AN: I humbly apologize for this late chapter posting, but as you all know. . . our Neji, has been K.I.A. . . I honestly still havent recovered from the shock, and I had written this chapter about two months ago. . to review it caused me a great deal of pain. . . such irony. But, I shall leave you to read while I continue my grieving. Stay strong everyone, we have to believe that he will somehow survive! Ja ne! /3

Note: Suna Akurei, Hyūga Hisae, Kojika Nara © Anna Uzumaki

Pairing(s): Naruto/Sasuke With: Neji/Gaara, Shika/Kiba, Sakura/Lee, Hinata/Shino, Ino/Choji, Kankuro/Kojika, Temari/Tenten, Itachi/Kyuubi, Hidan/Kakuzo, Pein/Konan, Deidara/Sasori. later mentioned pairings.

Warning(s): Yaoi, lemon(s) in later chapters, sexual content (Duh!), slight nuggets of OOC-ness (bear with me), adult language, blood/gore, angst, drama, possible rape and KARMA.

Disclaimer: Naruto © Masashi Kishimoto

Chp. 11

September {Week 2}

Yuya Matsushita- Bird

I.P.O.V {Itachi point of view}

Nearly three weeks had passed by since that crazy night at the club, and with the weeks have come many different rumors from those who had witness the blowout between Sasuke and Naruto and had been there when the bouncers detained Kisame, and Deidara and Kidomaru had literally dragged a seriously pissed off Kyuubi out of the club. The rumors involving Kyuubi, Itachi and Kisame had gone from the serious looking Itachi just having one too many drinks, to there having been some sort of love triangle involving Kyuu and Kisame, of which they weren't too far off from. Then rumors concerning Naruto and Sasuke were, of course, that the blonde had dumped the Uchiha hard, then to Sasuke finally being fed up with Naruto always embarrassing him in front of a crowd. On one hand the rumors were something that neither of the guys wanted to tolerate, but on the other hand, they couldn't care less what others made of what had actually happened. However, if there was anything that Itachi couldn't tolerate, it would be hospitals and he was being made to tolerate the ammonia smelling building at least once a week since the altercation, but one thing he was happy about, was that today was the last day he's be made to come to such a place.

"Well Itachi, that just about does it. Your stiches are completely healed, so you can lose that annoyed look." Tsunade narrowed her eyes at the Uchiha as he sat up from the crackly cot.

"Hn, about time, I'm tired of you making me come here." Itachi ran a hand through his mingled with hair.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that." The busty woman growled, "Now, I have some more good news if you can bear to stay here just a bit longer." She continued with a serious tone and walked out of her personal 'in-patient' room and into her office.

"If it's good news, I suppose I can stay." Itachi sighed and followed after her.

"Damn Uchiha…" Tsunade grunted as she sat behind the huge cherry wood desk and pulled out a manila file, "So, with the… events that went on at Orochimaru's club, I was finally given a valid enough reason to expel Kisame from the college, as well as any other colleges, community and institutes as well, within a 200 mile radius…." She continued and slid the folder across the desk.

"About time… hmm, you're not telling me everything, are you Tsunade." Itachi narrowed his eyes as he picked up the file, not even bothering to look in it yet.

"Sharp boy… well, with such a huge restriction passed, you should know who gave confirmation to such a heavy report." Tsunade bit her thumb in an unconscious action as the long haired Uchiha opened the folder with a sigh and proceeded to groan upon seeing the blunt signature at the bottom, it seemed to somehow exude irritation even being just a name.

"You couldn't get Obito to confirm this?" Itachi pinched the bridge of his nose. 'God why… It's only a matter of time before he calls now.' He exhausted mentally.

"Fugaku is the only one who can approve this level case. You should've known that filing for such a thing would be brought to his attention sooner or later, whether he's undercover or whatever." Tsunade smirked in amusement at the raven's apparent irritation.

