A/N: Hi! Thanks all to those who read and reviewed my story. I am so glad that you enjoy the plot as much as I do! I'll keep my promise and make the story longer. So thank you! Thank you! Thank youuuuu!^^
I was so mean for not putting any Nejiten moment last chapter, eh?! This chap might make it up just fine! :
That was all! Enjoy!
Wo Ai Ni
Song of the chapter: Endless Love by Jackie Chan and Kim Hee Sun
~~~o~~~
After a moment of intensely gazing the girl, the teenagers finally decided to divert their attentions from the waitress down to the menus in their hands. They murmured a small apology for staring at her like she was some kind of animal. But, the girl did look like a panda though. Those buns of hers.
The ones on her hair. Not her lower part.
"I'd like to have this one please." Ino said, pointing at the picture of beef chow mein.
Tenten nodded her head, tapping her pen and wrote down the order.
"Do you guys have ramen?" Naruto asked dumbly, flipping the pages.
The waitress blinked her eyes at him warily. She tilted her head slightly to one side. "Ra-ramen…?" she asked.
Sasuke whacked the blonde idiot on the head.
"Are you retarded? Who would order ramen in a Chinese restaurant?" he snapped
"But I want RAMEN!" Naruto yelled stubbornly. Fists slammed on the table, causing the waitress to jump a little.
"Uhm,…Naruto. I think,...you should have Niu Nan Beef Noodle…It looked…a little like ramen." Hinata next to him, pointing the picture of the dish.
"That's a great idea, Hinata! I'll have the one she said." Naruto told her.
Tenten gulped. There were so many words that she can't understand, except from the part of 'Niu Nan noodle', but she still not sure if the hyper blonde guy would want that or not cause the guy talked so loud and fast.
She turned to Lee. A panic expression painted on her face.
Lee smiled at her, then he turned around to face his friends.
"Guys, Tenten-chan just arrived to Japan one month ago. Her Japanese's not very good, so can you guys say something a little simpler?"
Everyone turned their attentions back to the waitress. She sensed their stares again and gave them a shy smile.
"Okay," Shikamaru scratched his head. "I would like to have Bok Choy and Orange Chicken."
"I would have Shrimp Spring rolls please" Sakura said, pointing the picture to make things easier for the waitress.
She nodded and wrote the orders down.
"Mine is Egg Fried Tomato with rice." Sasuke said, refused making any eye contact with the waitress.
"Drunken Chicken, please Tenten!" Lee said, his fist pump in the air. To everyone surprise, the Chinese waitress laughed for the first time. Her laughing tone sounded sweet and warm. She raised a hand to cover her mouth.
"Wǒ bùnéng gěi nǐ." She said, shaking her head slightly, "Lingling gàosu wǒ bù gěi nǐ jiǔjīng" ("I can't give you that. Lingling told me not to give you alcohol.")
"Hahaha! Duìbuqǐ!Qing gei wo lai rou jiao zi! (Hahaha! I'm sorry! I would like to have pork dumplings please.") Lee laughed.
Tenten nodded her head. A pretty smile still visible on her face.
"Hai!" She replied playfully in Japanese.
Everyone seemed to successfully make their orders. Except for Kiba, the guy confused the poor girl with his colorful languages, which she did not understand most of them anyway.
However. There was still one person left who has not yet said anything since she entered.
Neji stared at the waitress. He had been staring at the girl the moment his eyes caught her presence. The Hyuuga hottie had never been the one who stared at people. He was the one who always got stared at. And it annoyed the heck out of him. He did not like the fact that people giving him attention nor him giving any. But there was something. He swore to God that he did not know what the hell was that something is, but…that… something… in her made him keep his gaze firmly on her. Intensely. Neji knew it was rude and totally unNeji like to do thing like this. But. He can't get his eyes off her.
He simply just can't.
So he just sat there, admiring her silently while she was struggling with his friends. Was it her appearance that caught his eyes? Maybe. But outer beauty was not Neji's priority when it came to women. It's probably something else. Something else that nobody knew. Included him.
It sucks.
A voice interrupted his thought. A very sweet voice it was, even though the accent was not very clear.
He looked at owner of the voice. Right on those beautiful doe eyes of hers.
"Sir,…what is…your order?..." she asked him, looking shyly at his pale lavender eyes.
