Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, etc.

Summary: Tenten is indebt and a really good liar. Neji's family is rich and in need of a temporary niece. What happens when these two meet? ( Nejiten & minor others )

Brief: Hello, once again. I'm sorry that I haven't updated in awhile. If you're having trouble remembering what happened, feel free to go through the chapters again. Sorry for this. 

Oh dear Lord.

The couples moved to the dance floor, Tenten not realizing that she was standing in the middle of it. A couple bumped into her clumsily and she felt herself falling, falling to the floor. She closed her eyes, expecting to hit it in a matter of seconds, only to be saved by Sasuke who caught her back, leaving her hanging in mid-air.

"The person you like," he said, "is Hyuuga Neji."

One hand of Tenten's was latched onto Sasuke's back for support. She felt like she was going to fall into an endless abyss from a very, very high height.

From her position, Tenten felt like Sir Impossible slapped her in the face. And then Lady Realization came along and beat Sir Impossible up. She felt her throat clog up. Like? Like, like like? Did he really say that? Ridiculous! She didn't like him... It was more powerful than that… More like…

Her eyes widened.

Did she love him?

"I…" she began, but her hand slipped off his shoulder and she fell onto the floor. Through the music and the chattering people, though, it went unheard. Tenten was too dazed to get up, her hands on both sides of her. She felt like she had fallen back into reality, her 5-minute fairytale coming to a close on her. She looked at Neji and Sakura and felt her heart sink. Had she really forgotten so easily?

Neji was no prince charming.

No, he was a prince charming.

He just wasn't... her prince charming.

He wasn't in love with her; he was in love with Sakura.

The only thing that remained true from the recent exchange of fairytale and reality was that Tenten was still a peasant.

A hand extended out to her and she looked up, hurt clearly evident in her eyes. It was Sasuke.

The girl got up on her own however, brushing his hand away. She didn't want any help… She didn't want to be around all these people. With that thought, she took of running to the stairs, shoving past people and bruising her hip on the refreshment table that shifted dramatically from their collision…

… This naturally sparked unwanted attention.

Heads turned and Tenten found herself catching Neji's eye from far away. She quickly faced forward and began to clatter down the stairs, her shoes making loud noises against the marble. She refused to look back. She just needed to get out of there.

"Tenten!" Was that Neji's voice? No… she thought. He wouldn't…

She hopped the last two steps. She just needed to get away.

She kept on running to the hotel's main entrance doors and shoved them open with such force that she was sure she had blown them off the hinges. She just wanted to keep on running.

And she would've kept on running… but she didn't.

-

Tenten's eyes grew wide. Pure white… The sky… It was…

Snow.

A pure word. One syllable long. It entered her mind with equal grace, and she stood there.

She didn't feel the chill of the wind on her bare arms. No, the girl felt her heart warm up and she walked out into the open, not minding how the snow seeped into her heels, sending chills to her feet. No, she was completely numb at this moment.

It was just her, the snow, and nothing.

She felt herself being dunked in a pure river and then felt herself being pulled out, clean as a slate.

There was a crunch of snow from behind her and she felt a presence. It could've been Neji… Sasuke, anyone, really. She shouldn't say anything. Not now… But she needed to say something, you see. She needed to say something and hear something back to make sure she wasn't in her own little world.

"Snow," she said.

"I know." Neji… she thought, her heart skipping a beat. Definitely Neji.

The wind whistled softly as silence settled between them.

"I never knew when my birthday was," she whispered. She felt him walk next to her on her left.

"Hn."

"But I remember what it was like," she continued. A pause… and then a sigh. She saw her breath come out in a wispy cloud. "There was snow… Lots of snow… It was…" She looked up to the sky this time, feeling the snowflakes dot her eyelashes. "It was snowing."

There was a shift of feet and she knew he was looking at the sky as well.

"I'll remember that."

Tenten felt herself smile.

She also felt that she had fallen back into the fairytale again.

-

"Neji!"

But her fairytale, she knows, shatters just as easily.