"Yeah… shit." Itachi cursed and snapped the folder shut, "and I thought this was going to be good news." He narrowed his eyes accusingly at the blonde haired woman still seated in front of him.

"Hahah, well, in the end it carries good news. Be thankful for that, now go be grumpy elsewhere, I have a hospital to run." Tsunade laughed and waved off the peeved Uchiha, who left grumbling something about possibly getting a new cell phone number. As Itachi quickly walked through the hospital corridor, he absentmindedly wondered why in the world someone, a good amount being his close friends, would want to work in such a place. He had even questioned Sasuke on why he had wanted to intern here, but his only reason was wanting to learn something new, he could really be a nerd at times and that thought made Itachi smirk.

"What so funny Itachi?" A female voice questioned rather abruptly, shocking the raven a bit but didn't show it as he turned to the nurses' station where the voice came from.

"Hn, nothin', just coming from Tsunade, Ino." Itachi shrugged and casually walked over to the station, "I haven't seen Naruto or Sasuke since I've been here, where are they." He cocked a brow at the obvious question.

"Ugh, I don't know, ever since their blowout at the club, Sasuke doesn't even go to the same floor as Naruto. Now he's usually down in the lab with Shika, despite the fact that he was originally supposed to be up in pediatrics with Sakura and Hinata." Ino explained with a sigh.

"Hahah, jealous maybe? Do you want him to hang around you instead?" Itachi chuckled at her reaction.

"Oh, as IF 'Tachi!" Ino scoffed and rolled her eyes at the snide suggestion.

"Right, right," Itachi smirked, "well I'ma get going before Tsunade finds some other reason for me to stay here any longer." He continued and promptly left after receiving a farewell from the pale blonde. He wanted nothing more than to just go home and rest, not having to deal with any paper work for the rest of the week and not having to listen to Kyuubi, who was too busy substituting, bicker about what happened at the club, which he was still all too pissed about. It was crazy how Kyuu could complain about Deidara getting angry at Sasori for things that he couldn't help, but when the same thing happened with Kyuubi and him, he raises all kinds of hell over the matter. Yes, time away from it all was looking very appealing right now.

N.P.O.V {Neji point of view}

"—ing attention to me?" Gaara's voice seethed into the grey eyed Hyuga's head.

"Huh? What?" Neji blinked quickly and snapped his head towards the glaring redhead seated beside him in the quiet waiting room.

"Stop…" Gaara said and softened his glare, if only by a fraction at the brunette.

"…..It's not that easy, Gaara…" Neji exhaled and let his head fall into his hands.

"You need to let it go, it happened way back in high school and it's not even your fault that it happened." Gaara repeated for the millionth time.

"…. I should'a been payin' better attention…" Neji spoke after a short silence, keeping his head in his hands.

"Neji, you can't see everythin' and it doesn't help that he was a drunk driver either." Gaara tried to reassure his self-inflicting boyfriend.

"Which is why I should'a been payin' better attention! I knew the clubs had just let out, but I was just being ignorant and it damn near cost me my only siblings life!" Neji snapped his head up and hissed low enough so that others couldn't hear him, but harsh enough to get his point across.

"Well blaming yourself isn't goin' to change anythin', so just stop…." Gaara exhaled and rubbed his temple at the pending headache. 'He really is ignorant at times…' he mused mentally.

"Gaara-" Neji began to retort but was interrupted with the entrance of Shizune wheeling Hinata out of the emergency room.

"Don't worry you guys, everything checked out okay. I say she just over did herself and fainted, nothing too serious." Shizune quickly said as Neji sprang out of his seat at their arrival.

"Told you…" Gaara said with a relieved smirk.

"You finished?" Neji raised a brow at his redhead, who simply shrugged in response, "anyways, Hinata, you sure you're feelin' good enough to come home?" He turned back towards his lavender eyed sister as she removed herself from the wheel chair, though it was apparent that there was a bit of effort used.

