Hi!! I'm back, the great Lumberry-Berry is baaack!! XD

So this is my nineteenth chapter of The Life and Story of Hinata. I'm also on Sasuke's and Sakura's Baby Steps, but I don't know how I'm doing...so review!

Also, there are quite a few arguments in this chapter and the next ones, so I'll use my cute little "Gasp" smiley;

O.O for the real profanity (cut me some slack; I haven't hit 9th grade yet). I know, yes, whatever, but in order to make it as realistic as possible... (rants for three more hours)...I'll have to use a few O.Os here and there!

Also, I listed it as "real profanity." I don't cut out the words that really should be in there, even for eighth-grade-level talking.

Disclaimer: Naruto the anime/manga doesn't belong to moi, but Neji the hot guy/cute guy also does not! Boohoohoo! (cries for two hours) Isn't that sad, guys? Guys?!

Whatever XO. I've been working my butt off, since the "temporary" glitch has deleted part of it, so you'd better review!! XD


November 8, Year of the Crescent Moon

- 2:08 after training with Kiba and Shino -

Kiba and I are going to part ways soon, just at the little intersection of the streets. Before I can exchange goodbyes, though, he says quickly, "Um, can you meet with me at nine o'clock-at-the-main-gate?"

"I...why?"

His gaze slips away.

"To say bye... I'm going to escort Yumeki back to her Waterfall village, and I won't be here for at least four days..."

I still think it's rather abrupt, but...

"Um, sure."

He looks relieved. "Thanks."

"No problem. I-I'll be there."

- 8:45 -

Ino, Sakura, and I visit Sasuke late in the evening.

The flowers, cards, candy, chocolate, teddy bears, and Sasuke-dolls had quickly accumulated over the course of little more than one day.

Sasuke is sitting upright, looking both bored and alert, with countless gifts tossed on his bed.

Ino blanches; Sakura's eyebrows rise, as they finger their own gifts; a daffodil and a plate of cookies, respectively. I didn't bring anything, but Ino opted for me to at least hold a card, which I do.

"What's up, Saskuke?" Sakura asks shyly. I stay by the door, ready to yawn if things get incredibly slow-paced and pointless.

"Nothing." Sasuke looks ready to scowl. He's wearing a black cotton sweater which covers his neck. Covers his mark. I'm only wearing a thin jacket, but it's warm in the hopital. "Aren't visits...only supposed to be two minutes?"

"No," smiles Ino, with snow flakes still studded in her hair. They are melting, and her hair is rapidly poofing, "we asked, and the nurse says we can stay as long as we want! Isn't that awesome?"

His eye twitches, and he falls silent again, looking to the window for something to pique his interest. But it was just snow, plain, white snow, and he sighs, looking down at his blanket instead.

A few awkward moments pass (I am yawning by now) and Sakura asks tentatively, "How are you feeling, Sasuke?"

He doesn't respond, but he glances over to me, eyebrows raised in obvious annoyance. How come they were all dragged along?

I grin back apologetically - It's none of my business; it's yours to take care of - , and he scowls.

"Let's go," Ino says, her voice toneless. I can't tell if she's bored or disppointed with this visit. Sakura reluctantly agrees, and they leave their gifts on his nightstand, next to two colossal life-size (teddy) bears and a ginormous card that reads in blue, curly font, "I LOVE YOU SOSKE! BE MINE!"

When we're outside and I'm shivering in the jacket, wishing I'd brought a windbreaker, Sakura turns to us, saying, "I...have to go eat dinner. Thanks for...you know, coming with me."

She didn't even eat yet? She postponed her dinner just for some worthless little visit to her crush?

I would say it was deep, had not the visit been totally and pointlessly a time-waster.

When Sakura is out of earshot Ino promptly turns towards me with anger blazing in her ice-blue eyes. I cringe and take a step back. What -

"Thanks, Hinata!" she cries sarcastically, "Crap! Thanks for that obvious flirting!"

"What? Wait; I didn't do anything!"

"You like him, don't you?!" she hisses, "I saw that grin!"

This is the side of Ino that's terryfying, without any reason. I saw that side once, when I was the new girl.

Weren't we friends? Friends aren't like this! One little misstep and they leave you choking in the dust!

She's not my friend, then!

"Ino! It's not - "

"Sasuke is mine, okay? It's bad enough I've got to compete with that freaking forehead idiot - " she jerks her head towards Sakura's direction, then face me again with her hostile glare, "but you're competition! You - "

"Let me get you straight! It's not - "

" - stay away from him, got it?! And I thought we were friends!" She stomps away, her footprints leaving deep marks in the snow.

Wow...touchy.


- 8:57 at home -

As soon as I get home I call her, after angrily kicking away my snow-caked boots and my jacket.

"Ino - " I start as soon as she picks the phone up, but she cuts me off.

"Tell him you don't like him!"

"What?!" So she's finally gotten to this high level of a conclusion.

Okay. So I know that's mean, but my callousness is a tiny speck of rice compared to her whole field.

"Tell. Him. You. DON'T. LIKE. HIM. NOW!"

She slams down the phone, the noise echoeing in my brain.

Note to self; Avoid loud noises.

I sigh, inwardly unlike my calm outward appearance. I dial her number again. "Ino! Listen to me; how the O.O am I supposed to - "

"Shut up! Just do it! Don't ever call me again."

Slaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaam. Screeeeeeeeeeeeeech.

Second note to self: ...

I sigh again, but inside my emotions are boiling. How dare she!! How could she do this to me?!

I slip on my coat (the warmer one this time) and start out the driveway.

