Hokkaido Holiday
NejiXTenten. Solemn wedding- check. Grand reception- check. Honeymoon- in progress.
Sequel to Possibly Perfect.
I don't own Naruto.
Chapter 3
She left their room while Neji was still in the shower, humming a 'love you' along with a 'see you later' just loud enough for him to hear while the water trickled down. Her supervisor told her to come to the hall at least 30 minutes before their shift. She instantly knew that meant another busy day- and she was right. There were at least 21 reservations for lunch and a wedding reception to be held by the poolside. She was busy arranging silverware on each table- glad that she wasn't assigned by the pool. Her supervisor was a kind woman in her fifties who understood that she wanted to stay close to the kitchen area where Neji would be spending the entire day.
Speaking of the devil, she blinked when she saw Neji wearing the dining hall section uniform. He was walking side by side with Aiba and as usual, they seemed to be in a confrontation. Who was the frontrunner? She could tell it from the slight smirk on Neji's face and the assistant manager's wildly animated expressions. The older man went on ahead, however, and she headed toward him.
"What's going on?"
"Apparently, I've been promoted."
"Promoted?"
"I'll work here today." He said as he pinned a nametag on the left chest area of his uniform. "Some VIP arrived and Aiba-san wanted me to talk to them, make sure they get great service and promote the hotel at the same time. These people have connections and a good word of mouth always works as a marketing strategy."
She smiled at that news. It was a relief that he wouldn't be washing dishes that day. The new task was more like his forte. She thought he found the change to be pleasant as well- he didn't call Aiba by some mean nickname like he did before.
"Hyuuga! I told you to see the guests!" The said hotel official's voice sounded throughout the hall.
"I'm coming." Neji answered before kissing the tip of her nose.
When she was done helping him fix the nametag properly, she gave him a smack on the cheek.
"I loved the massage." He whispered to her before he left.
"Really… your husband is hot."
She was still watching him when one of the dining hall attendants spoke. She looked to her right and recognized one of her newfound friends. She was good at making friends and she instantly clicked with most of the employees.
"I know." She beamed. "Too bad for you, huh?"
The two laughed as they went back to work.
"Remember that your purpose is to give a good impression of the hotel. Be sure to provide them all that they need. Satisfy them at all costs."
"You sound like a pimp."
"What?!" Aiba exclaimed. "That's why I don't trust you enough to let you do this!"
"Then you can go ask someone else." He said, turning around to leave.
"No! Come back here!" He pulled him back to his side.
"Why are you doing this? The manager is not available so you should take over, and what am I? I'm just a nonpaying customer demoted to an indebted dishwasher."
"That's why I'm giving you this chance to prove yourself."
"Prove myself for what?"
Avoiding any further discussion, Aiba pushed him in the private room and closed the door right after. It was true that he disliked the pale-eyed boy's high and mighty attitude, and if only for that he would have believed that he was some royalty accustomed to having servants attending to his every need. But in the end, he was just a conniving pauper. He was probably trained to put up that act to exhort money as compensation for his so-called 'lost valuables'- a modus operandi. Oh, the things people could come up with these days, he thought. But he desperately needed help for this task. That deathly confidence, he didn't have. The mere thought of dealing with people from high society made his knees wobble. And for that, Hyuuga Neji was just the person he needed.
The group of three female guests didn't seem to notice his awkward entrance. He straightened up and walked toward them- pausing when he recognized one of the girls. He immediately thought of backing out but it was too late.
"Neji?" The blond said, wide-eyed.
"Ino." He grunted.
"What is this? Is this place yours? Since when have you ventured to hotels?"
"Actually…"
"Ino, you're mistaken. He's a dining hall staff." The other blond girl said, pointing at his nametag.
Ino stood up, went closer to examine the nametag, then stared at him before she giggled.
"Well, bring us some good breakfast. We want something light."
He cursed beneath his breath but he obliged anyway.
"We should've asked for the menu first."
"Yea, what if he brings in something strange?"
"Don't worry about it. He knows what's good." Ino assured the two.
He came back fairly quickly, as the staff was instructed that Ino's party be given priority. He served croissants, fruits, tea and yoghurt.
"The fruits look great but… actually, I prefer preserves." Ino said with an expression of apology.
"Same here." Her redhead friend agreed.
"Preserves are usually sugar laden, fresh is best if you ask me." His voice sounded sweet and sincere- playing along to Ino's game.
"But I heard their fruit preserves here are to die for." She insisted innocently.
There was a moment of silence and an exchange of glares. Damn Ino, he thought. She would skip everything but the yogurt anyway. Probably even the yoghurt.
"Take these out. I want fruit preserves." She finally said, folding her arms across her chest.
Talk about abuse of authority, he told himself. He momentarily thought of his staff back in Tokyo- promising to buy little presents for them before he returned to office. Neji sighed as he took the fruits out- returning after almost half an hour with the preserves.
"Took you long enough."
He didn't mind Ino's complaint. He just prepared the table and stood quietly in a corner.
"This better be worth the wait!" She whined again.
"The best preserves in town. Enjoy the calories." There. He had to fight back.
Ino immediately took a napkin to discard the sumptuous treat in her mouth. Neji chuckled to himself. She went for the yoghurt instead, snubbing the preserves that definitely look like they're the best in town. In her head, she had killed Neji a hundred times for mentioning the magic word- the evil eight-letter magic word. She glanced at her friends as they had their share, their faces brightening up. She sighed, looking at the creamy white concoction before her. The freaking yoghut was unflavored.
