A/N: Sorry if my chapters come in late, blame it on school starting again lol xD. Anyways, thank you so much for the reviews! I'm having fun writing this because it's really different from the stuff that I've done before, so I'm glad that it's at least somewhat readable…
Since the plot is so…layered, for lack of a better word….Naruto and Hinata's meeting will happen soon, but everything takes a while to develop.
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Day 7
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The next morning dawned, and everything seemed different.
Tenten wasn't really sure if she was imagining it or not, but Ino and Sakura seemed to have reached an invisible truce. Even Hinata was looking a little more at ease. Sakura's storytelling the night before had worked some kind of amazing magic on all of them. Ino actually smiled at Hinata, and the Hyuuga heiress smiled timidly back.
Granted, they were probably all in higher spirits that day because nobody had anything to do. It was finally a Saturday. Hinata did not have to train with Tenten, Tenten didn't have to go to her job, and the shopping malls were all open for their longest hours today. Ino wanted to find a summer job.
They amiably took turns sharing the bathroom that morning, which had not happened before. They pulled on clothes that were a little more dressy than usual. Tenten grabbed a white sleeveless shirt and a pair of denim shorts, which she considered pretty nice, but Ino eyed with disapproval. The blonde had picked out a hot pink cotton dress with silver butterflies in one corner.
They were about to proceed out of the door and go their separate ways when Shikamaru ambled into the room. Ino squealed. "Shika! You're supposed to knock!" she said sternly, though this was in vain as she ran to hug him almost immediately. He was carrying a single yellow rose.
"For me?" she asked.
"Yeah, yeah," he sighed, handing it off. She beamed and sniffed it.
"Why not a red one?" she asked.
"I haven't been your friend for life without learning anything about flowers," Shikamaru drawled. "Red roses are for love. Yellow for friendship, am I right?"
Ino scowled, though her small features still managed to look perfectly presentable. Shikamaru pretended that he didn't notice how Ino's blue eyes had lost some of their sparkle as she sniffed the rose again for something to do. Sakura and Hinata had tactfully turned their backs and were pretending to search for something in their trunks. Tenten stared baldly.
"Well, I hope you like it," Shikamaru finally said, and fled out of the door.
O0O
Tenten called up Naruto and Lee on the room's phone once Ino and Sakura had left. Hinata hovered nervously, not quite sure what to do with herself.
"Hey guys. Today's one of my days off," Tenten said cheerfully. "Want to go skateboarding or something?"
Naruto said he was free, and that he would call Lee for her. She hung up, and turned to Hinata, sizing her up skeptically, a bit nervous. "Er…Hinata-san? My friends Naruto and Lee are going with me for a skateboarding day. Would you…like to come?" she asked uncertainly. Hinata seemed like a person who would kill herself on a skateboard. Tenten was reluctant to bring her along. Lee and Naruto could scare people off.
Instead, Hinata's features lit up. Her usually pale skin lit up with color, her pale eyes sparkling like diamonds. It was obvious that she didn't get invited to many events that were actually fun. "I w-would love to c-come, if that's really a-alright," she stuttered, her eyes downcast again as she reclaimed her shy shell.
Tenten smiled and grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the room and down the steps in answer.
O0O
Lee was already at the half pipe once she got there, but Lee would be Lee. He was early to everything. She breathed a huge sigh of relief when she was absolutely certain that Maito Gai would not jump out from behind a bush or something like that. Her martial arts teacher would frighten Hinata so much that she might actually faint.
"Tenten-san, my Flower of Youth!" Lee yelled at the top of his lungs as they approached. Tenten shrank as all of the other skateboarders turned to stare at them.
"Er…hi, Lee," she said meekly.
"Who is this?" Lee cried in absolute delight at the sight of Hinata, who was also trying to shrink, though for different reasons. The exuberant, loud Lee was a little too much for her. She tried a smile, and it looked more like a grimace.
"I'm Hyuuga H-Hinata," she stammered. Should she hold out her hand? "I'm…pleased to m-meet you, Lee-san."
Lee embarrassingly leaned down to kiss Hinata's hand. Tenten wanted to sink into the ground. Hinata probably thought that Tenten and her friends were all this freakish. Well. Maybe they were. But still! At least Naruto was a little more normal.
She and Lee played with their boards while Hinata sat and watched, declining profusely when Lee offered to let her use his own board. Naruto was always late, so it was no surprise when the blonde jogged up to them with skateboard under his arm, grinning his goofy grin half an hour later.
Hinata had been looking at her shoes, fiddling with her laces, but then she looked up, and her white eyes widened, and her face flushed faintly pink.
Tenten immediately noticed this reaction, and looked back and forth between Hinata and Naruto as Naruto and Lee did their "secret handshake". Hinata…was blushing…because of Naruto?!
