Hello everyone. Wow, it really has been a long time, hasn't it. I'm very sorry I have been away for so long. Life is full of unexpected surprises. I'm happy to say that I am back and would like you all to know that unless I outright say it, I will never abandon a story. Anyways, enough of my rambling. Here is the sixth chapter.

Chapter 6: Your meaning

As soon as Hinata stepped into the flower shop she was surrounded by vibrant colours, sweet scents, and happy faces. Ino brought out a large vase and placed three dozen flowers next to them. Their job was to arrange them so they could be put on display. While Hinata was working, she looked to her left and saw two teenage girls, giggling and smelling red roses. She looked to her right and saw a shy, young boy staring at a bouquet of tulips and scratching his head. This whole place had a sort of calming effect on Hinata and she could feel herself start to loosen up.

Ino noticed this and offered Hinata a genuine smile. "Well you seem to be feeling better."

"I am actually," Hinata replied with a big smile in return.

"You know, it shouldn't come as such a shock to you that I know about the whole hospital incident. I actually work there."

Hinata was a bit surprised. "Really? I didn't know that you were a medical nin."

Ino laughed. "Well, more like a part time medical nin. Sakura's not the only one who trained with Tsunade-sama, although I will admit she got more training then I did."

Hinata's eyes suddenly shifted from Ino's face to the flower vase, her mouth forming a tight line.

"Hey Hinata." The blue haired kunoichi looked up at the blond florist. "I know that you know I'm Sakura's best friend, and you probably think I called you in here to give you a piece of my mind. I'm guessing I'm the last person you'd ever try to get advice from. But Hinata, despite all that I could help you, if you let me."

Hinata bit her lip and contemplated the offer. Ino was being awfully nice to her. And even though she was Sakura's best friend, Hinata had to remember that it wasn't Ino that she'd had an argument with. And who knows? Maybe the girl in front of her could give her advice that she couldn't get elsewhere. And so, she told Ino her story from beginning to end.

Ino was left staring at her, wide eyed, her jaw dropping to the floor. She had no idea Hinata had it in her. Hinata perceived the staring as something entirely different though, and startled Ino with a hasty outburst.

"I know, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said those things to her! Well except for the fact that she sort of deserved it you know considering- but no wait what I did was still unacceptable! But really she didn't have to stoop so low but no, ackkk, it's still wrong! What I did was wrong and I-"

"Whoa, whoa calm down Hinata! Just take a deep breath. Come on now, in… and out, good. Jeez you need to learn to relax! Now, stop freaking out and tell me what you honestly think of what happened."

Hinata took another deep breath and spoke truthfully. "Alright. I'll admit that what I said to Sakura was not the nicest thing to say. But honestly, I felt that she deserved it. She needed to see what she was doing to Naruto. She needed someone to open her eyes, and when she didn't want to hear the truth she lashed out at me. What she said- what she said to me about him, it wasn't warranted." Hinata's hurt feelings quickly started to change to anger. Ino sensed this, and she put her hand over Hinata's clenched fist.

"Hinata… I know what she said hurt you. Neither of you said the right thing. But let me explain something to you. Here, let me give you a lesson on flowers."

…Okay. Hinata knew that Ino loved her work at the flower shop but she really couldn't see how a lesson on flowers would solve her problems. Her gaze followed Ino's hands as they picked up a thin branch dotted with cherry blossoms.

"Well Hinata, I believe that just as you can match a certain colour to a person's mood you can connect a specific flower to a person's personality. Now, here we have the cherry blossom which –"

"Wait, let me guess," Hinata interrupted. "The cherry blossom is supposed to represent Sakura, right?"

Ino gave her a sheepish smile. "Well yeah. Her parents really hit the mark when they named her. Anyways, when you look at the flower what do you think of?"

Hinata's eyes concentrated on the flower. She was lost in its pale pink colour with its darker center; the graceful, delicate branch; the shape of the petals. "Well that's easy. I think of beauty. After all, it is beautiful. I've always liked cherry blossoms. Sakura trees litter the village, and lots of people admire them. They're popular among both boys and girls. The children love them too, and always laugh as the blossoms swirl around in the breeze. They're a classic favourite."

Ino smiled lightly and Hinata blushed as she realized she had just effectively described how she viewed Sakura, or at least how she thought the rest of the world viewed her.

"Well Hinata, you're right about them being beautiful. Not only that, but in some cultures cherry blossoms also represent dominance and passion, not to mention power."

Hinata simply stared at Ino. "So in short, what you're trying to say is that they're the perfect flowers?"

Ino pursed her lips and placed her hands on her hips. "Hinata, nothing is perfect. And cherry blossoms have a deeper meaning than that. They represent mortality."

Hinata was not having a hard time following Ino at all, that is until she mentioned that last bit. "What do you mean by mortality? All flowers die eventually, don't they?"

"Yes, they do. But cherry blossoms have an especially short life span. They are vibrant and lively to begin with, but they easily fade. And if, let's say, the cherry blossom is deprived of something they yearn for, like the sun, because for whatever reason the sun does not wish to let it's rays reach that blossom, then that cherry blossom will try its best to be acknowledged by the sun. But if the sun suddenly disappears forever and there is very little hope for its return, then the cherry blossom loses the incentive to bloom again and it begins to fade even more quickly. So, you see, in that case it is very difficult for the cherry blossom to bloom each spring, and even more difficult to bloom with a show of radiance if inside it is deeply wounded…"

Ino's eyes took on a light glaze and Hinata's heart wrenched. She had no idea – she didn't know how it felt to be purposely left behind by someone. She still didn't know, thank goodness, but now she felt a new feeling of empathy towards Sakura that she hadn't felt before.

