Hi lovelies! Welcome to those that are new to this little fic!

I have returned with a warm fluttery update! :) Enjoy~

Now that they were both back in their respective teams, Shikamaru ended up sulking silently during every mission that he went on with Ino and Chouji. Whenever they would ask what was wrong, he would mutter "Nothing," and leave it be. Not only was he disappointed that he'd probably never run into Sakura and her charming personality again, he was frustrated that he couldn't say anything before she took off towards the sunset that day.

When she hugged him tight.

Whispered in his ear.

Only to turn around and bolt across town like the world was ending.

When she had left, Shikamaru had stared after her astonished needing a moment to process what just happened. Then proceeded to heave a sigh into his hands as he bent on his knees.

"Shikamaru, you dope." He had muttered to himself in regret.

After that incident, he only wished to cross paths with the pink force to reckon with. However, he knew that she was an incredibly busy medic, assisting with the Hokage's orders and helping run the hospital.

He'd never get to see her at this rate.

He wanted to hear her laugh that came from the depths of her stomach, booming and loud. He wanted to catch her face light up like the sun as she spotted him approaching. He wanted to ask how her day was going.

He just wanted to see her again for Kami's sake.

"Sakura, over here!" A nurse called over as she ran past her pushing a gurney with a patient aboard.

"Coming!" Sakura said as she whirled around and followed the gurney, asking for the details of the patient. They ran into the operating room and moved the unconscious body, snipping their clothes for a better look at the injuries.

This is how it was for Sakura when she wasn't on any team missions. Whenever she was free or on the weekends, she'd take shifts at the hospital to help alleviate others who needed a break. Once Tsunade-sama had separated her and Shikamaru, her once less busy life had become chaotically much more hectic.

Whenever her mind suddenly thought of Shikamaru, all she could think about was how she ran away from him after hugging him.

The memory had made her cheeks warm in embarrassment.

She didn't know what to do at that point! She knew she would be have been saddened at the fact that she probably wouldn't be able to see Shikamaru again, but to have gone out and done that?!

What was she thinking?!

She must've been running on pure emotions. That's what it was.

Sakura helped a patient into their bed and wheeled in a cart with materials for their IV bag. Trying not to think about Shikamaru and if she'd ever see him again, she went about with her duties, making sure that everything was running smoothly within the hospital.

As she walked out of the patient's room, she saw Shizune pass her and gave her a wave before hearing her name getting hollered as another patient was rushed in.

She never could get any breathing space within this environment.

Not like this.

He didn't want to see her again like this.

Lying on a gurney bleeding, arm and leg twisted, and gashes everywhere.

The mission had gone successfully, but at the price of a few injuries within his team. Now they were being taken to the hospital.

It took most of Shikamaru's energy to lift his head to check where his teammates were headed. Seeing that Ino and Chouji were being taken care of, he let out a small sigh of relief, only to wince in pain. The medics around him were speaking to each other in rushed tones, relaying back and forth his current vitals.

It was probably shit now.

The adrenaline had worn off long ago, his injuries flaring in pain across his entire body. The pain alone was almost enough to knock him out, but the one thing that pulled him away from unconsciousness, was the chance to see Sakura, finally.

Which did happen, but only after Shikamaru struggled against the pain one last time and passed out.

"Ino! Are you okay?!" Sakura rushed to her side on the bed as she had spotted medics finishing up bandaging her.

"I'm fine! It was just a part of the mission. Don't worry," The blonde strained a smile as she grabbed Sakura's hand tightly. "Chouji and Shikamaru are also here by the way. All of us are pretty banged up."

"Oh Kami. Alright, I'll look at the others. I'm glad you're safe," Sakura softly said as she held her friend's hand in both of hers. She didn't acknowledge that she froze for a second when she heard Shikamaru's name.

She opened her eyes when she heard her friend chuckle.

"Man, is he gonna be happy." Ino whispered before she shut her eyes, falling asleep from the exhaustion.

"Who's gonna be happy, Ino?" Sakura whispered, confused. Seeing that she really was asleep, Sakura smiled gently and placed a hand on her head before exiting the room, going to check on Chouji and Shikamaru.

