Mid-afternoon, Ino knocked on Shikamaru's door. She heard a muffled groan, then, "It's open."

Shaking her head, Ino opened the door and closed it softly behind her. Shikamaru was laying in his bed with a pillow over his head, his roommate was gone. She took a seat in the desk chair, spinning to face him.

"Shika," she began quietly.

He moved the pillow, looking at her, seeing her serious expression, he sat up, rubbing sleep from his eyes.

"I went on a date with Hinata last night."

"Really? How'd it go?" he asked interested.

"Not at all like I would have expected," she replied, thinking back, though it didn't take much, she had been replaying what had happened over and over all night and most of the morning.

Shikamaru remained silent, waiting for her to continue. She told him everything, starting from their first conversation in Psyche all the way to their date. When she finished, he was quiet for at least ten minutes, she knew he was thinking deeply on what she said, so she waited, patiently.

Finally he spoke, "I know Neji, her cousin, is a dick. Her father is the man who owns almost all the companies in Japan, and I'm pretty sure the pressure is on for her to take after him. But, everyone seems to be of the opinion that Neji is much more suited but Hiashi won't hear of it, saying Hinata is his heir and so she must take the companies. Since you guys have Analytical Psyche and Art together, I'm guessing she wants to be either an artist or a psychiatrist of some sort. But it's like I said before, not much is known about her."

Ino nodded, waiting for him to continue.
"Chances are, she's fighting him hard, his relentless yelling at her has probably given her some twisted thoughts and feelings on people. Like he's royally fucked her mind. You know from your psyche classes what negativity can do to a person's well-being. It's highly likely, that she's going through or has gone through some serious shit. Now, if you're serious about going after her, you need to be prepared to help her, to be there for her, but it will not be easy, Ino."

She said nothing, thinking hard about all he had said. She had already known Hinata was different. In what ways, she didn't know but she was curious. The question was, was she strong enough for Hinata? Was she strong enough to be there, to take anything Hinata said and not let it hurt? Was she strong enough to give her everything she needed?

Honestly, she didn't know. She wanted to be. She knew she had to be sure, she couldn't back down. And she wanted Hinata, truly. Despite her coldness, Ino was or rather, already had, fallen for her. She wanted to be the one Hinata came to, the one she loved, the one she could tell anything to. She wanted to be Hinata's.

She thanked Shikamaru and told him she was going to go think for a while. He nodded and watched her go, hoping she knew what she was doing.

Ino returned to her room for a few moments to change into workout clothes, some black basketball shorts and a black guys tank top, leaving her gloves and trench coat in the room, she slid the cord to her ear buds down her shirt and plugged it into her iPod. Break by Three Days Grace began to play as she jogged down the halls to the fitness area.

She worked out, losing herself in the rhythm of the exercises, her mind wandered.
Everything Shikamaru had said made sense. She had to be totally focused if she wanted Hinata. She had to be ready for anything, strong enough for anything. She knew she was completely smitten by the pale girl, but she didn't care. She was prepared to fight for her. It was what she wanted, and, if Hinata wanted her, was willing to try, it would make her the happiest girl in the world.

She grinned as she worked out, finishing two hours later. Drenched in sweat, she walked slowly to her room. Before she got in the shower, she would text Hinata, asking if she would be interested in a second date. She would take things extremely slow. If it interested her, she would tell Hinata of her own life, not pressuring her to reveal any details about her own life, simply offering information for free. Let the paler girl get to know her, hopefully, to trust her.

She sent the text, offering a second date at Pizza Hut, and perhaps a movie afterward. gathering her normal attire, Ino went into the adjoining bathroom and got into the shower.
When she returned to the bedroom, she had a text from Hinata, accepting the offer and asking "Why the fixation on pizza?"

Ino laughed and replied, "I don't know, Just something good! If we have another date after this one, I'll let you pick the place."

Nervously, she awaited the reply, sitting on her bed and gazing at her phone.

"Sounds like a deal, if another date is to be had after this one."

Ino smiled to herself, perhaps Hinata was coming around.