"Since we haven't received decent customer service from you, Neji-kun, why don't you tell us that we went to the right place? I mean, why should we put a good word for this hotel?" A change in topic was very much welcome- and needed.
"Are you serious?" He frowned.
Ino smiled and nodded. He was sure she wasn't interested in that. Of course, she just wanted to get on his nerves.
"Well, Yamanaka-san, we appreciate…"
"Hold on." There was a sudden gleam in her eyes.
Neji looked at her.
"About these preserves…"
"What about them?" He asked, annoyed that Ino wouldn't just let the damn issue go away.
"I'm sure you have the sugar free variety."
"…"
"Good for you!" Her friends cheered her on.
"Please get rid of these." She said triumphantly. "I prefer sugar free."
"Ino…"
"Hurry up, my tea is getting cold."
Neji grabbed the preserves without care and left the group- returning shortly with the requested sweets.
"Oh, you're quick this time." Ino grinned. "Actually, we want fresh fruits instead of preserves."
He was placing the tray on the table- freezing when he heard those words.
"You see, while you're out, we realized that you're right… that fresh is best so…"
Without warning, he grabbed her arm and pulled her up on her feet. Her friends rushed to the far corner of the room in fear, letting out shrieks of suprise.
"N-Neji, this is your job, you… you know…"
"You see, while I'm out to please your whims, I realized that I can borrow your credit card." He interrupted her.
"W-what?"
"Pardon me, Yamanaka-san… I heard some noise…" The assistant manager was on the other side of the door.
"I'm sure you have unlimited credit in at least one of your cards, right?" Neji's voice was almost yelling.
"W-what is this?!" Aiba asked, shocked at the scene before him. He had to barge in after hearing that voice. "Hyuuga! Let her go!"
"STAY OUT OF THIS!" He growled, his stare was still on the girl he was holding.
"Y-you c-cant get a-a-away with this!" Aiba warned before shakily running out of the room.
"R-right… so…?"
"So you'll let me use your card so me and my wife can get out of this hell."
"Jeez, Neji, you have such short fuse." She said, calming down when his voice was back to normal.
"You should have considered that before you started your little game."
He freed her from his grasp and she quickly went through her purse, taking out a silver colored plastic card.
"You're no fun." She handed it to him. "Here."
"Phone." He said, taking her credit card.
"Phone? What happened to your phone? Maybe I should be asking what happened to you. And you mentioned 'wife' so I guess Tenten is also working here somewhere. Whatever happened that you guys ended up like this?" She trailed off when he called her name.
"Phone." That scowl on his face clearly told her that he had enough and that he was in no mood to explain anything.
"Here." She complied.
"Yamanaka-san, should I call the police now?" Aiba whispered, glancing at Neji once in a while.
They were at the hotel lobby. The payment was being processed through Ino's credit card. Neji had been on Ino's mobile phone for quite some time- moving back and forth, raising his voice once in a while.
"No, no, it's okay." She replied.
"Are you sure?"
"Yep, I work for him."
"You work for him?"
"It's quite funny that he's stuck here working as a dining staff and well... I think I pushed it too far." She laughed a little.
"Send me the phone bill and of course, the credit card bill." Neji said, handing her the cell phone. "And this is no favor, I'll pay you the interest and whatever charges."
Ino simply nodded.
"And perhaps, you can get a permanent position in the company." He said as he left.
"Eh?"
"Depending on what I'll hear, one of the three tables in the office will be vacant by Monday."
"Ino helped us out this time…" Tenten said as she cuddled next to him. "Now I feel even more ashamed of what I did before…"
"I bet she doesn't remember that at all."
Their honeymoon turned out to be a disaster. Except for their first day sightseeing, it went downward from there. She was glad though that it was over. They got their suite back and their debts had been paid off. Neji said Sakura was arranging for their return to Tokyo. As scheduled, they would be leaving Sunday- no extensions. He had to be back working after the weekend. Wonderful, she thought. Their holiday couldn't possibly end just like that. A few minutes of silence passed by and she took the initiative so that she was on top, face to face with him. It was their honeymoon for heaven's sake.
"We still have tonight." She smiled as she closed in the gap between them.
She didn't have to do much to get him in the mood. He returned even more passionate kisses. He loved the taste of her and he wanted more. His left hand caressed her hair, still dewy from the shower, while the right one trailed her bare shoulders to untie the sheer straps of her sleepwear. But she couldn't just let him do as he pleased. She earned a protesting groan when she broke the kiss- only for a short time- just enough to get rid of his white shirt.
"Eager, are we?" She joked.
He laughed a little, leaving a gentle smack to the tip of her nose before rolling over so that she was underneath. After some short, teasing kisses, they were back to business. His lips brushed just below her ear causing her to whimper- his warm breath leaving a mark on her sensitive skin. It was strange how she wanted more of that burning sensation. Her head fell back to give him better access and he accepted the invitation- tasting and breathing all of the exposed area. Her right hand tangled with his lustrous, dark hair while the other found its way to his boxers' waistband.
"Neji-niisan…"
The two instantly sat up when they heard the familiar voice.
"Ino called us this morning and we were so worried that we decided to come here."
It was Hanabi and beside her was Hinata. Neji flopped back on the bed. Tenten covered up her blush with a blanket.
Third day- check.
Third night- check.
This is way overdue. I'm really, really sorry. But anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and do come back next week for the finale :)
And then, I have this new fic I'm working on. It's kind of a dark-drama-suspense thing. NejiTen, of course- so please watch out for it as well.
Thanks for reading and reviewing!