Days seemed to drag on even slower than normal. With Hinata and Naruto's wedding approaching, the village was in a state of excitement and hurry. Well, it was Sakura, Ino, and I who were doing the hurrying. We had to get the last of the wedding details down and hand out the invitations.
Hinata seemed to be in her own little world. She walked around humming soft, romantic tunes and wearing a smile that never seemed to fade. I don't know a lot about brides and weddings, but I was sure that most brides were frantic with worry and frustrated as hell the days before the wedding, you know, total bridezilla mode. Hinata was anything but. It probably wasn't in her nature to be so frantic and crazy.
Naruto seemed to be even more hyper than usual, if that was even possible, and he was annoying the shit out of basically everyone. But his attitude totally changed when he was with Hinata. Most of the time, he would just sit there and hold her in his arms, neither of them talking, and would lay his hands on her swelled stomach or bury his face in her hair. It was adorable.
I, too, felt the love for my unborn niece growing. Yes, I was going to be an aunt. The thought was thrilling and exciting, and I often found myself smiling whenever I thought of Kaiya. That's what they'd decided to name her. It meant forgiveness, but I really don't the meaning of her name mattered to them. She would never have to be forgiven for anything.
The first time I got to feel her kick was just a few days ago. When I felt that little thump against my hand, I nearly cried. There was actually a life right there beneath my hand, a beautiful baby girl was actually growing right there.
The thought had been overwhelming, and with that wonder was also a mixture of sadness and emptiness. I'd seriously thought for some time that I would one day carry Neji's children, and Mai would take that from me one day.
But I refused to let myself be sad the days before Hinata's wedding. She was about to take a big step in her life, and I wanted to be there to help her in any way that she would need it.
So that's how I found myself staring at Hinata with a wide smile across my face the day of her wedding. We were at my house, since I lived closer to where the wedding would take place, and I was doing the finishing touches on her hair.
Hinata had ordered Ino and Sakura to go ahead and see how everything was going, while I stayed behind. She really did look beautiful, and she hadn't even put the dress on yet.( She wanted to save the best part for last.) Her makeup was light, only mascara, a bit of eye shadow, and a sparkling lip gloss. She preferred it that way, and it suited her perfectly.
Her midnight black tresses had been done into soft curls and let down so they framed her ivory face. But what made her look beautiful was the radiant smile on her face that lit it up and made her eyes sparkle.
"You look great," I said softly, and she glanced in the mirror and smiled wider.
Sakura, Ino, and I were the bridesmaids and wore a white satin dress that fell just above our knees. It had thin white straps,( thank Kami because I had a bad history with strapless dresses) and a small fringe of red lace peeking out beneath the bottom and a red sash tied into a bow around the waist.
They were perfect, beautiful and simple and totally comfortable. We had somewhat of a hard time trying to find something that didn't clash with Sakura's hair. At one point, she'd just thrown her hands up and declared that she would just go naked. Unfortunately, we had been at her apartment looking through wedding magazines, and Sasuke overhead her. He sat there and made sure that we picked dresses that were 'appropriate.'
"I'm ready for the dress," she said finally, and I could tell she was withholding her excitement.
I nodded and turned and made my way to the bed where it lay in all its white and extravagant glory.
"Oh Kami," I heard her say as I unzipped the bag it was in. "Ten, I think it's happening."
I pulled the dress out and nearly squealed. "Of course it's happening," I said. "You love Naruto, and he loves you. Weddings happen when people are in love."
"No!" she gasped. "I think the baby is coming!"
The dress fell from my hands and landed on the floor with a 'whoosh' sound. I whipped around to find Hinata clutching her stomach and breathing rapidly. This time, the panic hit right away.
"This better not be a false alarm," I said hurriedly. "Because these heels aren't made for running and-"
"Ten," she snapped. "Either I just peed or my water broke."
My eyes widened when I spotted the dark patch on my carpet. "Oh, shit!" I cried. "Oh, shit. Oh, shit."
Oh Kami, how the hell was I going to get her to the hospital? I may be a ninja, but there was no way in hell that I would be able to carry that!