Just as easily, the cold snakes up to her and before she knows it, she is shivering. She looks to the left of her and wondered if it was a dream that she had felt him standing next to her, but she looked down and saw the two footprint marks that were left from his shoes. She turned to the entrance and saw him with Sakura.

Reality… This was it.

Tenten watched Sasuke come out too, her coat in his hands. She watched as he walked over to her, ignoring the other two that were there, and handed it to her.

"You went out without it," he said. "It's cold out here."

She merely nodded, taking the clothing from him and fitting it around her shoulders. She shoved her hands in her pockets, feeling the warmth go into her again. But… The cold… It was still there.

Neji walked over, concern on his face. Most people couldn't tell, but Tenten had learned to read his expressions by now. He put a hand on her forehead, as if he was expecting her to be seriously sick. A temperature.

"Are you feeling alright?" he asked.

Tenten turned away from his eyes and felt her cheeks heat up. "I'm…" Her eyes met Sasuke's who was staring at her intensely and felt her stomach churn with guilt. She turned her gaze again and looked at the floor instead. She pushed Neji's hand away. "I'm fine," she said aloud. "Nothing's wrong… I just…" She licked her lips. "I just have a stomach ache," she finished.

He stared at her. "Right," he muttered. "I'll take you home."

Sakura chewed the bottom of her lip. "But you just got here," she said. "I mean…" She sighed. "If you're not here then the party will be all…" Her eyes shifted from the doors to him, searching for the right word. "… boring…"

Neji's eyes became different, remembering why he was here in the first place. "I'll come back," he told her, trying to mend the situation. "Tenten's not feeling well. I'll take her back and Kurenai will take everything from there. Besides, what –"

"I'll take her."

Sasuke stepped out from the hallway toward Tenten. "I don't have any reason to be here." He looked at her. "Come on," he said. "Let's go." He nodded over to the parking lot, the cars covered with a thick blanket of snow. "We have to go fast if you want to make it home."

"Uncle will be unhappy if I don't take responsibility of her," Neji stated. "It will be better if –"

"Sasuke said that he'll take care of it, Neji," Sakura said, walking up to him. "I'm sure that you can trust him."

He shook his head. "I'll be back later," he repeated. He walked near Tenten who was still frozen, looking at the ground with her hands in her pockets. "Go to the car."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "I'm capable of bringing her back to the house. Besides…" He glanced at Tenten before turning his focus back on Neji. "Hiashi let me take her out. If he sees that I haven't brought her back, he will have a lack of trust in me."

Sakura frowned. "But I…" she began. "I… Why can't you stay?" she asked instead. "Sasuke can take Tenten home… I mean… He knows where you live and… and everything…"

At last Tenten looked up. "Sasuke can take me home," she said quietly. She crossed her fingers in her pocket. "I don't mind. I mean…" She sighed, sending stray hair upwards. "Sakura invited Neji here… So… I guess it's only fair if he stayed… here." She forced a smile, the pain that was non-existent at first becoming a reality. "If we keep arguing like this… Nothing's going to happen… you know?"

She watched as Sakura let a smile of relief grace her features. "Thank you," she said. She turned to Neji. "See? Tenten agrees too…" She frowned, realizing that she had spoken too quickly. "Right, Tenten?" she asked, looking back at her.

The girl just nodded, keeping her mouth in a content line. "Yes…" she said. "Fine… Fine, fine fine…" She repeated the word more than once to emphasize her decision. She was perfectly fine with it… Yes. Fine. Fine, fine, fine. Her insides were twisting inside, yet she managed to keep her composure in a comfortable stance.

However, Tenten stiffened as Sasuke put a hand on her shoulder to direct her to his car. "Have fun then," he muttered in a noncommittal way. He looked at the girl next to him. "Let's go," he stated. "You look terrible." She managed to nod.

The two of them silently made their way over to the car that was parked nearby and climbed in.

-

Neji looked as if he wanted to say something more, but Sakura tugged on his arm gently. "Let's go back in," she told him. "It's cold outside."

Tenten kept her eyes on the view outside of the window, aware of the presence of the man next to her. She only took a breath of air when she needed to and she knew she wasn't the only one who noticed the large gap between the both of them.