Tenten had never seen any eyes like those before. She saw the shy girl with blue hair had the same eyes as him. She wondered if they're related.
However, his eyes were somehow seemed different than that girl. They looked so…pretty…
Tenten felt drowned in his eyes.
She didn't say anything.
He didn't say anything.
They both just stared at each other. No words exchanged.
"O-Oii! Neji! She's asking you." Choji elbowed him slightly on the arm. Neji jerked a little. That successfully brought him back to Earth.
He glanced over Choji next to him, and then brought his gaze back up to the waitress. The girl was now bowing her head down. Her face seemed a bit red.
Neji cleared his throat with a cough.
"I'm not hungry." He shook his head slightly.
"What? We have to stay at school until 9 o'clock. Are you sure you don't want anything?" Ino asked him.
"Yes,…cousin,…you should eat something…" Hinata said
He nodded his head, "I'll be fine! I already had a big lunch today."
Lee looked at his Hyuuga friend for a while then he translated what he said to Tenten. The waitress looked at him behind her lashes after listened to what Lee said. She nodded her head slightly, a smile on her face.
"Thank you very much…" she said, lowered the clipboard, "I will…be back shortly." She said, giving them a small bow then walking back to the kitchen.
The table somehow became silent after her departure.
"…"
"…"
"…"
"…!"
"Oh… my… GOSH! People! Did you see her eyes?" Ino started. Her gossip mode had been activated. Typical Ino.
"YAH! I mean like! Her eyes are H.U.G.E!" Sakura chirped in.
"And they're brown…" Hinata said, staring at the waitress's direction.
"Yeah! I had never look closely at anyone with brown eyes before." Ino tapped her chin, "Brown seemed to suit her very well though."
"I like brown, too." Naruto said, determined not to being left out of any conversations.
"She reminded me of doll." Choji said, munching his potato chip.
"Uhm." Shikamaru agreed.
"She has a nice ass though."
Everyone turned their heads and glare at the perverted dog boy.
"What?" Kiba snapped, a grin stretched on his face.
Neji glared at him. Hardest.
"Her eyes look like Mr. Giddy Pigs'."
The groups stopped their conversation. Eyes now shifted to the spot where the quite bug obsessed classmate was sitting.
They blinked their eyes.
"Mr. Giddy who?" Kiba asked.
"Mr. Giddy Pig." Shino answered.
They stared at him.
"My hamster." He answered.
"…"
"…"
Silence once again fell upon the group of teenagers.
~~~o~~~
After thirty minutes of arguing over some meaningless topics, they all set out to the register desk to take the order and pay the bill. They stopped talking when the group caught the sight of two girls walking toward them with heavy bags in their hands.
"We're so sorry for letting you guys waited." Lingling smiled, the manager apologized, sweats rolling on her forehead. Behind her, Tenten, the girl they just met, followed behind her sister, bags occupied her hands.
The boys immediately moved forward and helped the two sisters with the heavy bags. Shikamaru, Choji and Neji helped Tenten.
Neji took a bag from her. A slight accidental touch was exchanged. Neji's eyes widen. The boy suddenly felt heat from nowhere crept through his body. It shivered his spine.
'What the…'
The young girl seemed to be affected as well. She retreated her hand immediately when his fingers brushed hers. They caught each other eyes for one long second, then both turned their heads away. Red painted unnoticed on their cheeks.
Tenten murmured a small apology to Neji. One hand clutched tightly another.
"It's nothing." He told her. But he himself knew it was far from nothing.
Neji carried the bag with him back to his group of friends, who were paying the bill.
"Thank you for coming. Enjoy your meals!" Lingling greeted them behind the cashier desk.
They thanked her then head out to the door. They spotted the previous bun-haired girl standing near the entrance. She opened the red wooden door for them.
She turned her head back and gave them a small smile.
"Thank you very much. I hope you guys have a good night." There was no awkward Chinese accent in her tone this time. The girl must have practice that sentence a lot before.
Kiba moved forward. He would have taken her hand again if his were free.
"Thank you, Tenten-chan. I'll come back soon." He told her with a grin on his face. Tenten looked shyly at him, then bowed a little.