No girl had ever given Naruto the benefit of the doubt when it came to dating. He had asked out many, and been rejected every time. He never took it personally, though. And now Hinata was blushing at the sight of him. Tenten had no idea what to make of this one. She was utterly and completely at a loss of what a shy, timid and soft-spoken girl like Hinata could possibly see in the loudmouthed, pea brained and eccentric Naruto.
Then again, Tenten realized, as she reassessed her blonde friend, Naruto was sort of good-looking. She didn't know why she hadn't realized it before. His eyes were the perfect shade of blue, (cerulean, of course), and twinkled with a happy light. His smile was wide. He had tanned skin naturally, without having to go to the beach really at all, and his hair was blonde and stuck up naturally without gel, in a sort of nice way. To put it the old fashioned way, they didn't make them like Naruto anymore. Not that happy.
"Hey!" Naruto said when he finally noticed Hinata, obviously surprised. He scratched the back of his head, blinking owlishly, and then all of a sudden swooping down to sit by her. He pumped her hand energetically.
"I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I'm sure Tenten's told you all about me by now, if you're her friend." He grinned cheekily. Hinata was growing redder and redder, her face frozen in an expression of social claustrophobia.
"I…I'm…" she stuttered. Naruto waited patiently for a response.
"This is Hyuuga Hinata," Tenten stepped in to clarify. Hinata gave her a grateful look. "She's from over at the Hyuuga Compound where I'm giving her cousin 'therapy'. She's staying in my dorm for a while."
Naruto laughed, and rubbed the back of his head again, shaking his head at Hinata. "Well, I'm wishing you good luck, because Tenten is a handful." Tenten slammed Naruto's helmet on over his head way too hard, and he made a squeaking sound. She smiled cheerily at Hinata while Naruto struggled beneath her death grip. Lee was oblivious to it all, now doing some slow flexible stretching.
"I hope you don't mind him, he's a little…" Tenten rolled her eyes, and wiggled her eyebrows. Hinata's face cracked into a warm smile. It complimented her pale features very nicely. Tenten relinquished Naruto, who scowled at her.
"Thanks a lot," he muttered. He winked at Hinata a second later, however, and smoothed back his blonde hair a little, though however many times he did it, it always stuck straight back up again. "See what I mean?" he pointed at Tenten.
Hinata looked back and forth between Naruto and Tenten, not really sure who to agree with. She shrugged helplessly, and glanced over at Lee, who was walking like an Egyptian.
Tenten took the chance to sit down in between Naruto and Hinata. She was suddenly feeling troubled. If Hinata, timid Hinata, had a crush on Naruto, who was always oblivious to all obvious things, what could it end up as? Naruto was one of her best friends and Hinata….Tenten was already growing attached to her. She couldn't stand to see her get hurt. As nice as Naruto was, he had no idea how to handle himself around real girls. He had grown up with Tenten. Besides, Tenten was hardly the best example for him to work with, she thought wryly.
And maybe, she admitted to herself, she was a little jealous. If Hinata and Naruto did, by work of some miracle, end up falling in love with each other, then where did that leave her? With Rock Lee? Was life really this unfair? If she still hung out with them, it would be like being a third wheel. Or fourth wheel, if you counted Rock Lee.
Then there was the matter of a certain pink-haired beauty, by name of Haruno Sakura. None of Naruto's little crushes ever lasted that long. She prayed that this one would be the same. What would Hinata think if she knew?
This whole thing made Tenten suddenly conscious of her own self in a way that she had never been before. Why is it that no guy has ever liked me
Guys just didn't like-like Tenten. They liked girly cheerleaders, perhaps somebody like Ino, or someone like Sakura. Perhaps even Yumi had a line of dates waiting for her. She scowled. Was she really that ugly? Or maybe she was born defective in some way?
She had never worried about this kind of thing before in her life. Maybe once or twice in grade school, but that was ages ago. She had been perfectly content to hang out with Naruto and Lee, and play soccer and go skateboarding with whoever wanted to go with her.
But her imagination was getting out of hand.
Hinata pulled her sleeve anxiously. "Tenten-san?"
"Tenten-chan?" said Naruto.
Tenten shook her head and snapped back to reality. "Oh. Yeah? Did I miss something? Sorry…" she laughed it off.
Naruto rolled his eyes. Hinata peered more carefully at her friend's odd expression, her pale eyes slightly concerned. Tenten felt her heart warm at this gesture. Hinata barely knew her, and yet she trusted her enough to stay in the same room with her while she trained her in martial arts, and she was acting friendly too. Maybe it was just too deeply imbedded in her nature not to be friendly to somebody.