"You must be really sick."

Tenten looked at Sasuke next to her, who had taken a quick glance, but then turn his attention back on to the road in front of them. She was surprised that he had spoken a word… as she had thought none of them had felt like speaking about what had happened today. She fiddled with the napkin in her hands, strangely immersing herself in the logo it had pressed onto it.

"Too sick to say anything."

The girl crumpled up the napkin in her hands.

"I guess."

Sasuke looked at her again, but then turned his attention back to the road. Tenten silently suspected he was just as appalled as she was that there were actually words floating around in the still and depressing atmosphere around them.

Yet words don't always form out as a precise conversation between two people.

The two of them were perfectly aware of the situation at hand. Tenten was perfectly content to dodge it and steel herself for anything that came her way. And she would've if Sasuke hadn't thrown up one statement that had, quite possibly, been burrowed in her mind:

"You should quit."

Tenten blinked and she turned herself around to face him.

"I'm sorry?"

Without a beat in between, without a glance, he replied, "Quit your job."

She felt like she wasn't able to breath. She laughed slightly, and she felt her hands shake. "W-What job?" she asked with a forced smile. "I don't have a job, you know… I just –"

"Stop it." Tenten's smile faded. "I know that you're not related to Neji at all."

The girl fixed her attention back at the window, not saying a word. How did he know? How could he possibly know? She bit her lip so hard that she tasted a faint metallic taste on her tongue. It hit her that he could reveal this whole plot to the family… and then they would… they would…

"Don't tell."

"Don't tell," she repeated gravely. "Please… Don't tell."

Silence.

Tenten could hear the beating of her heart drum in her ears. Today was… It was just… She clenched her hands together, but her eyes widened in surprise when she found that the napkin she had just been holding were torn into shreds. She was baffled that she had been making such involuntary moves as such. Her eyes shut in pain. What is wrong with me?

None of them had spoken much after Sasuke had revealed his inner knowledge about the plot Tenten and Neji had managed to cook up. It wasn't until they had arrived at the Hyuuga household once more that he looked at her.

"You're going to get hurt."

The napkin scraps that were in her hand had now been rolled into tiny balls. His sentence hit her hard and Tenten clasped her hands together, feeling the papery texture beneath her palms.

"… I know," she said, her voice shaky. She felt tears come down in silent streams and she scolded herself. She hadn't cried ever since Mom had died.

She hadn't. She won't.

I won't cry over something like this…

She felt his eyes on her again and she quickly wiped her tears away. "Thank you… for bringing me back," she said. She opened the door on her side and went out into the chilly air. Holding herself tightly for warmth, she began to quickly make her way to the door of the house.

"Tenten!"

The girl turned around silently. Sasuke stood next to his car, his door open. His expression had a steely background to it.

"Think about my suggestion," he said.

Tenten thought for a moment before nodding. "I will," she said.

Sasuke nodded his head. "I won't tell anyone."

Again the girl was silent before meeting his eyes. "Thank you," she replied truthfully. "Thank you." Slowly she turned and made her way inside of the Hyuuga household.

"You're back early," Kurenai stated, surprised at the presence of the young woman at the entrance. She had only happened to just walk by, and so she was caught off guard. "What happened?" she inquired. Slowly, the woman noticed the paleness that marked her face. "Is everything all right?"

Equally baffled, Tenten's hands came apart and the remains of the napkin fell onto the floor.

"You don't look so good," Kurenai muttered as she walked closer to her, putting a hand to her forehead. "Do you have a fever or something –"

Her hand was quickly slapped away and the older woman had stepped back in surprise. Tenten, still jittery over the feelings she was experiencing blinked hard before making her eyes connect with Kurenai's – hoping that no tears still clung to her eyelashes. "I – I'm fine," she insisted. "Really…"

Kurenai, who was preparing to say something sarcastic, swallowed up her words as a look of concern came across her features. "… I see…" The mood around her suddenly came down and she tried to make a joke out of things. "I'll get the broom to mop up the confetti you made on the floor then," she remarked, ending it with a small chuckle.