"Yes brother, I'm f-fine…" Hinata rolled her eyes in an attempt to prove her point with humor, "sorry for the t-trouble Shizune." She blushed slightly at the short raven haired woman.

"No apologizing! Just promise me you'll take it easy, okay? I don't want to see you back in here because you're over-doing it, understand?" Shizune gave her a certain look, then grinned and patted her violet raven hair.

"Hah, alright, I'll try." Hinata nodded bidding her goodbye before facing her worrisome brother, "can we go now? Gaara l-looks bored." She giggled at the redhead, who was absentmindedly staring at the long haired brunettes butt.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer." Neji smirked as he turned to see what Hinata was talking about.

"I already have plenty, plus," Gaara grinned and stood face-to-face with his brunette, "why take more pictures when I can see you naked anytime I want?" he continued and quickly pecked Neji on his grinning lips.

"Okay, okay, o-kay! I don't wanna h-hear this!" Hinata covered her ears in horror. This only made the two flirting males laugh at the action.

"Hahah, alright, I'll deal with you later Gaara, for now let's just get my sister back home." Neji chuckled and gestured for Hinata to walk ahead of him and Gaara. He would've insisted that she be wheeled out to the car, but he already knew that she would just wave off his attempt. Hinata knew that he was just looking out for her wellbeing, but she also knew that he still blamed himself for why she was even in the hospital now. It seemed no matter how many times she told him that there was nothing that he could have done differently that night, he still kicked and blamed himself for her medical issues now, and as they finally settled into Gaara's car, his car because Neji had his hands full in carrying Hinata from the apartment to the garage, he thought back to that fateful day that still ate at him.

*Flashback: Summer break {Hinata/freshman, Neji/sophomore} High School*

"Ah, Hinata is due at the station soon, Hiashi, and the driver just called out with an emergency." I could hear mom telling dad down the hall in his study.

"Dammit, I swear it never fails…" Dad cursed and I just knew that veins on his temple were starting to show. He absolutely hated it when people canceled at the last minute and used 'It's an emergency' as an excuse. He always could and would find out the truth later. So for our personal driver's sake, I hope he was telling the truth, otherwise…. He was out of a job.

"I know, but it's alright, its better if I pick her up. Besides, I'm pretty sure she'll want to see a family member instead of a driver." Mom giggled…. 'Hm, I wonder if she'll let me drive… I do have my license now after all.' I thought and quickly walked into father's study.

"Mother, why not send me to pick her up?" I asked once I reached the door to the study.

"Neji, what are you doing up?" Father raised his brow at me. It still bothered me that he would expect me to go to sleep early considering that it was summer vacation and I was 16 years old now.

"Dad it's not even 1am yet and we're on summer break." I shook my head and leaned against the door frame.

"You think you're capable of picking her up? There are a lot of crazy drivers out at this time… anything could happen if you're not careful you know." Mother mentioned and gave me a stern look. Of course she would think of the worst case scenario, she is a mom when all is said and done.

"Mom, I've been driving long enough to know how crazy some people drive. Plus, I was going to ride with the driver to pick her up either way." I mentioned.

"Hm, Hiashi?" Mother turned to father for his take on this.

"….. I suppose I seen no problem in sending him." Father leaned back in his office chair.

"Well…." Mom lingered and narrowed her violet grey eyes at me in concentration. She always did this when it came to something that might be harmful to Hinata or me.

"Mom, time's ticking." I smirked at her.

"Okay, okay! You can pick her up, but you're not taking your car. Take my truck, it's safer." Mom finally agreed and tossed me her keys.

"Thank you, I'll be back shortly." I waved over my shoulder after catching the keys.