Chouji had already been passed out by the time she peeked in, so he seemed alright.

At the thought of seeing Shikamaru after these few weeks, made her heart race for a moment. Then she shook the fluttery feelings off as she briskly walked over to where Shikamaru was supposed to be.

She was a medic here.

Not some teenager that moved with every flying feeling she had.

Still, she couldn't control how nervous she was when she approached the bed crowded with medics. They were too busy stabilizing his twisted ankle and wrist and surrounding him that she couldn't get a good look at him. But when they turned to her and gave her his chart, they left the room quietly, most likely heading to their next patient.

Shuffling to the bed, she put the chart – that she barely even glanced at – down in the slot and gazed down at the handsome face that seemed to make her heart race to the point she wondered if she was alright. Battered and bruised, Shikamaru's spotless face was patched with bandages, the sunlight kissing his skin. Underneath the thin blanket, she saw that there were bandages wrapped around his torso and chest as well.

Letting out an inaudible sigh, she placed her hands on the railing, relieved that he didn't seem too injured.

"Well, I'm glad I at least got to see you." Sakura smiled to herself as she took in his appearance before beginning to turn away.

"Wait," Came a strained voice from the bed.

She whirled around to see Shikamaru's bleary gaze on her with a tired smile. Sakura rushed back to him, unable to help the grin that reached her lips.

"At least let me see you." Shikamaru said hoarsely as his hand tried to reach up and hold her cheek, but to no avail because his hand wouldn't even move.

Sakura let out a chuckle, unable to help how warm her cheeks felt.

"To think I'd meet you again like this," Shikamaru muttered as he glanced away from her, his neck growing hot in embarrassment.

"No, it's fine! It probably wouldn't have happened any other way to be honest." Sakura replied as she pulled up a chair next to the bed.

As she asked how the mission went, her eyes lit up, more than they had in the past few weeks. Sakura literally radiated happiness talking to the strategist, and felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

It was strange what an effect this man had on her.

She was just relieved to get to see him again.

But the moment didn't last long when her name was called to see to another patient and Sakura had to reluctantly say goodbye to Shikamaru.

"Don't worry about it, Sakura. I'll still be here," Shikamaru said with a slightly pained smile.

"Okay," Sakura softly replied before leaving with a wave.

Going through recovery was usually a tedious task. Moving through the same motions, making sure the joint was working normally.

But Shikamaru was making sure to savor every moment.

Because he was finally in the presence of the pink force that somehow made him feel like he was floating on air. The person who made his mood suddenly get five times better.

It almost made him jump in the air.

All this time, meeting with Sakura, getting his vitals checked and everything, he thought about why he was feeling like this. Sure, he knew about the factors of a relationship – platonic and or romantic – but he never it such deep thought until now.

Physically, her hair was the first thing that caught his eye. It was a soft pink cut and barely touched her shoulders. He had wanted to know what it felt like in between his fingertips when he caught a whiff of her jasmine scented hair. Then he had seen her monstrous strength and nearly keeled over at the sheer power that Sakura could control.

When he had gotten to work with her over the few times their teams interacted, he noticed that she was quite intelligent, taking notes of observations within the missions and coming up with strategies. It had piqued his interest to get to know her more, because all he knew then was a teen who possessed enormous strength but held a kind and gentle heart.

Recently, after spending several missions with her, the way his body just gravitated towards her without knowing it, the way he just wanted to be with her spoke volumes to himself. Shikamaru found a sense of calm being alone most of the time. He got to gaze up at the clouds and spend the day relaxing away when he wasn't with Team Asuma. But ever since he crossed paths with Sakura, he found himself drawn to her, to just talk to her and enjoy her presence.

He would smile to himself whenever he caught her smiling or laughing. He would feel his cheeks warm when she came up to him with a bright cheery grin on her lips. He would mentally scold himself for dreaming about small little outings he'd imagine them both on.

And now as he sat up in his bed reading a book in his free hand with Sakura sitting near him with her eyes closed for a break, he finally concluded.

He, Shikamaru Nara, was in love with Sakura Haruno.

The thought made his face turn so red that he buried his face in his book.