"Ah… Ha…" The girl tried her best to laugh at the joke, understanding the need to turn things back into a jovial setting. However, the laugh would not come and it became stuck in her throat. The voice locked inside became thick and she threatened to burst into tears once more.

No!

"I… I'm tired," she said hastily. "I'll be getting… a rest now," she finished awkwardly, dashing up the stairs before her emotions grabbed a hold of her.

"Are you sure you are –"

"I'm fine!" Her voice became distant as she reached the top of the stairs, placing a hand on one of the small stands that were against the wall. She felt cold. What she looked like no longer seemed of great importance. Her heart seemed to be latched on to something and half of it wanted to break free. The other half…

The other half liked the feeling.

The feeling that she would feel rise in her chest when she was alone with him, talking about things that mattered or things that didn't matter. But what mattered was that they were talking and that the air would settle into something that wasn't business orientated. Something that wasn't nosy, wasn't pushy. A conversation between friends – friends that were… something more?

Her thoughts wouldn't settle.

Tenten turned toward her room and went inside, closing the door behind her. Her breath seemed to come in short puffs and she was pretty sure it wasn't the dress around her. Carefully she slipped out of the fancy fabric and put on something she was more accustomed to – shorts and a shirt that was three sizes bigger than she actually was. She undid her buns and brushed her hair out.

Once in comfortable clothing, she plopped herself on top of her bed in a distressed state.

"Maybe I should really take my advice," she said – loud enough so that only she could hear. "Maybe I should take a rest… Like I told Kurenai."

She tried and tried, but it wouldn't work out. The pain that she had experienced when she saw Sakura and Neji embraced return and her right hand involuntarily placed itself over her heart. She couldn't help but envision the fact that the two were at the party dancing…

Together.

The things she imagined were worse than seeing them right in front of her. It went wild. She imagined them exchanging a kiss while dancing the night away. One fact kept shoving itself in her face – the fact that Neji was in love with someone else and that someone else truly returned his feelings.

Sakura…

Tenten could not hate her. She had come quite close a few times, but her heart wasn't in it. She experienced a twinge of envy now and then, but the negative energy just wouldn't flow. She could do something that would squeeze and pop Tenten's heart – like kissing Neji back at the party – yet she did things that mended such evil deeds that Tenten could not hate her for – like the invitation to her party. She didn't have to, but she did. That and…

Neji was happy around her.

The thought – although somewhat sad, made her feel somewhat content.

Content… as if she could really put up with Sakura as long as he was happy.

With this epiphany in her mind, she finally drifted off to sleep.

A slam of the door and a jangle of keys was what awoken Tenten from her nap. Drowsily she glanced over at the clock and realized that a little more than two hours had passed. Thoughts of what Neji had done during this time plagued her again.

He most likely went out to dinner, she thought, with Sakura.

She sighed and a second thought went into her mind. I should really stop doing this…

But then Sasuke's voice came through.

"You should quit."

Tenten blinked and she turned herself around to face him.

"I'm sorry?"

Without a beat in between, without a glance, he replied, "Quit your job."

–"You're going to get hurt."

You're going to get hurt.

Her breath hitched. And she made herself sit upright. Was he right? Was quitting the right thing to do? She vaguely remembered her conversation with Ino as well and her stomach seemed to invert itself. Didn't Ino hint at the same thing? Was there something she was missing? Were the feelings she was having for Neji blinding her to what was important now?

The blonde ignored her last comment and continued. "If it's killing you, just stop. Iruka and Kakashi wouldn't want you to push yourself. They think that… And the others think that too."

Tenten couldn't help but chuckle. "You're saying that like it'll be the death of me or something." She took a deep breath. "Relax. I know what I'm doing. I don't know if I'll find another job that'll pay as well as this one. So… I'm going to stick with it until the debt is repaid and we have enough to survive on our own." She forced a small smile. "I know my limits. If I know I'm pushing them, I won't continue."

The decision came to her slowly, but surely.

She didn't want to get hurt.