"That would be wise." Mother and father said at the same time, and then proceeded to share a laugh at the coincidence. I swear, our parents… father was a very strict man, but with mother around he was a bit more lenient with what Hinata and I did, especially Hinata, mainly due to her dating Naruto and him being affiliated with the Akatsuki, a local gang that neither of our close friend's parents were too approving of. The same went for Sasuke who was getting involved in that 'Sound' group that Orochimaru, a local professor, had made up. Everyone in our group of friends continuously tried telling those two idiots that what they were doing was beyond stupid, their brothers had even threatened them on various occasions to stop acting out… but then again, they also said it was something that they would soon grow out of… we all hoped they were right.

But that's something that we will just have to leave to fate, right now I just had to focus on getting to the train station. As I climbed into my mothers' car, a BMW X5, and headed out of the private garage onto the downtown streets, I couldn't help but wonder what mother was so worried for! The streets were practically vacant, which made the drive to the station the shortest drive there than the many other times we had been driven there. Once I pulled into the station and parked, my phone vibrated in quick pulses, the setting for when I had the volume off for calls. I automatically knew who would be calling me at this time of night… I've really got to tell her to stop doing this.

"Yes, Tenten?" I spoke into the phone and pinched my nose in frustration.

"Hey babe, whatcha doin'?" She questioned me, for possibly the 10th time today.

"At the train station waiting for Hinata." I told her as I plopped down on one of the benches on the platform.

"Oh that's right! She comes back today, ugh why didn't you pick me up so we could both be there when she arrives?!" Tenten, as usual, flipped the script and began to argue. I swear, I can't take much more of this relationship, it was the same thing with her! One minute she would be calm, and then next thing you know she's making a fuss about something of irrelevance! We've been together just over 7 months and I have just about had it with her… I think I'll give guys a try next, after dealing with Tenten I don't want to bother with females for a while, if ever again.

"Tenten, why would I go to the opposite side of town just to pick you up? If I did that, Hinata would be waiting here until I made it back with you." I explained to her and I didn't care at how harsh it came out.

"I guess, but still. She could've waited a bit right? She's not a baby." Tenten griped.

"Hahah, are you fuckin' serious? She's 14, I'm not about to let her sit at a train station alone, especially at this time of night!" I yelled into the phone, earning a few glances from the few people at the station.

"Geez calm down Neji, you act more like a father than a brother." Tenten retorted and with that last comment I promptly ended the call and leaned back into the bench. I wonder if the others relationships are a fucked up as mine?

'This shit just isn't fair man…' I thought and held my head in my hands, but no sooner had I thought that, did my phone start to vibrate once again… another call. No doubt it was my crazy girlfriend. "What dammit!?" I growled into my phone.

"….. Let me guess, another fight with Tenten?" A voice that I was totally not expecting guessed right.

"Ah, crap, sorry Gaara. But yeah, you're right." I sighed and pulled out my ponytail, it felt so good to be able to run my hand through my hair… even considering the fact that Tenten made me want to do the opposite.

"Hmm, you two are always fighting, what's it about this time?" Gaara questioned.

"To sum it all up, she's just fuckin' inconsiderate. She actually thinks that Hinata could've waited here at the station, by herself, while I drove across town to pick her up." I explained and it just pissed me off even more having actually repeating what she said.

"….. I don't know why you put up with her, not sayin' you two should break-up, but…." Gaara said after a short pause. I knew he wasn't the type of person to tell someone to break-up with someone, but I also knew there was something else he wanted to say concerning that topic.

"Trust me, I know… Heh, I was actually just thinkin' about leavin' her and dating guys." I chuckled somewhat nervously. I don't know why it seemed like some kind of confession when saying it to Gaara, I mean… I suppose it was a confession of sorts, but still.

"Heh and you all wonder why I don't want a girlfriend." Gaara laughed quietly. Odd, was he implying something having said that? I knew he didn't have a girlfriend, but did that mean he had a boyfriend instead?

"Oh really? Then… does that mean you have a boyfriend?" I raised my brow and if I didn't know any better, then I would swear that I was having a heart attack at how fast my heart was racing after asking him such a question.

