HI! Not much to say except I'm at forty reviews!! That's only ten away from the fifty that I was hoping for! In other words it's all good. Oh, and I told you I'd do a Christmas chapter so here it is (drum roll please, lol).

Chapter Sixteen

Two months later...

Shikamaru dozed lazily on the couch not caring for the world that Christmas was three days away. Or that he didn't have presents for anyone yet. His dream was just getting good, he had retired at the nice age of twenty and was preparing for the mother of all naps, when he heard a knock on the door.

Don't pay attention, they'll leave eventually he told himself. Unfortunately the knocking continued which could only mean one thing- it was Ino. Shikamaru didn't have any thing against his bossy, nap ruining team mate, really he didn't. But his apartment happened to house only his father and himself. In other words, it was messy, very messy. The mess had never bothered him and it certainly had never bothered his father, but Ino? Yeah it would bother Ino.

Shikamaru happened to know that Ino lived in a nice neighborhood, in an actual house. The kind of place where fights broke out when some one didn't water their grass for a few days. The kind of place where he never wanted to live, but where Ino felt completely at home.

"Hey, boy. Your friend is here." His father called. Shikato had always called Shikamaru boy. It wasn't mean or degrading, in fact Shikamaru would worry if his father called him any thing else. The lazy chuunin propped himself up on his elbows and fell back onto the couch when he saw that Ino had indeed entered the house.

She walked into the livingroom daintily pushed a pile of garbage off the coffee table and set down a box. A box containing gifts, wrapping paper and ribbons. Putting her hands on her hips she looked down at him,

"I bought your gifts for every one but you are going to wrap them."

"Sure, I'll do it in a few minutes," He paused waiting for her to leave, when Ino just stood there he decided to be a bit more pointed, "Good-bye." he waved but she still stood there.

"Shikamaru, I'm not as smart as you, but I'm not stupid. I'm going to watch you wrap your gifts and then I'll tell you who gets what."

Damn, she knew him too well.

He stared back at her, now sitting up right on the couch, as she pulled out a few coupons to a local restaurant.

"These are for Chouji. Here's some wrapping paper get to work."

Chouji's present was followed by money for Asuma (because as Ino said, "He'll go out and buy cigarets, but I'm not going to buy them for him."), kunai for the guys (because these were supposed to seem like they were actually from Shikamaru and what else would he get them?), senbon for the girls (pretty much the same thing), and for Ino...

"Ino you didn't buy yourself a present." Shikamaru said as if she had lost her mind.

"Of course not! Your actually going to have to get up and go get me one! And if you don't, I'll just return the one I got for you." Of course Ino had already finished her Christmas shopping. She'd probably been done since the summer.

"Well I won't keep you from your sleep any longer, but remember we're all meeting by the bridge to exchange presents on Christmas afternoon." She picked up her coat and stepped out side, where it had started snowing.

Shikamaru waded through the foot or so of snow that had settled in his path as he (some what) hurried towards the bridge. He was as usual late, but it actually wasn't his fault this time. He hadn't over slept (although he had wanted to), he had skipped breakfast (and now he was starving), and why? So that he could wrap Ino's present. It hadn't been all that easy either, and judging by the horrible, lumpy, oval shaped package she would never guess what it was.

"Shikamaru! You came! Late, but you remembered the gifts so I'm not complaining." Funny even though she wasn't complaining Ino managed to fit something negative into her greeting.

Every one exchanged presents, the couples saving their gifts to each other for last. As Naruto and Hinata finished their exchange Ino was particularly aware that she and Shikamaru, though not a couple still had to give each other their presents. She was also aware of a twisted nervous feeling in her stomach, though she couldn't imagine why.

They handed the packages to each other, Ino's perfectly wrapped Shikamaru's lumpy and slightly oval in shape.

As Ino pulled the paper and glue concoction off her present she almost gasped. In her hand sat a small crystal cube with a rose etched on one side, underneath the flower small neatly printed words were also etched in,

Friendship is like a flower,
if you plant the seeds,
and nurture it,
it may blossom into love.

Just as she was about to thank him, Shikamaru said,

"You got me a pillow?"

"Well yeah, I'm mean you sleep a lot so..." Ino immediately went on the defensive.

"So I sleep too much." There was an edge in his voice.

"Yeah you do, but you sleep through my complaints so you wouldn't know." She was yelling now.

"Well, thanks. It's a lot nicer than the one I've got now." He was yelling as well.

"Good I'm glad you like it!"

"I do."

"And I'll probably end up putting this on my dresser where the sun can hit it!"

"Well good." he huffed

"Good!" Ino echoed and they stomped off in opposite directions.

The rest of the group stood there blinking until Kiba broke the silence.

"Time to hang up the mistletoe!" He was then tackled and the mistletoe confiscated. There would surely be enough mistletoe around Konoha with out another one set up.

Ino had risen from her anger, not that she had been all that angry really, and was on the look out for Shikamaru. Chances were he had already forgiven her and she didn't need to apologize, but Ino never had been one to bargain with friendship. Through it away when it wasn't working yes, but put it in danger no.

So as she walked around Konoha she realized something, or more accurately came to terms with some thing she had known for a while. She, Yamanaka Ino liked Shikamaru, or possibly loved. Having never really been in love before (She had dismissed Sasuke as a crush or distraction) Ino was down right scared. So she decided to be subtle and take things slowly.

"Shikamaru! I've been looking for you! I wanted to say that I'm sorry..for earlier." She tried to blush cutely like Hinata or Sakura but Ino never blushed around Shikamaru, it just didn't happen, "and I think I'm in love with you. Okay I know I'm in love with you, I realized it for sure about five seconds ago." Ino had never really had the knack for being subtle anyway.

"You know what," he answered her evenly not looking the least bit surprised "I think I've been in love with you since the first time we argued and I remembered why that was when we were arguing earlier. I don't know how to explain it but..."

"Then don't." She said pointing up. The two were standing right under some mistletoe. Smiling mischievously he snaked his arm around her waist and propelled them forward, "Nah, I've always been a tradition breaker anyway."

Ino was about to protest, to yell or hit him when his lips pressed against hers. Smiling he whispered,

"If we're going to go out then you need to loosen up." Hitting him playfully Ino laughed and a stranger would have heard Ino say,

"Alright let's set up some ground rules, no going to sleep during dates, no trying to protect me on missions I can take care of myself..."

Ah, ShikaxIno fluff is the best. Makes you feel all fuzzy inside doesn't it? Okay about the mistletoe, yes completely cliche but I tried to put a spin on it so...OMG only the epilogue left to go now! I'm putting up a Thank You spot in the fic where I'll thank all my reviewers so if you want to see your name in type then you have to review to this chapter, got that? Thank you so much for reading and reviewing up to this point so now just click the little review button and type away!

-Fumei