"I'm fine," she told Hinata earnestly. The raven-haired Hyuuga heiress eyed her, a hint of doubt in her expression, but let it go. Her cheeks were constantly pink. Her fingers squeezed Tenten's, and they were red hot. Tenten smiled to herself. Hinata was really embarrassed around Naruto.
"We were asking if you'd like to go get ramen after we're done skating," Naruto prompted eagerly.
Tenten considered, letting the question sink in, and then slowly shook her head, sighing regretfully. "Sorry. Can't. On a budget." She stood, and donned her helmet. Hinata looked half disappointed and half relieved.
"But you guys can go without me if you want," she suggested, glancing between both of them, more in the mood to be a Cupid than a destroyer of happiness. Tenten would rather see her two friends, one old and one new, make an attempt at love than be the one to single handedly destroy their chances.
"A-Alright, if you're s-sure," Hinata stuttered, and stood.
"I'll take you now," Naruto said. "Ichiraku's ramen is the best in town! Tenten-chan, you don't mind skating with Bushy-brow, do you?"
Tenten sighed and pretended to roll her eyes in annoyance. "You're going to pay me later for this."
"Five dollars," said Naruto.
"Seven."
"Six."
"Sounds good."
Naruto smiled. Tenten noticed that it was a bit lopsided: only one dimple. Kind of childish, but it made his face seem more angular, and the whisker marks more rugged. It made him look…handsome.
Tenten blinked at this new realization just as Hinata blushed an even deeper shade of scarlet at this smile. The two walked off down the sidewalk. Tenten watched their retreating backs until they turned a corner, unable to wrench her eyes away.
Two of her best friends were having the time of their lives, and she was feeling dejected and lonely. What the Hell was wrong with her?
"Tenten-san?" said Lee. "Are you ready to see my new move?"
"Sure, Lee," Tenten sighed, turning.
"YOSH! BEHOLD! THE NEW 'FLOWER OF YOUTH' FLIP TURN!"
"LEE! NO! DON'T TRY THAT!"
Too late. Splat.
Emergency sirens were heard coming to the half pipe soon after.
O0O
"Oh my God, Lee, you are such an idiot," Tenten groaned.
She was sitting by Lee's bed in the hospital. After confirmation that he was not hurt much beyond a broken leg and a huge bruise over his left eye, she had been allowed in to see him. They were keeping him there for the day, just in case, and then he could go home.
"Tenten-san, was it good?" he said eagerly. Even though his voice sounded raspy, it was still easy to determine that he was excited.
"What was good?" she said warily.
"The flip!"
"Lee, you're in a hospital. Doesn't that sum up whether or not the flip turned out well?"
"But was it good before I splatted?"
"Is splatted a word?" she said doubtfully, eyeing the Webster's dictionary that a doctor had set on Lee's bedside table.
This was what she hated about having only guys as your best friends. They had no common sense at all. On the other hand, they were good mechanics when her mom's car broke down.
Lee dozed after a while of idle conversation. Tenten stared out of the brightly curtained hospital window, her eyesight distracted by the vase of artificial sunflowers that took up the lower half of the glass. Outside, the sun was almost blinding, though the main road was visible.
She sighed, put her head in her hands, rubbed her eyes. Then she opened them again, and stared at Lee's closed eyes. He looked very peaceful. She got up to leave.
Once outside, she was left alone with her thoughts. Hinata had a crush on Naruto, Naruto liked Sakura, who had a strange relation with Naruto's rival Sasuke. Ino was angry at Shikamaru for being with somebody named Temari. Hanabi collected bottle caps. Neji was getting married to Hinata. Her mother was out having the time of her life, probably looking for sunscreen. Lee was in the hospital. Ino and Sakura had still not told why they had come to the boarding house in the first place. Neji still needed more therapy on Monday.
Tenten groaned and stuck her hands in her pockets.
Sometimes, ordinary life could seem like a soap opera in itself.
O0O
She opened the door to the dormitory, and was surprised to see that Naruto and Hinata were there already. They looked up when she entered, surprise written all over their faces too.
"Oh, hey Tenten-chan. I was just about to show Hinata-chan how to play Scrabble."
He pointed at the board, where random letter pieces were scattered. Tenten nodded. She might have said something about this: something like the fact that they were using her own board of scrabble. And the fact that Hinata had never played scrabble before was surprising. She might have teased them about how close they were sitting .But instead, she just said, "Okay." She sat on her bed, taking off her Nikes and kicking them casually under the bed to watch them play.
Naruto had a remarkably patient teaching style for somebody who was usually so hyperactive. His voice was slow and pleasant, and a bit deeper than it usually was when he talked so fast in ordinary conversation. His tanned hands pointed out the rules of the game. His cerulean eyes were soft, and his blonde hair fell into his eyes. He brushed it back occasionally.