"….. No, I don't have a boyfriend…" He said after another short pause, but he said it so low that I wasn't sure if I had heard him correctly. I wonder if he was talking so low because Akurei, his dad, was still awake and would no doubt fuss at Gaara about being on his phone at this hour.

"Huh, so you've dated a guy before?" I somewhat rephrased my question and repositioned myself on the bench, so that I was now laid across it.

"Maybe….." Gaara answered in a… humorous tone. Now I was a little confused and at the same time a little intrigued, Gaara and I were the closest in our group, yet I never bothered to question him about this before. Hell, if I was being honest with myself, he was the main reason why I thought of dating guys…. Ah, though I must admit… he was the only male I thought of in that way.

"Hm, interesting…" I absentmindedly as I turned over what he said and our current friendship in my head.

"How so?" Gaara questioned and briefly pulled me from my thoughts.

"Nothing really… just thinking..." I told him and continued evaluating different aspects of the information he just gave me.

"….. Nothing bad I hope." He said in that same low tone as before. It was at that moment that I decided on something crucial.

"…Gaara-" I began to speak before the P.A. system went off, announcing that Hinata's train would be arriving in about 5-10 minutes, followed by a loud group that was probably in their early 20s. They were obviously drunk off their asses, but thankfully they decided to catch the train home and not drive, making life that much easier for me.

"What?" Gaara's voice brought me back to the present conversation.

"Oh, uh… I- I was thinking that I'm gonna break it off with Tenten tomorrow…" I told him and I was all too serious. I wasn't making any rash decisions or anything, I was making a decision that should've been made long ago, but was just being dragged out.

"Are you sure?" He asked, but I knew he was just asking for common courtesy. He knew all too well of how serious I was.

"Yeah, I just can't deal with her any longer…. Guess I'm one the single market for guys starting tomorrow, hah." I chuckled nervously once more and ran my hand through my almost waist length brown hair.

"…..You sound nervous. If you choose the right guy… you'll have nothing to worry about." Gaara pointed out. Now, the reaction my heart gave to what he just said couldn't be healthy, because I know for certain that if your heart skips a beat like mine just did, you would need to see a doctor and soon.

"Well, you know, if I date a guy… there's only one guy I could see myself with." I said as evenly as my voice would let me, which wasn't very loud in the end. Partly from the nervousness I was feeling and the fact that I wasn't completely alone on this platform, I'm fairly sure that some of these people recognized me and I did not want them to overhear my conversation on dating the same sex… they would without hesitation tell someone else and in the end it would get back to my father…. And that was something that just couldn't happen.

"….Oh… lucky him... If you don't mind me askin'… who is the guy?" Gaara said in a voice that sounded unsure. Did he not want to ask me?

"…. Who do you think, Gaara?" I prodded after a short pause to make sure it came out right. I don't know why I was feeling so damn nervous about telling him… ah, maybe my subconscious is guarding itself from rejection?

"….. If luck was on my side, I'd say… me…" Gaara said in the same low voice.

"Well then, you're a very lucky guy." I said in a more confident voice and tried to ignore the humming bird affect my heart was currently doing.

"…." There was absolutely no form of reaction or noise from his end of the phone and in all honesty, that worried me to no end. I know I heard him right when he said he hoped it was him, right? Could he have been lying? Or was he just stunned into silence that he was the only guy I wanted to be with? After all, it was somewhat a confession that I wanted to be with him…. Okay, he's been quiet for too long now!

"Gaara, you there?" I spoke up and looked at my phone to see if maybe the call was dropped or something…. Nope, it was still in-call with him.

"….. Heh, I'm here, a bit shocked… but still here." He answered after another short pause, which didn't put me at ease. I was still a bit nervous that I may have fucked our friendship up.

"I'm sorry, I, uh, should'a just kept this to myself…" I sat up and put my face back in my free hand. I think I did hear him wrong after all, which was a huge fuck-up.

