Monday evening found Tenten laying in her bed, showered and ready to sleep as she listened to Neji talk about his day at work. He had been the sole photographer at a wedding that had lasted well into the evening. He had only just gotten home before calling her and she could hear him moving around while he prepared for bed.

"Neji, can I ask you something?" Despite wanting to know why he had kept secrets from her, Tenten was nervous. She didn't want Neji to get angry at her for prying, but she also felt she deserved to know the reasons why he hadn't told her.

"Of course. What is it, Tenten?"

Tenten heard the sounds of rustling sheets and pictured Neji climbing into bed as he awaited her question. She smiled, imagining him snuggled up in bed with the phone pressed to his ear. She wondered if he wore a shirt to bed on the nights she wasn't there. She had never seen him in pyjamas before and couldn't imagine him sleeping in anything but his birthday suit. She flushed, her mind drifting to images of him lying naked in bed.

"Tenten?"

She flushed, thankful that he wouldn't know where her mind had wandered off to. Tenten cleared her throat before asking, "Did you know about me before we met?"

Silence answered her from the other end of the phone. Even the sound of Neji's breathing had stopped, as though he was frozen in place.

"Neji?" Maybe they had been disconnected? Tenten pulled her phone away to check the screen but saw that she was still on the line with him. "Can you hear me?"

Finally, a deep sigh sounded through the phone. "Did Lee tell you?"

"He thought I already knew. He didn't know it was meant to be a secret."

More rustling sounded followed by another sigh. "It is not a secret. I was going to tell you, but I did not know how to without coming across as a creep."

It amused Tenten that he thought he could ever be creepy. A jerk, yes—she had thought him the biggest jerk in history when they first met. But never creepy. "How long have you known about me?"

"Almost a year. I'm sorry, Tenten. I did not mean to deceive you."

Tenten shook her head, a small smile on her lips. "I'm not mad, Neji. I'm just curious. Why didn't you say anything? You acted like a complete jerk the first time we met. Did you even once think that your attitude might make me dislike you?"

He chuckled, that low, sensual rumble that made her toes curl even through the phone. "No, I never once thought that. I knew you would not be able to resist my charms."

"Charms! Yeah, you were real charming, Neji," Tenten laughed. "So, you were already interested in me that first day?"

"Yes," he admitted. "Lee and I were out for drinks one night and I noticed your picture on his phone. I thought you were beautiful, and I asked Lee about you. Over the next few months, he told me stories about you, and I decided that I wanted to meet you. Then, by coincidence, I saw you that day with the purse thief. I didn't even realize I was taking your picture until you turned towards me. The intense look in your eyes, coupled with the sun at your back, made you look like an avenging angel. I had planned to meet you through Lee like a respectable person, but then you stormed your way over to me, all fired up with adrenaline pumping through your veins, and I knew I would not be able to walk away."

Tenten was astounded by the story. He had been interested in her for almost a year? "Surely, you didn't know that I would come to you that night, though."

"I was very confident that you would." He sounded smug and Tenten rolled her eyes at his confidence. "I was planning to officially ask you out the next morning, but you had already run off when I woke up. I know that wasn't the best way of going about pursuing you, but you turned me on when you apprehended the purse thief, and then I felt you against me in the alley and I knew I couldn't resist you."

Now she was turned on. "Well, I am irresistible." She said it as a joke, but he voiced his agreement with a low moan and heat zinged straight to her core in response. Changing the subject—this was not the time to be thinking about that—she said, "I have one more question. But you don't need to answer this one if you're not comfortable with it."

His voice came through the phone, huskier than it had been a moment before, and Tenten wondered if he was feeling as affected as her. "I will tell you anything you wish to know, Angel."

"Are you really part of the Hyuga family?"

He sighed but didn't seem surprised by the question. "Lee again?"

"Kakashi. But he also thought I knew already." Tenten grimaced, knowing she was bringing up something he may not want to discuss. "I'm sorry, Neji. I don't mean to pry. You don't need to talk about it if it makes you uncomfortable."