"I have to stop," she muttered, her fists clenched, "before this gets out of hand." She felt her nails bite into the palms of her hand, but she did not notice nor could she feel the pain. The job was the thing that was killing her right? The job was the reason why she was feeling this unknown pain.

No, she corrected herself quickly. It wasn't the job.

It was simply being around Neji… being forced to see him everyday. It killed her.

Why didn't she go at the first moment this had happened?

Why didn't she just leave?

Because I wanted to see him, she thought. I wanted to see him.

Even though it had killed her, she enjoyed being around him. And yet…

Yet the fact that she loved someone who loved someone else. The feeling was like a poison that was in her veins – something that she wanted to escape from, yet keep safe within her heart simply because the feeling was unlike any other… because it was different and unique – and although it bought a lot of pain to her heart…

There were always those fleeting moments she would experience that made the pain worthwhile. The moment in the snow, the time on the mountain. Adding it all together, it seemed to outweigh the pain she saw when Neji and Sakura were together… Yes…

But… It made her so unhappy.

"I could end this here," she whispered to herself. "I could end it."

It would be finished.

Footsteps could be heard from the hallway. Tenten's head perked up and she slowly got up from the bed, walking to the mirror to brush her hair. Afterwards, she slowly opened the door and… sure enough, he was there at the top of the stairs, looking as if he had been planning to check on her. To see if she was doing all right.

Tenten's gaze had locked onto the floor once coming in contact with his eyes.

Neji frowned and raised an eyebrow. She sure was acting strange today… She didn't look exactly on the healthy side, either. "You're better now, I suppose?" he deadpanned, trying to not leak out any worry he was feeling… and also the surprise he had for the fact that her hair was not in the usual hairdo she wore during the day.

The girl took a shaky breath and nodded her head. "I'm fine…" she murmured. Slowly she met his eyes and straightened herself. "I'm –"

"Uncle says you should get more rest," he remarked, brushing past her and clearly not hearing the small beginning of her sentence. He also did not notice the flush of anger that came across her face. "And he's right. We have a lot to discuss tomorrow –"

"I'm quitting."

Neji paused, not understanding precisely. He looked at her. "What?"

Tenten looked at him head on. "I said… I'm…" She took another deep breath, still hesitant. "I'm quitting. I don't want to do this anymore."

-

Neji was baffled to say the least.

"What?" he repeated.

Something in him seemed to snap. However, he remained his cool composure, although he could not hide the sheer blow that marked his face. There was something… Just something that did not seem right to him. It wouldn't matter if she went, right? It wouldn't…

Uncle would be displeased, his mind said, creating a shoddy excuse. You wouldn't want that.

Yet something else was telling him that that was not the reason at all… He couldn't place his finger on it, but he felt as if he had been punched in the stomach from the unexpected news. He also couldn't judge whether or not this was a fact… or if it was her supposed illness that was acting up again and creating this weird… atmosphere.

-

Tenten frowned, her arms crossed. "I said that I'm quitting, all right?" She gave a heavy sigh. "This… This thing is making me…" Her voice trailed off and she refused to finish what she was saying. Judging by the trauma he seemed to be going through, it most likely skipped his notice.

Silence hung between them and Tenten turned her face away toward the wall. "I just… There, ok? I… I said it. I just thought you would want to know. I'll be the one to tell Hiashi… so…" She made a move to go back inside her room.

"Tenten."

The girl sighed but did not turn around, knowing that there was no way she would change her mind. Not now… Not when she had come this far. She couldn't. There was nothing he could give her that would make her stop from going out the door… right?

Right?

"I'll give you the house."

Damn.

A/N. I'm sorry for the somewhat short chapter this time around. School has been somewhat of a hassle this year and I had to concentrate on what I was working on.

Thank you for the encouraging PM's and such. Reading through them helped me get motivated and I will finish the story… The chapters might just come a little slow. I'm hoping the next one will be a lot longer and that I will get back to my usual track of writing.

Summer is coming up, so I will hopefully have enough time to write and start new stories that I have planned.

Thank you to those who read and reviewed. Or just read.
Thank you for 350+ reviews.