"What? No, why?" Gaara questioned in the loudest voice he'd used since calling me.

"I…. no, it's nothing…" I shook my head. I should just shut up now.

"Neji," Gaara said in a voice that immediately caught my attention, "don't think for a minute that I'm upset, I'm quite the opposite really…. Heh, I always wished you dated guys." He admitted with a small laugh.

"….. When are you coming back to Cali?" I asked after a minute of sorting through my spinning head for the right response.

"Next week actually, I don't plan on spending an entire summer in Suna." He stated. He had gone back home to visit, mostly for his mother, for the summer, but I guess now I know he had no real plans to stay during the whole vacation… no doubt he didn't want to spend too much time around his dad.

"Well… how about I pick you up from the airport when you get here?" I offered. I wasn't nervous anymore, I was damn near on cloud nine after his little confession.

"I'd like that." He said in a happy tone just as the P.A. announced for all boarding passengers to head for the platform, and just as quickly had it been announced did the train blew its horn from down the tracks.

"Ah, Hinata's train is here. How long are you going to be up?" I asked him and grinned like an idiot.

"Hmm, well, I'm not going to sleep anytime soon after this." He said just as the train sounded again.

"Good, cause I'm gonna call you when I get back home, okay?" I informed him.

"Heh, alright, I'll talk to you then." He agreed and hung up after I gave my reply. I must say, this night turned out to be a good one. To find out that Gaara of all people dated men, and that he'd liked me for who knows how long now, was something that put me in a seriously good mood. As soon as I stood up from the bench, my phone vibrated once more for an in-coming call, but I pretty much knew who it would be without even looking.

"N-Neji, I'm getting o-off on section e-eight." Hinata stuttered quietly into the phone.

"Right, I'm already here, see you in a second." I said and pocketed my phone once she hung up. Well, that pretty much confirmed that mother must've called ahead and told her I was picking her up instead of her or one of our drivers. Speaking of drivers, where did the group of drunkards disappear to? Ah, but they're not important, what was important is the fact that Hinata damn near fell flat on her face as she missed the last step in getting off the train, luckily one of the attendants caught her and steadied her.

"Smooth sis." I jogged up to her and tried to contain my laughter.

"I-it's not f-funny!" She exclaimed and turned tomato red. She really was easily embarrassed, but that what makes her Hinata after all.

"Right, right," I chuckled and pulled her luggage off the baggage car, "It should be a good 'mentionable' to mother when we get home." I smirked at her wide eyed expression.

"N-Neji!" Hinata flustered and followed closely beside me as we made our way to the car, "I c-can't believe mother and f-father let you d-drive this late." She continued once we got to the car.

"Oh come on Hinata, are you doubting me to? I drive us to school almost every day, so what's the difference?" I rolled my eyes as we put her things in the truck. Was it really so different? I mean, sure the drivers are bit less careful, but even so.

"No, no! I t-trust you, it's j-just a little s-surprising that they l-let you drive this l-late." She smiled sincerely and climbed in the car.

"Hahah, ah, I guess you're right. But still, mom did make me drive her car for better safety, as if we're gonna be going through a battlefield or something!" I laughed and pulled out of the parking lot. Since the train had just unloaded close to a dozen people, all of who had family or friends picking them up, the streets weren't as empty as before. However, naturally since we all didn't live in the same direction, we ended up on the main road with only one other car from the station.

"It's so q-quiet." Hinata pointed out, "Even w-with the clubs letting o-out, there are close to no c-cars." She continued.

"Hm, well that's good then. Means I don't have to turn my neck like an owl and check every direction every two seconds." I joked, but I was still a bit serious. With the roads this empty, there was really no reason to be more careful than usual.

"Heheh, true…. Ah, so a-are things better w-with Tenten?" Hinata asked quietly, but rather abruptly.