"No, it does not make me uncomfortable. I just did not think they would both beat me to the punch." He paused and Tenten waited patiently. "My mother ran out on my father when I was a small child. My father, not being able to handle the pain of losing her, killed himself a couple of years later."

Tenten's hand flew to her open mouth, stifling a gasp. "I am so sorry, Neji. That must have been a very difficult time for you."

"I was young, so I did not fully comprehend what was happening. My uncle took me in and, since he had no son of his own, he groomed me with the hopes that I would take over the family business. I became interested in photography very early on and wanted to pursue that. We had a falling out when I refused to take over the business and I was forced to leave. I have been living above Kakashi's bar ever since."

Tenten had no idea that he had gone through so much. Not only had he lost his parents at such a young age, he was kicked out by the only family he had left. Neji was always so confident and cocky; if anyone else had told her his story, she wouldn't have believed them.

"Thank you for telling me, Neji," she said softly. The desire to reach through the phone and stroke his hair almost overwhelmed her. He didn't sound overly affected by his past, but Tenten knew he must be hurting. How could he not, when he had gone through all that? She yawned, suddenly exhausted from the array of emotions rolling through her.

He chuckled at the sound. "I think I should let you sleep."

"But I want to talk some more."

"I will call you tomorrow night. It is almost one in the morning, and you have to get up for work in a few hours."

Tenten pouted, but her eyelids grew heavy and she yawned again. "Fine. Goodnight, Neji."

His voice was soft and warm when he replied, "Goodnight, Tenten."

.

.

.

Weeks passed and Tenten could only meet Neji on the weekends due to their schedules. They often spent the whole weekend together, with Neji picking her up Saturday morning and dropping her home Sunday afternoon, lingering at her doorstep for as long as possible before finally parting ways.

Tenten was packing up after class one Friday evening when Lee called her name. She looked up to see him by the front doors of the dojo speaking with Neji, and her heart warmed at the sight of him. She walked over to them, a smile on her lips. "I'm almost finished, Neji. Just give me a few minutes."

She had been nervous, since she had never had a man in her home before—Lee and Guy didn't count—but she had finally asked Neji if he wanted to stay the night at her place. She planned to make him dinner and spend the evening watching a movie or just chilling out—something a little different from what they usually did at his place.

As she left them, she heard Lee expressing his glee at seeing the two of them dating. Neji had told him on one of their get-together evenings, and Lee had called her, drunk as hell, crying that she had kept it a secret from him.

Tenten hurried to get changed and retrieve her bag before meeting him back at the door. Neji smiled at her and held out his hand and she instinctively grabbed it, returning his smile with one of her own. They said their goodbyes to Lee and left, heading towards her small apartment.

"How was your day?" Neji asked, turning to look at her.

"It was good. I've had an influx of new students so I'm doing more classes now. It's a little exhausting, but I love it."

He squeezed her hand. "That's good. You are not too tired to make dinner? We can get takeaway if you prefer."

Tenten shook her head. "No, I want to make dinner. Don't get your hopes up too much, though. I'm nowhere near as good as Kakashi."

"I am sure I will love whatever you make for me. And if I do not, I will eat it anyway."

"Hey!" Tenten pushed him and he laughed, pulling her close and wrapping his arm around her waist. "Maybe I'll just feed you bad food on purpose," she grumbled, though a smile tugged at her lips. They reached her apartment and Tenten unlocked the door, letting them in. "Oh, right. Did you bring some clothes with you?"

"Only what I plan to wear tomorrow."

"I was thinking that you should bring a couple of outfits over, to keep here." Tenten blushed when he turned to look at her and she glanced away, unable to maintain eye contact. "I mean, you'll probably stay over every now and again, and I've got clothes and hygiene products at your place, so it's only right that you have some here. Don't you think?" She knew Neji was watching her, but she refused to face him, her whole body on fire with embarrassment. Did it sound like she was asking him to move in with her? God, she hoped he didn't get the wrong idea.

