knew, but she didn't want to be naked and vulnerable doing something that could kill her. The thing that once brought her comfort, the simple act of sitting in a tub, now sent shivers down her spine. Tenten knew this irrational fear was messing with her day to day life. Yet, she couldn't avoid it creeping into her mind when she least expected. She knew others knew too. That's why Neji had asked her to meet her atIchiraku's ramen shop. He never invites her to places to discuss trivial things or to be in each other's company. No, Tenten was certain Neji knew something was terribly wrong with her.

Since she knew she would have to put up an act, she had decided to shower that day. She even washed her hair. It was loose, still wet, as she waited for her Hyuga friend to arrive. The water dripping from the ends of her hair were making her fidget. Tenten couldn't help tapping her fingers in the table, letting some of her nervousness go as she tap-tap-tapped away at the panic building up in her throat.

"Sorry I am late, Tenten," Neji's voice made her jump as he took a seat besides her. "I ran into some inconveniences."

Tenten tried to regain her calm again as she breathed in deeply, nodding away at what he said.

Neji's brows furrowed as he looked at her eyes and at her trembling body. "Are you okay?"

Tenten looked down at her shaking form. How strange it is, she thought, to fall apart. How easy.

She bit her lip, trying to regain composure. This did not seem to convince Neji for he placed a hand on her upper arm as if he could help her. She knew he couldn't. She had tried everything there was these last three weeks (teas, meditation, exercising, training), nothing helped. The mere fact that he was trying, though, made her eyes water. Neji's eyes widened at this. He had never seen her cry; she has never let herself give him that pleasure. Now, she couldn't help herself.

Neji placed his other hand on top of hers. "Tell me what to do."

Tenten nodded, nodded, nodded and nodded. Finally, she forced herself to blurt out, "I want to go home, please. I don't want people looking at me."

Neji stood up, understanding. He took her hand and guided her to her house silently. Once they reached her door, he said, "Do you want me to stay with you?"

Any other time she would have said no, would have like to prove that she is strong and can take care of herself. This time, the thought of being by herself made her feel hollow.

"Yes," she said quietly.

Neji gave a small nod and opened the door for them both to go inside. He took a sit on a small sofa while Tenten hunched on her living room carpet, her arms draped around her legs. Being on the floor was the only thing that made her feel grounded. There was silence after, Neji seeming to want her to open up when she deemed like it.

A few minutes passed, Tenten finding her breath and firmness with each one. After fifteen minutes she sighed. "I am not the same person I was three weeks ago. Feeling like I was about to die…well, it, um, it has shaken me up quite a bit. I mean, I know anyone in my position would be afraid of dying and what all of that implies, but I am not. Death doesn't scare me. Death is a sure thing; I have known this my entire life. I know it's inevitable, you can't escape it. I am just afraid of water. Of it touching me. Of it being too much at once. Of it surrounding me and drowning me when I least expect it." She chuckled realizing how silly it all sounded now that she was hearing herself. "I know it sounds stupid."

Neji just looked at her, his body and face unreadable.

Tenten felt nervous all over again. She started to fill the silence with her words, "Please don't tell anyone. I don't want them to have me on medical leave just because I don't want to shower every day. I will get myself back together, I promise. Just don't mention anything to Sensei, Lee or the Hokage."

Neji shook his head, getting up from the sofa and sitting in front of her in the carpet. He looked down as if in thought. All the while, Tenten felt her anxiety pick up again.

"I was also scared of the water that day," Neji said silently, "but never of drowning." When he looked up, his eyes met her. His gaze was unbreakable.

As his words sunk in, Tenten frowned in confusion. What he was trying to imply did not make sense to her, but she was too scared to pry for an explanation.

"I will not tell anyone," Neji continued on, "under one condition. You must seek professional help. If I see that you have not gotten any better, I will not keep you secrete any longer."

Tenten was sure she would get over this. She had gotten over more traumatizing things before. She knew he would not resort in ratting her out, so she let herself relax at his words.

Tenten allowed herself to smile appreciably at Neji. The smallest hint in the corners of his mouth indicated her that he smiled back.

Tenten startled awake as a loud pounding at her door woke her up. She looked over at the clock on her nightstand and saw that it was almost two o'clock in the morning. This fact made Tenten feel uneasy. Even Lee would have considered not disrupting her at this time. No, something must be up. Heart racing, Tenten threw a robe on as she slowly walked to the door. With each step, she felt more alert. She stopped halfway as a thought popped into her head. What if someone is trying to attack me? She grabbed a kunai out of one of her tables in the living room, finding steadiness as she gripped at it. Would they be stupid enough to wake me, though? came the afterthought.

There was one way to find out. When Tenten reached the door, she breath out. Bracing herself, she swung it open.

Tenten gasped as her kunai clanked on the floor.

"Tenten," said the silhouette as it took a step inside her house before collapsing on the floor.

Before she hunched beside the figure, before she swiped the hair out of his face, she knew who it was. How could she ever forget?

It was Neji.

A/N: Hey! Thank you for all of the reviews for last chapter. Please review this one. I am sorry if this was short and suspenseful. I just wanted to have something out. I will try to update and elaborate further on the next one. Happy holidays!