"Heh, funny you should ask…." I laughed nervously. How was I going to tell Hinata that I may or may not be dating Gaara soon? Or better yet, that I was even interested in him? How would she take the fact that I was going to be dating a guy? Even though we share a lot, I honestly don't know what her reaction may be, "I'm… I'm actually gonna break it off with her tomorrow. I just can't handle her constant bickering, you know…" I slid my hand across my face in exhaustion as I waited for the light to turn green.

"Oh… w-well, I know y-you gave it your b-best." She smiled knowingly at me just as the light turned green, which I proceeded to pull through without looking either way, "so, d-do you have a-any other inter—NEJI!" Hinata screamed and it was in that short second that things seemed to go in slow motion. Once Hinata screamed, I heard the most piercing squealing sound and as I turned to see what she was so scared about, there was a pair of bright lights followed by a sound like a bomb going off, then shards of glass went flying around in the car and finally, and lastly, there was a sensation as if we were caught in a blender. The world around us was spinning so fast, that I actually lost consciousness a few times before finally opening my eyes to a vision of red… what in the hell happened?

"Ngh… ah, shit! My head!" I curse and tried to move my arm, which I couldn't even feel, but it was impossible, I couldn't move any part of me. But with that realization, I remembered Hinata, "H-Hinata!?" I turned my head as much to the side as I could, ignoring the painful throb in my shoulder, and saw a sight that could only be processed as my worst nightmare come to life. Hinata was covered in blood and the dashboard seemed like it was a part of her in the most unnatural way possible, and the seatbelt was literally constricting around her chest…. which wasn't moving. I didn't even have time to lose my mind before there were sounds of different people screaming, and it only got louder and louder until it all stopped as I lost consciousness again, but not before I heard someone say something that confirmed what had happened.

"Someone call 911! There's been a tragic accident!" The person ordered and then…. darkness.

This couldn't be happening, there was no one there! What the hell happened? One moment Hinata and I were talking so lightly, now… now what? There were so many sounds going on around me that I thought my head might actually explode from the loudness, there were so many voices speaking quickly, followed by the tell-all sound of sirens. I had tried again to move but it was still impossible, mainly due to the extreme pain I felt whenever I tried, and just when I decided to try and open my eyes… the noise stopped. The following noise was a measured dripping of something and the light hum of voices, when I finally opened my eyes, they were met with a faint light coming through some closed curtains. Other than that light, there were no lights on in the room.

"Ah..." I groaned and let my eyes shut once more. Where the hell was I?

"Neji?!" I heard my mothers' voice call out in clear hysteria, at which I quickly opened my eyes to.

"M-mom?" I said hoarsely in confusion and let my eyes focus on her face directly above mine.

"Oh gods! You're awake!" Mother burst into tears and crumpled down on my chest… which now had a dull ache in it.

"Where am I?" I asked her and looked around…. and once I did, I didn't even need her answer.

"You're in the hospital, where do you think you are?!" Mother shrieked and narrowed her eyes at me…. I could just see the argument building up in her eyes, "Neji… I told you to be careful! I knew I should've driven… you've been unconscious for over five hours now and-and…" She scolded me, but then quickly broke into a fit of sobbing that I have never seen from her.

"Where… where is Hinata?" I asked all too hesitantly. I didn't see her in the room with me and I didn't even want to think why that may be.

"S-she's still in s-surgery…" Mom said quietly before being consumed her tears again.

"….. W-why!?" I deadpanned and tried to sit up, but was held down by Shizune… where did she come from?

"Because you two were in a very serious accident Neji, you're pretty banged up, but Hinata caught the brunt of it all." Shizune explained with a serious look and proceeded to check my vitals.

"What… oh…. M-mother, I'm-" I began to apologize as best I could, but was interrupted by father entering the room with Tsunade, who proceeded to flick the brightest lights ever on.

