Yay, for reviews, no?

Suzako – thanks, i was actually beginning to question it. i don't expect this story to be long at all, i don't do angst and sad well so i won't drag this out, expect quick updates.

Hlomondodeli Majoribanks – Yeah, i had such a hard time killing Chouji off though. I don't even know if i'm going to go into the scene about how he died. If you have noticed all i said was that he did die, not how. Thanks for liking it, and like i said before, expect quick updates.

Disclaimer: is in the first chapter.

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Tan.

Sakura had chosen to paint her ceiling an ugly tan-beige color, leaving Ino to stare up at it from her makeshift bed on the floor. She heard Sakura shuffling around in the bathroom with the blow dryer on, the sound had woken her up, and she found that sleep would elude her as long as she had to pee. Feeling more tired than she rightfully should, Ino climbed to her feet and made a direct path to the bathroom. Ino watched the pink haired girl as she flipped her hair to dry the underneath, and found herself smiling at an unexpected memory.

Shikamaru sat on the sink, legs hanging off as he made a loud yawn. "Can't we just skip dinner? We see our families all the time" his hair was wet and he didn't wear a shirt – a sight Ino had fallen in love with since the first time she saw it.

"It's not just any dinner Shikamaru! It's our first dinner with our parents as a married couple and we have to prove that we are incredibly in love!"

He sighed, mumbling something about troublesome women and watched her grab the blow dryer. "We don't have to prove anything that's painfully apparent Ino, this is too troublesome."

Ino smiled at him, bright, happy, in love. "Dry your hair before you catch a cold" she watched him quirk an eyebrow as if wondering if doing such a thing would force him into going to dinner. She laughed sliding a hand into his wet locks, "Stay still then, and I'll do it." She brought the blow dryer up and began to groom him, laughing as he yelped at the extreme heat on his scalp when she brought it too close. "Stop squirming!" she giggled.

"Stop burning me!" it only made her laugh harder. He shook his hair much like she'd seen Akamaru do; Ino had to put up a hand to deflect the droplets. With her defenses down Shikamaru had slid from the sink and wrapped his arms quickly around her waist, closing the distance between them so she couldn't comfortably use the blower dryer.

"Shikamaru!" She could feel water sliding down her shirt and cursed. "I'm going to have to change my shirt now – "

"Stop complaining!" he silenced her with a kiss. "I'll get ready for your damn dinner."

With water beginning to soak through her shirt and running down his back Ino didn't leave his hold. She leaned her head against the hollow of his shoulder. "I don't want to go to dinner."

"Ino?" Sakura stared questioningly at her friend.

Ino looked around quickly, meeting her friend's suddenly worried eyes. "I have to pee" she inserted quickly into the growing silence.

"Oh!" Sakura exclaimed with a laugh, "I'm sorry, I'm done in here. You can take a shower if you want – "

"No, I think I'm going to head back to my house, there are some errands I have to run today" They swapped positions, Ino moving into the bathroom while Sakura moved out to lean against the door frame.

"I'll make some tea before you go?" Sakura's head tilted in question.

Ino just nodded, beginning to close the door as Sakura turned away. Ino pressed her back against the door, and exhaled. This ceiling was white.

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"Hello?" she called gently in the door way. She hadn't expected a response, Shikamaru had work today. She closed the door and set her bag down beside her shoes in the entryway. Ino made her way into the kitchen, expecting to make herself some more tea. He was sitting at the table – it made her jump, hand flying to her chest as her heart pounded out a quick rhythm.

"I made tea" he said simply, watching her compose herself.

"Thank you" she mad her way to the pot, taking a glass from a cupboard. "I thought you had work." She could barely restrain squirming in his presence.

"Tsunade apparently deemed it unnecessary. I have the next few days off," he finished his tea, sitting the empty cup on the table.

He was angry. She could tell by the set of his shoulders – or at least the way he visibly struggled to keep them loose. "You can break the cup, we have plenty more" It slipped, she shouldn't have acknowledged his anger, he had tried so hard to hide it.

His dark eyes pierced right through her and she looked away, "I'm sorry, I –"

She heard the ceramic shatter and found the chipped and broken remains of something that used to hold tea. "I'm going out" he declared, shoving both hands in his pockets and heading out the front door without a glance in her direction.

She didn't know how to react, so she didn't. She drank her tea as if he had never been there, staring at the broken glass. When she finished, she calmly sat her glass down, reaching for a rag. She picked the larger pieces up and threw them out by hand. She began to wipe the smaller pieces into her hand when she spotted two dots of crimson. She froze up for a second but with an iron will forced air through her lungs. It was his own fault; he probably wouldn't even get it checked before it started to get infected. She wiped the rest off in quick jerking movements, throwing it all, including the rag, into the trash bin when she was finished.

Ino looked around the tidy house, except for the disheveled couch where she had slept the night before; everything had been vigorously scrubbed and wiped in one of her furious cleaning frenzies a few days before. She reached for the blanket on the couch and folded it before grabbing the pillows and distributing them artfully. She carried the blanket and put it in a spare closet before heading back into the bedroom. He had left the bed unmade and the evidence of his discomfort was clearly expressed in the multiple twists in the sheets and blanket. He had nearly pulled the sheets off completely.

She took a long look at the bed, wondering whether or not she should just change the sheets or set it ablaze. Instead she decided to straighten the disarray and scoot under the covers. Shikamaru had picked out this bed; he had said he needed the most comfortable bed on the market. She felt the mattress take her shape she had to admit, sleeping on the couch had nothing on this. She began to unclothe, leaving on only her undershirt and panties. This was how she usually slept when in this bed. She snuggled up in the center of the bed, stuck between their scents, and fell asleep.

The bed tilted, Ino had awoken once she felt the shift of weight beside her and she could smell Shikamaru beside her. How late had she slept? Opening her eyes cautiously she stared at the window; it looked like it was late afternoon – hours since she had gotten into bed. Where had he been? An arm snaked around her waist pulling her close. He pressed his forehead against the middle of her shoulder blades and she heard shaking breaths – he was crying. She bit her lip at the sound, placing her hand over his and bringing it to her lips. It wasn't bleeding anymore, but it was obvious he hadn't gotten it treated. She began to turn to face him, weary of his head still at her back. He didn't look at her, even as the both moved so she could lie overtop of him, head nestled on his chest. She inhaled his scent, closing her eyes, but something was off. She inhaled again, as if she was just breathing, and smelled something else – someone else.