The others greeted politely at her, except for Lee, who gave her his trademark bone-crushing hug. Tenten laughed, patting her hyper friend slightly on the back.
Neji was the last one on the line. Curse that. He felt his heart thumped rather quicker than usual when he approached the door. After the accidental touch, it would be good for his heart if he avoided her eyes. Yes. He should avoid her. She might feel offended…but what the hell! Hyuuga Neji cared none about others feelings. This waitress girl was no different. Just imagine her as one of his annoying fangirls. That seemed to work.
Maybe…
Neji followed his plan, then. He walked toward the door with his gaze firmly ahead. He noticed she was looking directly at him but he decided to stick to his plan. No matter how much he wanted to take one last glance at her.
'No! Bad Neji! You focus! The door! Almost there! Almost there!' He encouraged himself.
He would have made it out. Alive. With his heart back to its normal rate, if it was not for the string on his stupid pack bag decided to SLIP OFF his shoulder, causing the object fell lifelessly on the floor with a 'thump'.
"Oh! Shit!" Neji snapped, causing his drew eyebrows together in annoying. He glared hard at the pack bag that he used to love so much. Now he was going to throw this undisciplined piece of shit to the attic when he got home.
Neji was about to drop the food packages on the floor to pick up his stupid bag when a hand from nowhere did that for him.
Neji stopped his movement. Also his breathing.
Below him, the brown haired waitress that he tried his best to avoided was kneeling on the floor and picked up the bag for him. She patted the invisible dust off it and smoothing the fabric. The girl held the shit so delicatly as if it was something very fragile. She was then looking up at him through her long lashes.
Neji gulped. Her current position was indeed very unhealthy for him. With him standing up and her kneeling, it provided a seventeen years old boy who currently in puberty a very good view of the girl chest and thighs. With her so small on the floor, the urge of doing something nasty to her suddenly became too tempted.
'WTF?! When the hell did I become such a pervert?! Screw you Inuzuka!" he screamed in his head.
Their eyes for the second time of the day, met again. No sound had been made. No heartbeat had been heard.
Tenten's eyes widen. Her lips parted slightly as if she wanted to say something but none of the words were escaped. She stared at him without blinking once. In her head, there was a voice screamed that she was being rude for staring at the customer like that. But, she can't help it. There was something about him.
That something again.
Tenten shook herself out of fantasy. She dropped her head low. Her face was as red as a tomato.
A shaken pair of hands raised the bag in front of Neji's face.
"Yours…, sir…" she said shyly, still refused to look up at him.
Neji blinked.
He coughed to regain his composure, which he seemed to lost moment ago. He took the bag rather harshly from her hands. His icy gaze went back to the door.
"Arigatou." He said, not noticed his voice seemed a bit husky than usual.
He walked out of the restaurant as fast as possible. From the corner of his eyes, he saw the waitress still kneeling on the floor, but her head turned to his direction.
~~~o~~~
"Ah! Neji is here! Let us go back." Lee shouted when he spotted his friend.
"Oii, Neji! You okay, dude? You seemed a bit red. Having a fever?" Naruto asked. He jumped up and down in front of the Hyuuga prodigy. Neji was not bother to punch the shit out of the hyper blonde right now. Instead, he glanced up at his friends.
"Uhm, I'm not…feeling very well at the moment. I think I will head home early. Shikamaru, Uchiha! You can teach them Math and Chemistry for today. I'll cover Literature tomorrow." He said. Shikamaru and Sasuke stared at him questionably but nodded nonetheless.
"Naruto! You take Hinata home safely for me today, alright?!" Neji turned his attention back to the ramen-obsessed kid. Normally, he would never ask any one any favor. Especially from the Uchiha and erm- Naruto but whatever. Today his ego can go to hell for all he cares.
"Uh,…okay…! ROGER THAT NEJI! I WILL PROTECT HINATA WITH ALL MY LIFE!" Naruto strengthen his body. A hand raised near his head like a proper soldier.
There was a 'thump' behind Naruto.
"OMG! She fainted again!" Ino screamed
"Quick! Anyone give me a notebook or something." Sakura yelled
"FEAR NOT HINATA! I'LL SAVE YOU!"
"YOU BACKOFF NARUTO! SHE'S GONNA FAINT AGAIN."
The classmates surrounded around the fainted girl, fanning her back to consciousness.
