A/N: Happy New Year, everyone! I can't believe it's been over a year since I started posting this story online. For those of you still following along, I really, truly appreciate it - your reviews mean the world to me, and it makes me so happy to hear that my updates make your days or are something for you to look forward to. I've been sent some wonderful prompts as of late, so stay tuned for more ShikaTema stories outside of this one!
This one has been some time coming...I hope I've done it justice. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
"I'm glad to hear it." The ring was on her finger before she could even blink away the tears that were spilling down her face.
He rose and smiled at her, warmly, gently, with a love in his eyes that made her melt.
She felt his face close in on her; his cool, heady scent intoxicating as they now shared the same space, breathed the same air.
Her eyes closed in anticipation, in preparation, in trust.
His forehead tapped hers.
The tip of his nose slid against the side of her own.
Their lips brushed.
His hands came up to hold her face.
He kissed her; she kissed him.
It was delicate and sweet and so damn wonderful.
She never thought it would be like this.
Honestly, she didn't know what she'd imagined it to be...but this, somehow, was entirely different.
It was slow and breathtaking and intense and magical, all at once.
They'd fallen backwards onto the bed, lips never allowing any sort of release as he caressed her face and she tugged at his shirt, pulling him closer to her.
His hands roamed over her waist, her hips, her back, her breasts.
She didn't mind. In fact, she craved it.
She craved every part of him.
And, as was often the case with them, she would have her way.
Her eyes fluttered open momentarily to strip him of his shirt; it snagged one of his earrings on the way up over his head, eliciting a chuckle from her that he immediately silenced once he was free from the fabric. She delighted at the feeling of her hands running along his bare skin: over his sculpted shoulders; the planes of his back; the slight dip at his waist and the curve of his neck. When his mouth moved to kiss along hers, she licked her thumb and swiped it across his forehead.
He paused and looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
Is this part of the foreplay?
She couldn't help but grin at his confused expression. "Wait a minute." With one hand she held his face, and with the other, she rubbed at his forehead with a little more vigour.
"Ow! What is this, morse code?" he grumbled.
"Calm down, you big crybaby," she laughed. "This is a special moment, and I don't want some drunkenly scrawled marker ruining it."
Ah. He forgot that was there. "You already ruined it," he muttered, although the corners of his mouth curved up into a smile.
"You're ruining it now."
He rolled his eyes. She had to win, didn't she?
Not that he particularly minded in this very moment.
She silenced him with her lips before he could think of some witty comeback, and he gave into her without hesitation.
Tentatively, his hands slid under the hem of her tunic.
She raised her arms, giving him permission. Submission.
When her layers lay in a mess on the floor, he took a moment to simply admire her.
She felt her cheeks heat up with embarrassment.
"What are you doing? Stop staring!"
He laughed. "Can you really blame me when you're looking like that?"
"Like what?"
He paused to think.
"Beautiful."
A smile crept across her face. "You know, you called me that the first time we shared a bed together."
"How fitting," he grinned, leaning in to mould his lips to hers once more.
She wrapped herself around him, only wanting him impossibly closer. He kissed her everywhere, navigating her body as if it were a map of the world and he needed to explore every corner and crevice, remember every route, uncover all of its secrets. Every touch made her weak, wondering if they could always be like this. Always together, with all the time in the world.
But hell if she was going to be weak through all of it.
She hooked her arms around his neck and flipped them over without warning, now hovering over him like a predator stalking its prey. She could tell he was about to protest, but a hand on his belt made him think twice. He raised an eyebrow.
"Couldn't you just let me be the selfless one tonight?" he teased. "You knew I wanted to give you-"
"Tough," she quipped. "Now shut up and enjoy it."
He knew by now not to argue with her when she'd set her mind on something.
He never thought it would be like this.
Physical intimacy wasn't something he'd paid much mind to...until he met her.
He'd always been regarded as wise beyond his years, much too mature for his age, more of an old man than his old man was. And yet, when she walked into his life with those sharp lips and curvaceous hips, he was reduced to a teenage boy once more. Except now, he was twenty, and he'd been curious about sex for sometime now; he wondered if he'd have ever thought about it this much if it weren't her. But he figured that was irrelevant.
It was always her.
And it seemed her kindness extended beyond her smile.
A groan escaped his mouth. He exhaled shakily.
"Temari..."
"Shh," she said softly, rising to meet him and kissing him gently, lips lingering. A smirk crept across her face as she whispered, "You're welcome."
Once he'd regained some form of coherency with his thoughts, it occurred to him that they were here, together, naked bar one piece of clothing. The sheer sensation of her skin against his, smooth and warm, was enough to wear down his patience.
His hands fell to the waistband of her underwear.
"Can I?"
"You don't have to ask, you idiot."
"There are a number of sexual misconduct laws that would argue otherwise."
"Now who's ruining the moment?" she raised an eyebrow.
Right, right. 'Now's not the time to be a smartass, Nara' - he could practically hear her snap at him.
As he finally uncovered the last piece of her puzzle, he questioned whether or not he was in a dream, and silently pleaded with himself not to wake up if that were the case.
He always liked puzzles.
With one hand, she gripped his hair, pulling out his hair tie in the process so that his dark hair fell around his face and over her body.
The new sensations never seemed to end.
Everything felt like beginning.
After all, they had to start somewhere.
And so it happened.
Time seemed to drag on forever as she waited for his response.
When only a breathless "I love you" was uttered, she looked at him curiously.
"But it's so...messy."
He twirled her hair between his fingers. "It's unpredictable," he corrected her. "Just like you."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I had many ideas of what it might be like, but as always, you surprised me."
"So it's good? Bad?"
"It's beautiful. Also like you."
"Clichés don't become you, Nara." She kissed him nonetheless. "But I love you, too."
They moved together, like a dance.
Just one they hadn't rehearsed before.
It was funny and intense and awkward at times, but they were experiencing it together, and any reservations or inhibitions soon melted away as they found their rhythm and became attuned to each other's bodies. It was by no means shy and innocent, but there was a warmth and a closeness to it that suggested to both of them that they weren't having sex; rather, making love. There had always been a physical attraction, a sexual tension between them, but it had manifested itself in ways other than intimacy - and they thought about just how lucky they were to have found each other, because it would take a damn long time and a whole lot of risk to find something like this again, and Shikamaru was almost definitely too lazy for that.
When they finally came to rest, wrapped up in each other, she couldn't help but laugh.
"What's so funny?" he asked, suddenly self-conscious.
"I was just thinking that it's good to know we're compatible on all fronts, now. Would've been unfortunate if I'd married you, only to find you're terrible in bed."
"Har har," he said grimly. Then, he added, "You're not actually reconsidering it, right?"
She smacked him lightly on the shoulder. "Of course not, you moron."
"Just checking, beautiful," he chuckled, kissing her hair softly.
They lay like that, in silence, for a while. At first, she thought he'd fallen asleep, but when she looked up at him, she realised he was deep in thought.
"What are you thinking about?"
"How lucky I am," he murmured. "Guess I got lucky in many ways."
She rolled her eyes, but her lips curved into a smile. "We both did."