"Hiashi…Tsu-tsunade…" Mother said almost hesitantly. However, father didn't even acknowledge her saying his name… no, he was far too busy glaring at me in a way that only an Uchiha or Gaara could do… and I don't blame him for giving me such a cruel look.

"Well, she's made it through the surgery just fine Hisae, Neji," Tsunade informed us, "however…. she sustained a pretty hefty amount of internal damage to her abdomen, and due to the locking mechanism of the seatbelt, her heart was fairly damaged as well. It is showing signs of bruising, which will eventually heal, but there will most likely be lingering symptoms because of that." She continued before we could even think of breathing a sigh of relief.

"A-and… will there be any effects from the abdominal d-damage?" Mother asked with apparent effort to keeping her composure as much as possible.

"….. There may and may not be…. Only time will give us a definite answer." Tsunade said after a short pause.

"What would the symptoms be, should she be affected by it?" Father finally spoke, seeing as how neither I nor my mother was capable of asking.

"Hm, due to the constriction of the seatbelt, she will have definite bruising and tenderness, that may last anywhere from a week, to being permanent. Which is most often accompanied with lingering heart conditions, that's the most threatening problem as it stands. But, the damage she sustained to her abdomen… she may face… infertility…." She explained with a visible look of unease, worry and sadness…. Wait… infertility?

"Oh gods…" Mother finally lost the battle in keeping her tears at bay and all but fell into father's arms. This-this is my fault… the reason for mothers tears, fathers glare and my only siblings health. Even though she was young, I knew that once she found out that she may never be able to have children…. She would be crushed. As my parents, along with Shizune and Tsunade, left the room to further their conversation about the accident, I couldn't help but to overhear a piece of what they were talking about before the completely exited the room.

"—drunk driver." Shizune confirmed as she shut the door and cut the lights back off, trapping me with my mind, which seemed to take its chance on replaying all that had happened. From Tenten to Gaara and from Hinata to—it's all my fault. I can NEVER forgive myself for being so dumb and not paying closer attention like mother had warned me to do! Now… now Hinata may live a life full of pain and health issues and the possibility of never having children of her own. It's all my fault…. This is all my fault….

**End flashback**

"Neji… I swear, if I have to say your name one more time…." Gaara's voice sounded through the brunettes unwanted reminiscing of the past.

"But you love sayin' my name, don't you?" Neji slowly turned towards the redhead.

"I won't argue against that, but still… are we just going to sit here?" Gaara questioned as only he and Neji remained in the car, even after having arrived back in the garage of their apartment style building. Hinata had already went upstairs to rest as soon as they had arrived there, which was about 15 minutes ago.

"I guess that's a good idea, what do you think?" Neji faked a look of concentration, but ultimately ended up smirking at his serious looking boyfriend.

"Ha-ha." Gaara retorted and proceeded to exit his blood red Audi coupe followed by his snickering grey eyed consort. Gaara knew at some point, if Neji kept freaking out about one of Hinata's episodes, he would be the next one in the hospital from stress. It wasn't as if she had these attacks often, this was probably the 2nd one since the year started, so considering that the year was already more than halfway through, she was doing pretty well. But, no, you couldn't get that logic through Neji's thick skull and as they made their way to the redheads apartment, by order of Gaara because he had already informed Shino on the day's events and he would no doubt already be with Hinata, he thought of the many different ways that he could distract Neji from worrying himself silly.

AN: I just. . have no words right now. But, as always, your reviews are very much appreciated. Especially in this time of disaster. . . Until next time.

Reason for song: This song expresses what Neji had realized from his father, so much so that it should be deemed dedicated to him. "All of the people are in the sky,
Inside the cage that is called "Freedom", Having only you is alright, amongst this sky,I don't need wings anymore" . . . It is perfect.

Please note: Kojika Nara, Suna Akurei, Hyūga Hisae are mine, well my versions of Neji, Hinata and Gaara's parents names, as well as Shikamaru's sister's name. But mine none the less.

- Anna Uzumaki