"And so Hinata, the cherry blossom may come off as a little insensitive, but only because it is trying to hold on to whatever, or whoever, it has left in its life."

Ino was surprised as Hinata suddenly grabbed her hand and smiled. "I understand what you're trying to tell me Ino. I think you're great at reading people and flowers. I didn't know that the cherry blossom had meanings that were so opposing."

"Well, now that you mention it I guess that sort of explains Sakura's whole freakish multiple personality inner-self thing."

Okay, now Hinata was completely lost. "…Her… what?"

Ino nervously started scratching the back of her head. "Oh – ahaha, nothing. Nothing, never mind, it's nothing really, aha, ahahAHAHA!"

Hinata wasn't really sure what was happening but she could tell that Ino might have said too much. Either that or she was crazy. She wondered if that was really true. She did hear Shikamaru say so once. Either way, Hinata was still grateful for the florist's help.

"Thank you so much Ino. I really appreciate your help, although I'm sorry I'm not a very big help to you." Ino looked down at the pile of flowers in front of Hinata that were barely touched. She could see the girl had absolutely no idea on how to properly arrange flowers. The only flower that she actually put into the vase was of a purplish-blue shade with many blossoms raining down from the top of the stem.

"Well, well, I see someone likes bluebells," Ino stated as she arranged some more flowers into the vase.

"Is that what they are? They are quite pretty."

"Yep." Ino gave Hinata a warm smile. "They are pretty and they represent you perfectly!"

Hinata blushed. "You think these represent me?" No one had ever compared her to a flower before. Hinata had always wanted to be compared to one though. Flowers reminded her of her mother. They were delicate, and full of grace and beauty. Hinata was quite intrigued by the bluebells in the vase, and was curious of how they were similar to her. "What do they mean exactly?"

"Bluebells are flowers that are easier to understand than cherry blossoms. They represent tenderness, humbleness, gratitude, stability and faithfulness. A perfect match for you, don't you think?"

"I – I suppose…," Hinata blushed again, a light smile on her face.

"I, on the other hand, am a cosmos which represents peacefulness, wholeness, and modesty."

"Tch, that couldn't be more off the mark," replied a rather bored looking Shikamaru, who had suddenly appeared behind Ino, with Choji and his usual bag of chips in tow.

Ino smacked Shikamaru upside the head leaving a rather large bump, and huffed loudly. "Don't listen to him Hinata. Besides, I didn't even finish the explanation yet. A cosmos is basically the flower of love, which would totally explain why all the men in the village, except for idiots like Shikamaru, find me oh so irresistible and attractive."

"But Ino, I don't find you attractive," stated Choji as he finished the remains of his snack, only to start on another bag of chips.

Ino's face took on the hue of a ripened tomato. "I said except for idiots, you idiot!"

Shikamaru frowned. "That's beside the point. Your whole "I'm oh so irresistible" speech completely contradicted your modesty pitch. And hitting me on the head isn't exactly peaceful."

"Shut up Shikamaru! You know what represents you? A weed! And Choji here is just a Venus fly trap that eats everything in sight!"

"Hey! I don't eat everything in… well… I mean if it's edible then – "

Hinata awkwardly glanced away as the three continued to bicker. She decided she might as well finish arranging the flowers. She figured that by the time she was done everything would be calm again. When she finished her task, she glanced back at the three. Ino now had both Choji and Shikamaru in a headlock, both of whom were sporting a bag of chips over their heads. Obviously, Hinata had no idea how long an Ino Shika Cho fight could go.

She decided to leave the three to their fun as she turned to exit the flower shop. Before she stepped through the door though, she realized she forgot something very important.

"Ino! There's something else I want to talk to you about!"

Ino glanced at Hinata and let go of Shikamaru and Choji, the relief plain on their faces. They bolted to the door, with Choji giving Hinata a quick thank you for saving them.

"Ino… you seem really good at giving advice so I was wondering… what do you suggest a person does when the one that they are… in love with… is in love with someone else?"

Ino stared at Hinata, making her slightly uncomfortable. "Well that's easy. You fight for them girl!"

Hinata stared back at the florist, utterly perplexed. "But… what if even after that, they are still in love with someone else."

Ino's eyes suddenly became distant, her gaze reaching the outside of her little shop and settling on the sky. "Well, then if that's the case, you have to force yourself to let go, even if it hurts. It's one thing for the sun to not shine on you but it's a completely different thing if it has never even risen for you to see it." Ino pulled herself out of the temporary haze and focused her baby blues on Hinata's eyes. "Sometimes Hinata, it's not what you want that will make you happy. It's what you need."

Hinata gave Ino a gentle smile and surprised the florist once again with a warm hug. She thanked Ino one more time, and stepped out of the flower shop.

Ino returned to the vase of flowers Hinata and her had been working on, and grimaced. The flowers did not complement each other at all. She set to work on rearranging them, when she noticed a bluebell and cherry blossom arranged side by side. She smiled to herself, as she thought that out of the mess of flowers before her, those two were the only ones that went together quite nicely.

Thanks to those of you who read this, and once again I'm very sorry for the delay. If you have time to spare, or if you just feel like it, then please review.