"Um, can you meet with me at nine o'clock-at-the-main-gate?"

"No problem. I-I'll be there."

Kiba!

I had completely forgotten.

What to do? There is no way in hell I can do both at the same time.

If I...

If I skipped Kiba's invitation, I know I'll regret it (he's officially my best friend now, since my former "best friend" is obivously not currently on speaking terms with me), and I also promised him I'd be there. And I know I'll miss his presence when he escorts Yumeki...

On the other hand, Ino's "friendship" is on a delicate, yet utterly twisted, standstill.

If I don't tell Sasuke, Ino will surely remain hostile. She's being such a O.O on such a wasteful subject.

But...

I do understand.

I understand how it felt before, three months ago, when it felt alone. I was mad, much angrier than Ino is even now; mad at the whole world for not noticing my existence. I was Invisible. A Nothing.

But even Ino...acknowledges who I am really even if she's furious at me right now. Enraged at me.

I do understand.

But it doesn't help, does it now?

It doesn't help at all thinking over it; do something!

I'm still paused at the end of my driveway, a bundle of snowflakes resting coolly against my hair.

My best bet was to say farewell to Kiba, then Sasuke... or it wasn't such a "good" bet after all...

It gets late easily in Konoha's autumn-winter; darkness settles in as soon as six o'clock.

So...if I go to Sasuke's first, but what if I go back to Kiba and he's not there? There's at least half a possibility he would get tired of waiting.

Just then Sakura walks across the street, carrying two packages of leftover restaurant food; she'd just finished dinner.

An idea squirms itself into my brain; the lightbulb dimly flicks on.

"Sakura!" I yell, running across the street.

She looks confused when I launch into explaining the story, but she gets it fast enough.

Can't say I know where the brain cells were hid when Sakura was visiting Sasuke, but...

"That's easy enough," she says hesitantly, "so I could transform into you?"

"Yeah - that's exactly what I'd been thinking, too."

"I'll meet Kiba, I suppose," her blush is still visible in the dark, "because I know I'll stutter if I go to S-sasuke."

I draw a breath. "That's fine. I mean, Kiba won't know the difference without Akamaru...but hurry up, okay?"

We agree to meet back in fifteen minutes - 9:30 - , and Sakura deposits her food into a nearby trashcan, her eyes brimming with excitement.

"Let's go!"


Sakura

- 9:07 -

Kiba is waiting by the main gate when I arrive.

"You're late, Hinata. Yumeki's already started off."

"Um..." My voice comes out quieter than I had intended...or was Hinata's voice always this high? I can't remember... "Sorry, Kiba."

"That's fine..."

I never noticed before...how tall he looks without his huge gray (A/N: not to mention unflattering) jacket. The contours of his body are easy to distinguish even by the tiny, crude, light on the gate.

There's this look in his eyes like he's expecting for me - for Hinata - to do something.

I wonder how well he knows Hinata...

...a hug would suffice, right?


Hinata

- 9:08 -

I arrive in the hospital slightly out of breath, but I manage to find my way around without getting lost or seeing old, wizened people.

When I open the door - luckily he's alone, no annoying fangirls - I see that there are literally mountains of presents stacked on his bed, one stack touching the ceiling, another almost falling off.

My mouth curves into a grin automatically - poor Sasuke!

This is the first time that he's not propped up in bed being aloof - he's sleeping, his head tilted slightly to the right. His eyelids snap open, though, as the door screeches.

Dang door.

"Sasuke?" I manage, and he sits up, blinking and looking slightly annoyed, "um..." I know somehow I'm supposed to say it, spit it out, but I have no idea how.

"Well..." Better be brutally honest than anything else, right? "Ino's being suspicious of...well, our, um, re-relationship, so I'm just..." I rush out, "I'm-just-classifying-that-we're-just-friends-right?"

The words come out, tumbling to the floor, but he understands fast enough. He blinks again, and deliberately takes his time.

"You tell me."

"I - " I forge ahead but have no idea what I'm saying "It could be a possibility, yeah - one percent? I mean, it's not likely that-we're-more-than-friends-I'm-just-saying-this-to-get-Ino-off-my-back - SorryifI'mbotheringyou." I let out a nervous laugh.

His face has already turned guarded, his eyes inscrutinable. "That's fine. I don't care." He lays back, slips the covers over his chest. "So now, if you don't mind, I'll go back to sleep."

Silence.

It's already over. I turn around blindly.

Thank the gods above...it's over...I've done it. I hope Ino's going to forgive me now...

But between the roads, I realize what I've done and my heart plummets downward.

It should have been incisive, a clean cut down the middle of friendship and something more. A clean cut with no damage done.

But why did I feel breathless? Why did I feel like my heart stopped beating, just then?

Why has it ended like...this?


So that's it.

I'm not happy with my reviews!

You know, it's easy. Just click that button. You know you want to...that little, precious button? With your index finger. Or whatever, if you'r missing your index finger. Just click it!...Or I may be forced to chop off your limbs (does a Yamato ghost-eyes face)...

(Cheerful again) But then again, just review and you shall be glad to still have the limbs that I have benevolently left you.

...It was SNOWING TODAY!! Like, one inch!! It MUST BE a two hour delay tomorrow! If it is I shall update!! XD

Lumberry: Bye for now, Neji!

Neji: Good riddance to bad rubbish.

Lumberry: Heeeeeeeeeeeeeey, that's MY line!

Neji: Good riddance to Lumberry.

Lumberry: (cluelessly) Now I feel both depressed and special...why?

Lumberry and Neji: REVIEW!!

(throws random confetti that magically appeared in reach)

Lumberrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry