A/N: I know! I know it's late! I know! I'm just such a terrible procrastinator, i couldn't get myself to write this for a looooong time. But it's here now, and that's what counts. And it gets limey! And then it kinda goes downhill from there, in my opinion. (You know what they say about sequels never being as good as originals...). But whoa, me posting two happy-ending NejiTen's in one day? That's a record for sure.
(And i have now been convinced to write a PREquel. Oh no, it is not over yet. So look out for chap 3 aka the prequel! But that will really, truly be the end.)
Because The Night Belongs To Us
Neji is a man of routines and carefully planned out schedules that are not to be deterred from, for the most part. He is also, for the most part, a man of few words, which is why, when Tenten opens the door at precisely 12:07 AM, he greets her with a curt, "Where were you?"
It is only when he notices the slight wobble in her steps and the rosy tinge in her cheeks that he groans under his breath, because he now knows the answer to his own question.
"I told you, Neji. I was having a girl's night out," Tenten explains while waving an arm around for emphasis. Her speech is barely slurred, so Neji determines that she is only slightly tipsy, which is a good sign.
"Yes, you told me that at six. This is six hours later."
Tenten narrows her eyes and purses her lips in defiance. "God, Neji, you don't have to sound so accusing. It's the first time I've seen the girls in, what? Two months? I don't even know. But whoa, did that place have good martinis or what?"
Okay, maybe she's a bit past 'slightly tipsy.' Neji sighs and heads towards her, intent on pulling her past the doorway since she seems content to merely stand there all night waving an arm around for who knows what reason. He knows how strange Tenten can get while drunk.
Which is why he is not incredibly surprised when her eyes glaze over and she stumbles forward into his arms, burying her face in his shirt and proclaiming, "Neji, I swear, we were at the bar the whole time. I'm sorry I was gone for so long, and for making you worry that I was out picking up other guys or something. I wouldn't do that, I promise."
She is just about reaching her delirious stage, and Neji is pretty sure that she will end up suffocating him in her crushing hug if he doesn't calm her down soon, so he lightly wraps his arms around her and kisses the top of her head. "I know, I know," he soothes, rubbing and arm up and down her back gently. "You were just getting ridiculously drunk without thinking about the consequences, and probably had to have Sakura drive you home because she's the only one that can hold her alcohol well, which means that your car is still downtown, right?"
"Mm-hmm," she hums into his chest, and her arms loosen a bit.
"And tomorrow you will have a terrible hangover and you'll ask me to stay here with you until you feel better."
"Yeah…I know. You'll stay, right?"
Tenten looks up at him with doe eyes and an irresistible pout, and it's all Neji can do to not roll his eyes, since he's not sure it's the best thing to do with Tenten in such a fragile state. "I do every time, don't I?"
And her face breaks into a mind-blowing smile that dazzles more than she knows it does, and she leans up and presses a chaste kiss to Neji's lips. "Aw, could I ask for anyone better than you?"
Neji smirks and replies with the obvious answer. "Of course not."
Tenten nuzzles into his neck and exhales feathery breaths onto his pale skin. Her lips are like butterflies against his flesh when she whispers, "I love you, Neji."
Neji closes his eyes and takes a breath. "…Me too."
"Why can't you just say the whole thing?" She sounds disappointed.
He smirks again, opens his eyes, and lowers his mouth to her ear. "I love you, Tenten." He is incredibly smug when he feels the shiver run down her spine and her warm lips press against his collarbone.
"I love you too."
He ignores the fact that Tenten has just unknowingly repeated herself, and keeps his eyes on hers as she leans up to kiss him again. She sways at the last moment and stumbles forward, a squeak of surprise escaping her lips when Neji has to grip her arms to keep her standing straight.
"Whoa, Neji, I'm all dizzy," she giggles, finding the whole situation very amusing. Neji, however, is beginning to feel a tad exasperated. Hands still supporting her, Neji kicks the front door closed and steers Tenten through the living room and into their spacious bedroom, instructing her to lie down on the bed before she hurts herself.
"But I'm not tired," she whines, and crosses her arms stubbornly. Her feet are planted on the floor and she refuses to do as much as sit down on the mattress behind her. "Besides, you smell good."
Neji raises and eyebrow, trying to figure out what this has to do with anything, but realizes that such an attempt is futile. "Thank you."
"Yeah, so since you smell so distracting, I don't think I can fall asleep."
"Ah…"
"Do you get what I'm saying?"
"No." He really doesn't. At all.
"Ugh, you're so slow, Neji."
He doesn't agree, but there is no point in telling her so.
"I'm saying that I think we shouldn't go to sleep right now. We should do…" She raises her hands to the collar of his shirt and fumbles with the first button, a sly grin on her face. "…Something else."
Ah. It all made sense now. "Tenten, you're drunk."
"No I'm not. I'm a bit tipsy."
"No, you're definitely drunk."
"No, I'm not. I'm tipsy."
"You're also redundant."
Tenten gasps. "What did you just call me?! I am not stupid!"
Neji cannot stifle his frustrated groan as he raises his eyes to the heavens for help. "It means you're unnecessarily repetitive."
"…Huh?"
"Never mind."
"Okay. Have I ever told you how pretty you are?"
When Neji looks back down he is surprised to see that his shirt is completely unbuttoned, and Tenten is staring at the planes of his chest with utmost reverence.
"Yes, you have. And no, I'm not." Neji doesn't like the p-word when it is used to describe him.
Tenten ignores him and pulls his shirt off of his shoulders. Neji lets it slide down his arms and onto the floor; the room is pretty hot. "I'm not drunk," Tenten repeats for the third time, for no particular reason, and flattens her palms to Neji's chest.
"Are you even going to remember this tomorrow morning?" he asks warily, but the purpose of arguing is quickly escaping his mind as her clouded eyes lock with his.
"Of course I am." Her mouth lands on the dip in his collarbone, and he can't suppress the hiss he makes as her hands travel down over his abs, tracing the smooth muscles with hot fingertips. "You see, Neji? You like this," she points out in a low voice as she grazes back up his neck with her teeth before nipping his earlobe playfully. "Do you like it when I'm being this…" she pauses her whisper to search for the right word, "…demanding?"
Neji swallows loudly. Tenten giggles and forces him to take a few steps backwards until his back meets the wall. "You have a sexy Adams apple," she breathes, voice heavy with lust, a twinge of impatience sewn in between. Her lips and tongue and teeth are quick to assault his throat, and Neji is more than willing to tilt his head back for her. It is then that he decides that Tenten is much better at seduction after a long night of drinks, though this thought isn't the most predominant.
When her hands travel up to twist into his hair, Neji growls and captures her mouth hungrily. She tastes like strong alcohol and Neji is having trouble with the zipper on the back of her dress; he briefly wonders if he is maybe getting too drunk on her too think straight. A sharp yank on his hair makes him abandon the thought, and he groans at the back of his throat, enjoying the rough pain and bursting lungs, and Tenten standing between his legs, crushing against him.
It is only when he feels her hands fumbling on his belt that he realizes she is the one in control, and he cannot let that happen (he is a Hyuuga, he is the one in control). He grabs her wrists and pushes her to the bed, where she falls on her back, arms pinned above her head.
"Oooh, feisty," she purrs, which is when Neji loses any last ounce of restraint he might (or might not) have had.
He wakes up when he hears the pained moan beside him. His eyes snap open as the footsteps hurry to the bathroom, and are shortly after followed by an unpleasant retching sound. A few minutes later the toilet flushes and Tenten appears, face pale and body wrapped in a white bathrobe.
"Neji, I feel like absolute, utter crap," she groans, and then her hand goes up to clutch her forehead. "Oh my god, my head is pounding so hard I can practically hear- oh god." She runs back into the bathroom, and retching and toilet flushing follows once more.