Neji would have joined them to help his cousin if he hadn't walk away. He dragged himself into the crowded street full of cars and people.
"Probably some bird falling…" the guy told himself.
~~~o~~~
Neji untied his black necktie when he got in his room. The heat back there was unbearable for some reason and the tie was seriously killing him. He pulled out a T-shirt and loose dark pants from the closet. He went to the bathroom and decided to stay there for half an hour in his cold shower.
Lying on the white silk bed. Hair still dripping wet from the shower. Neji buried his face under the towel, breathing heavily.
"What the hell is wrong with me…?"
~~~o~~~
Neji woke up at the ring from his alarm clock. He sighed, reaching out a hand to press the button. He laid there for few more minutes then decided to get up and head to the bathroom.
After doing his personal hygiene routine, Neji put on his school uniform and head downstairs for breakfast. Opened the dining room door, he saw his two girl cousins and their father sitting around the large dining table, eating breakfast.
The girls greeted him happily but his uncle did not.
"You're late, Neji." His uncle, Hiashi Hyuuga spoke without sparing a glance to his nephew.
Neji sighed inwardly. He sat down on his chair, "I'm sorry, Uncle." He apologized. The maid brought his breakfast up in front of him. 'Fancy food, again.', he said to himself. Hyuuga clan is one of the noblest and oldest clan in Japan. Not to mention fulfill rich. The cost for one plate of his breakfast can be equal for the whole day meals of an ordinary family.
Neji remembered his old day living with his father. His dear father, Hizashi, was also a Hyuuga but he was not rich. Even though they did not live on mounts of money nor eating expensive food or wearing fancy clothes, they still lived happily. No bother, no worry. Just a father and a son, depended on each other day by day. Those happy days…
There was a different between Branch House families and Main House families. The kind that he did not want to mention about.
"You don't sleep well last night, nephew?" Hiashi asked, dropping the morning newspaper on his knees. Not like a question, but the demand for an answer.
"Just a little." Neji replied, tone as blank as his uncle's. He picked up a fork to cut his Egg Benedict.
Hiashi looked at his nephew. A line formed on the old man's forehead. He folded the newspaper and gave it to the maid next to him.
"Come on time. You know Hyuuga don't allow tardiness." Hiashi said.
Neji stopped the food in midway. His grip on the fork tightens.
"Yes, Uncle." He answered.
Tension had always visible among the Hyuugas. It's kind of a tradition.
~~~o~~~
"Hey, Neji! You okay man?" Shikamaru greeted him when he entered the classroom.
"Yeah," Neji loosing his tie a little, "Kind of…"
"Had a fight with your old man this morning?" Kiba asked, picking a chip from Choji's bag.
"Something like that." Neji settled in his seat. He glared hard at the letters and gifts from nowhere laying on his table. He frowned. This was much worse than his grumpy uncle. His head hurt like hell from lack of sleep and this was seriously not helping.
"Oi, Uchiha. Did you throw your fans' gifts on my table again?" Neji turned his head at the dark haired boy few seats in front of him.
"Don't look at me." Sasuke glared. "Well actually, half of them was mine but other half was yours. Those girls are like leeches today." He commented harshly.
Neji sighed heavily. He took all the gifts and letters off his table. He headed to the corner of the class and threw them there.
"Oh oii Neji! Your fangirls still outside, ya know." Naruto stared at the Hyuuga prodigy. His finger pointing at the group of girls standing behind the class door. Hurt expression painted on their white powdered face.
"I don't care." Neji sat on his chair, "Not in the mood dealing with them today." He looked out of the window, staring blankly at the city view in the morning.
"Probably his time of the month." Kiba mumbled near Naruto's ear. The boys snickered quietly.
Neji would have whacked them on the heads for that comment. But today, he was not in the mood in beating the shit out of people either.
A bird suddenly landed on the tree near his window.
He stared at the bird.
A sigh left his lips.
'As long as I don't see her anymore, I'll be fine…'
Maybe...
A/N: Tehe! Done with chap 2! SOoooo how was the moment? Meet ur standard? :}
Sorry for my bad grammar. I asked some BETA readers and currently I'm waiting for their answers. Anyone you can suggest to me?
Thank you and Happy Reading! ^^~~~