She could hear the smile in his voice when he replied, "I would like that."

Tenten breathed a sigh of relief. She met his eye with a grin. "Good. I'll clean out a drawer for you. And there's space in the bathroom cupboard for you as well." Tears pricked her eyes suddenly and Tenten stepped forward to wrap her arms around Neji's middle, hugging him tight. "Thank you, Neji."

He quirked a brow at her but returned the hug. "For what?"

"I'm just really happy." She reached up and placed a kiss to the side of his jaw. "Thank you for making me happy."

Neji bent down to kiss her, a smile on his lips. Before he could deepen the kiss—she knew he planned to when he pulled her closer to his body—she broke away and wriggled out of his grasp. "I'll give you a quick tour and then you can shower while I start dinner, okay?"

Tenten showed him around her small apartment, which consisted of an open floor plan containing the living room and kitchen, a short hallway that led to her bedroom and at the end of the hallway, the bathroom, which also doubled as her laundry room. Once she retrieved a towel, she left him to his devices and made her way to the kitchen to make a start on dinner.

She had just added her ingredients to the frypan when her phone rang. She smiled, seeing her best friend's name light up the screen. "Hi, Temari! This is a surprise."

"Hey to you too, stranger," her friend replied, sounding slightly miffed. "I haven't seen you in ages, girl. You've finished work, haven't you? Do you want to hang out?"

Tenten felt guilty for not having spent any time with Temari lately, but she had been so busy, both with work and with Neji. She groaned. "I'm sorry, Temari but I can't tonight. I'm busy."

"Busy? What are you doing?"

"I've uh… I have company." Tenten shut her eyes, waiting for the onslaught of questions she knew was coming her way.

"Company? As in male company?" Temari's grin was evident through the phone. "No way! Who is it? Do I know him?"

"Yes, you know him. Sort of. It's" —she took a deep breath— "Neji. You know, that guy I told you about last time."

She was expecting Temari's reaction, and she held the phone away from her ear as the blonde laughed for much longer than was necessary. "Are you serious? Ten, this is great! Are you two just knocking boots, or are you official?"

Tenten groaned. "Charming, as usual, Temari. We're official."

Temari wasn't a squealer, but then again, her best friend for life hadn't dated anyone in years—and never seriously, at that—so Tenten couldn't fault her for the high-pitched noise that left her mouth. "Seriously, Ten, that's great news. I am so happy for you."

"Thanks Em. I really like him."

"You better make time for me this weekend," Temari said. "We're going to find some sexy lingerie for your man."

Tenten blushed crimson at her words. "Temari, that's so embarrassing! I can't do that!"

Temari laughed. "Come on, Ten. Show off that gorgeous body of yours. I promise he will thank you for it in very delicious ways."

"Stop, Em! I'm hanging up!" Tenten wanted to stick her head in a bucket of ice, but she was afraid not even that would cool her down. She hung up, her friend's laugh cutting off mid-way, and fanned her face in a pathetic attempt to calm down.

Tenten managed to not burn the food despite her thoughts continually straying to very inappropriate scenarios, and by the time Neji finished in the bathroom dinner was on the table. He pulled her in for a kiss. "Thank you for dinner," he murmured against her lips.

"Thank me after you taste it." She told him jokingly.

He hummed and that infuriatingly irresistible smirk touched his lips before he kissed her again. "I plan on doing that too."

I'm surrounded by sex-craved maniacs. Tenten thought, her face burning anew when his words conjured up indecent images in her mind. Me included.

I really struggled with this chapter. I swear I read through and edited it about five or six times before feeling comfortable enough to post it, and even then, I don't know if I really like how it turned out. I'm having trouble getting motivated to write lately, and I feel like the quality has gone down, so I apologise if you notice it too.

I hope you are all well during this time where restrictions seem to be everywhere. Please stay safe and continue looking after yourselves.