"Can I come in," Neji asks through the crack in the mostly-closed door.
"I look horrible." Which means 'I don't really care right now.'
His just-put-on silk sleep pants sweep against the floor silently as he opens the door the rest of the way and steps inside. Tenten is splashing her face with water, and Neji gets the mouthwash out of the medicine cabinet. "Here, rinse."
Tenten tries to smile, ends up grimacing, and twists the cap off of the mouthwash. The room smells faintly of mint as she swishes the liquid around in her mouth and spits it in the sink. "That tastes so much better."
"I don't doubt it. Come on, go lie down, I'll bring you Advil," Neji says, and pulls her gently back to the bed. He then gets a glass of water from the kitchen and the pills from the bathroom, and hands them to Tenten.
"Just out of curiosity, how much did you drink last night?"
Tenten grimaces again. "I lost count, got carried away. We were having so much fun, and then everything got all crazy and I was totally smashed, and I think Sakura brought me home, and…we had drunk sex, didn't we?" she asks a bit sheepishly.
"You had drunk sex, I was sober," Neji points out.
"This is why you shouldn't agree to let me go out with the girls."
"I wasn't exactly complaining."
"Good," Tenten says, and swallows the pills and water. She drapes an arm over her face with a loud sigh. "Now, I need to sleep or something. I think my head's going to explode."
Neji trails a hand down her cheek before taking the empty glass and heading to the kitchen. He places it in the sink and takes a minute to stare out of the window. All he sees are city skyscrapers and ant-sized people far below. All so busy. He wonders if they have time for loved ones or family. Or marriage.
He hears Tenten call his name faintly from the bedroom. She will ask him to stay next to her as she suffers through her hangover, just like she always does. He is surprised when he doesn't find the task so daunting.
He stands in the doorway, unheard and unseen by her, and looks at her for a moment. Her eyes are closed and her lips barely parted, and if it weren't for the furrow in her eyebrows she would be the picture of tranquility. The back of her right hand is resting on her forehead, fingers slightly bent, and her long hair spreads in waves around her head and over her shoulders. He finds himself overwhelmed by her beauty and the floating yet constricting feeling in his chest, and at that moment he knows exactly what he wants.
He heads to the bedside table and opens the bottom drawer so he can take out the little box inside. He then opens the box and takes the ring out, fingers gentle around the platinum band and not-too-big yet not-too-small diamond.
He picks up Tenten's left hand and slips the ring onto her ring finger, and marvels at how perfect it looks there. Tenten's eyelashes flutter and her chocolate eyes open slowly, blearily. "Neji, what-"
"Marry me."
The haze is gone and her eyebrows shoot up in surprise. "What?!"
"Marry me, Tenten," Neji says again firmly. He lets her hand slip out of his as she sits up with a groan and holds the ring up to eyelevel. For a second he wonders if she is shock, because she seems unable to do anything besides breathe and stare; her eyes don't even blink. He is about to speak when her head falls back onto the pillow.
"You had to ask now?" she asks, almost a whine. "Now, when I look and feel like crap? That's so unromantic."
Neji raises an eyebrow. "Would you like me to ask later?" he says in an unsure voice, and wonders what her answer will be.
"No, I should have figured you would ask at a bad time. If you didn't, I would wonder if something was wrong with you." She tilts her head a bit and smiles up at him, and it reaches her eyes and twinkles there. "Yes, I will marry you, Neji Hyuuga. I've only been waiting for you to ask for too long," she says softly, and reaches out for his hand.
"Now," she continues, "you better hold my hand and stay right here until I feel better, and then my brain won't hurt and I'll be able to feel as excited about this as I should be."
And he can think of no other place he would rather be.
A/N: Ack, the cheese is too much for me! I think i'm drowning in it... I really hope this lived up to standards at least a little bit.