Hinata was a good learner, too. Her pale eyes were wide, though Tenten had long learned that this was one of her usual expressions. Her mouth was pursed slightly in concentration. Her raven hair fell around her face to frame it elegantly. The shortness in the back seemed to suit her well now. Her own pale fingers contrasted sharply with Naruto's over the board as she imitated him as he pointed things out.
The tops of their heads were almost touching, as they were both leaning intently over the board, their eyes on the game. They were so close that, if by chance either or both of them lifted their heads, their faces would be less than a few inches apart. Close enough to kiss.
Tenten drew in a sharp breath, and her reverie of observation was broken. Naruto turned to look at her curiously, the usual boyish expression on his face, and the different Naruto that she had been seeing a moment ago was altogether gone except for the trace of gentleness in his blue eyes. Hinata was the startled, timid girl again, hopelessly out of place among the louder Tenten, Ino, and Sakura.
"What?" said Naruto, sounding slightly annoyed at the interruption.
"Ah…nothing," Tenten muttered, rolling over onto her back to stare at the slats in her bunk. Naruto sighed in annoyance.
"Well, then don't say anything," he said, as this was something that Tenten was fond of saying to him. Hinata giggled slightly.
Tenten felt confused, lost, and like hitting something might help it go away.
O0O
Haruno Sakura dodged through the dark streets at night outside, not really caring at the moment whether Tenten or Ino were worried about her. She had forgotten the new girl's name again.
She knew it was dangerous for her to be out alone this late at dark. She should have at least asked Tenten to come too, or something. She didn't know anything about self defense, only knew how to throw a really hard punch. She supposed that would have to be good enough.
She came to the door with the Uchiha crest on it, and she walked up the porch steps, knocked on the door. Sucked in a deep breath. The doorknob was turning. Her heart pounded hard against her ribcage. She tried to silence it a little, and failed.
His silhouette appeared against the black awning where the door had been.
Had he grown taller?
She gulped as he took a step forward onto the porch. She took a step back. She realized that his lips were twisted into a smirk, the familiar one of the Sasuke she had known in fourth grade, when the moon managed to hit him with a beam of light. It made his skin turn an ivory silvery white, and his ebony hair contrasted all the more with it.
After all, he had always been beautiful.
"Sakura." He sounded like he had been expecting her.
"Hi," she said curtly.
His smirk grew wider, and he made a small "hn" sound. "Come to apologize to your dear Sasuke-kun, hm?"
"In your dreams, Uchiha brat," she spat at his feet, her eyes flaring venom. "I'll never forgive you for leaving. Do you know what kind of torment that put me through at night? I couldn't sleep for weeks. I hate you."
"You thought of me, did you?" he said, his voice amused. She hated how he could twist words so easily.
"Rest assured, you only visited in my nightmares."
"Did you come only to rant about your petty hate?" he drawled, leaning against the doorframe.
"No." She paused, almost as if she were steeling herself for something. Sasuke's eyebrows raised, intrigued.
"I want to know why you left," she said slowly, and for the first time, a slight note of pleading broke into her voice. She raised up her defenses in a minute. "And if you're still doing deals with Orochimaru."
"It is none of your affair."
"It is!"
"I went nowhere important. And I broke it off with Orochimaru. I assume you are happy now?"
"Yes. Very much so," she spat back.
"Sakura…" he murmured in a tone that sounded almost tender. He touched the back of her hand. She drew it away so sharply that it looked like she had been burned.
"Don't," she hissed.
"I thought of you too," he finished.
Sakura sighed, and shook her head. "Yeah. Thanks."
"I am forgiven?" said Sasuke, looking amused again.
"Nowhere near," Sakura said, seething again. Then she softened slightly. "But I guess I owe you an apology, too, for barging in like this."
"You should leave."
She turned to go, but he said one more thing to stop her in her tracks.
"Sakura…I hate being called Uchiha by you."
She turned, an odd expression on her face. She took a few steps towards him, and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. His arms held her to him crushingly tight, almost immediately. "Sasuke-kun," she murmured into the fabric of his sleeve. He pressed the hoop earring in her left ear between his lips for a moment, and brushed his lips against her ear.
"I have to go," Sakura said. "They'll worry. Or call 911. Something drastic, knowing Ino. Though, knowing her, she'd probably feed me to the fishes if she could." She chuckled, and backed away from Sasuke.
"Sweet dreams," he said sarcastically as she walked away.
"Yes. Maybe I'll think of you," she laughed, and jogged off into the night.
O0O
A/N: Oooh so apparently there's more to Sakura and Sasuke's relationship than she told to Ino and Tenten! She edited some parts out, apparently…I sense fluff! xD