She cried out, and I forced myself into action. Grabbing her arm, I pulled her out of the apartment and along the street.
"Tenten, I can't fucking walk," she hissed through the pain.
It was the first time I ever heard her cuss, but I had no time to ogle in wonder. "What do you want me to do!" I cried, ignoring all the incredulous stares the villagers were giving us. "There's no one here to help us, and, no offense or anything, but I really don't think I'll be able to carry you."
She muffled another cry with her hand, and I glanced around frantically. The hospital wasn't too much further, but trying to run with a pregnant woman made things a lot harder.
"Excuse me," a deep voice interrupted my freak out moment, and I glanced up to see a tall man with sandy blond hair standing before me. I knew him! Kami, he was an ANBU member. Neji once had a mission with him. "Do you need some help?"
"Yes!" I nearly screamed in his face. "My friend here is about to have a baby, and there's no way-"
Apparently I'd said enough because he swooped Hinata up in his arms and nodded for me to follow. This man was my hero. While I stumbled and nearly fell several times, he ran ahead of me with ease, and we burst through the hospital doors a few minutes later.
I grabbed a nurse who was walking by and told her about Hinata, and she bustled away to get some help. I turned to the man, breathing heavily.
"You are my freaking hero," I gasped. "I could kiss you right now."
He blushed a deep crimson, and I felt my own cheeks flush at my words but had no time to care about them when the nurse reappeared with a medic. "Follow me," she ordered, and we hastily trailed behind her.
"Tenten," Hinata gasped in the man's arms as we torpedoed down the hall. "Naruto. You have to go get him. I can't do this without him."
I nodded and immediately turned and sprinted down the hall and out into the streets once more. Damn these fucking heels! My feet burned, and my toes were screaming in pain. My mind was racing so fast, that I was surprised when I came upon the wedding ceremony that wasn't even happening.
Naruto saw me first, and I saw the look of fear in his eyes when he noticed Hinata wasn't with me. He stood by the Sakura tree they were supposed to be getting married under, and I stopped where the long white carpet began.
"Naruto, Hinata is having the baby!" I shouted, and everyone gasped.
Naruto simply stared at me with wide eyes, and Sasuke, the best man, pushed him forward roughly. "Go, Dobe!"
In a flash, Naruto was beside me, grabbing my hand and pulling me along the streets back toward the hospital. I was sure I hadn't even run this fast when I was trying to escape from grass nin.
"I'm going to be a dad!" he kept exclaiming as we went, and I laughed through my harsh breathing.
When we entered the hospital, the running still didn't stop. We got to pause for a few seconds to ask the nurse at the front desk where Hinata was but then bolted off again. That guy was waiting outside Hinata's room and I patted him on the arm and flashed a grateful smile before following Naruto in.
"Push, Hinata," the middle aged medic was ordering, and Naruto and I were by Hinata's side in a flash, each grabbing one of her hands.
Hinata was sweating profusely and gritted her teeth and did as the medic ordered. Her grip was nearly crushing my hand, but I let it go.
Time slowed down for a moment, and I glanced around the room to digest the scene around me. Naruto looked out of place in his tux, and he was smoothing back Hinata's hair and whispering encouraging things to her.
Hinata had tears pooling in her eyes, and her cries made it pretty evident that she was in pain. The medic kept looking up to tell Hinata to push while the other nurses bustled about doing whatever they were supposed to be doing.
I glanced down at my hand joined with Hinata's and felt that powerful surge of affection and friendship rush through me.
And then I looked back at the engaged couple. For a split second, Naruto stopped talking and simply stared at Hinata. She stopped screaming and stared back at him. I could literally feel the connection between the two, the love, and tears filled my own eyes.
Then, a baby's cry sounded throughout the room.
A/N: Whew, that was a long chapter. My fingers hurt. Lol. Well, Hinata finally had her baby, thank god. I enjoyed writing this chapter. I've never actually seen someone have a baby, so forgive me if it the experience is different than that, but I've seen plenty movies to know it's somewhere along those lines. Haha. Well, in the next chapter the wedding happens like it was supposed to, and Tenten talks to Mai for the first time.