CH-16
Week 20
"Are you sure about this Temari?" asked Shikamaru anxiously.
"Yes, I am," I said to him, grabbing his hand. "Plus it won't be permanent."
Shikamaru gripped my hand tightly. I kissed my fiancé on the cheek in an attempt to put him at ease. I gave my hand a tug and pulled Shikamaru along with me.
We finally managed to reach the doorstep, and I raised my hand to knock. Shikamaru turned to me and said,
"Are you really sure? Cause if not we could just go home."
"Shikamaru!" I said sternly.
Shikamaru went silent and I knocked on the door. A female voice called,
"Come on in! It's open!"
I tightened my grip on Shikamaru's hand and opened the door. I pulled the both of us through.
"I'm in the kitchen!" called the voice.
I took off my shoes and Shikamaru followed in suit. I let go of his hand to take off my jacket. The moment I had finished the task, he snatched my hand back up again. I rolled my eyes at him and led the pair of us to the kitchen.
"Temari!" exclaimed Yoshino Nara, as she pulled me into a hug.
"Hello, Yoshino," I replied.
"Shikamaru, I wasn't expecting you to come with Temari," said Yoshino.
"Well Temari made me co-"
"We have a proposal," I said, cutting Shikamaru off.
"A proposal? About what?" asked Yoshino.
"We should go into the sitting room," Shikamaru said.
"Alright then," said Yoshino, leading us to the sitting room.
She grabbed a cushion for her and me. I smiled gratefully when she handed it to me. Shikamaru grabbed his own and sat down beside me. Shikamaru grabbed my hand once more.
"So what is it?" asked Yoshino. "I haven't seen Shikamaru this jittery since ... well ... ever."
"We were wondering if it'd be alright if we moved back into the Nara compound, just until the baby comes. Shikamaru is becoming increasingly worried that I am going to fall or am going to hurt myself."
Yoshino did not respond right away. She pressed her lips together, and it almost looked as if she were angry.
"Mom?" asked Shikamaru.
"Damn it!" she exclaimed.
Me and Shikamaru glanced at each other; both of us confused.
"Um ... Mom?"
"I owe your father 20 dollars."
I looked at Shikamaru and lightly laughed, though I was still quite confused.
"Why?"
"Because he bet that you two would come asking this before your house was finished. I said after."
"House?!" I said, my voice going funny.
"Let me guess," said Shikamaru. "Dad said to you that'd it'd only be logical to build us a house because we can't raise a kid in an apartment as well as we could in a house on our compound."
"Something along that line, yes," Yoshino replied.
I was still perplexed about the house idea. I had lived in an apartment my entire life, I'd never even thought of getting a house. Slowly, very slowly, the idea began to settle in my brain. I imagine I stopped looking as dumbfounded as I had felt. My brain began to work again and then I realized, if they were building a house here, were they also building one in Suna? Were my brothers in on this?
"Do we at least get to see it?" asked Shikamaru.
I looked up from my thoughts to Shikamaru, and then looked at Yoshino. I wanted to see this house.
"Yes, I guess you could, I don't see why not."
"Could I see-" Shikamaru started.
"The blueprints? Don't worry your father made sure they fit your lazy habits and your obsessive need for logical layouts."
Shikamaru nodded. He obviously trusted his father's abilities; I just hope he wouldn't be disappointed.
"They are building it in the south corner, in between Ri's home and Maru's."
Shikamaru nodded his head once more; he knew where it was. He squeezed my hand as if to ask if I wanted to go see. I nodded.
"We'll be back mother," said Shikamaru.
Shikamaru helped me up and we walked to the front door. After I slipped on my shoes and jacket, Shikamaru began talking.
"Ri's a fourth cousin. She had two children; two daughters, but now they've grown and gone." Shikamaru lead me out the door and in the right direction. "She's very kind, and loves all children. She's widowed; her husband died during the Pein-invasion."
Shikamaru took a left turn and I followed behind him as if I were a little lost duckling.
"Maru's different. His full name Matsru Nara. He is our resident hermit. He does enjoy company from time to time, but only company of me or my father. He can be very crabby if his bones are bothering him, but he is near deaf in both his ears, so we can make lots of noise and not be a bother to him."
I nodded, but then we pulled up to a halt. I looked up and saw a small house in front of me. It was two stories tall, like Shikamaru's parents. The outside appeared to be finished, so the inside must not be done yet. There was a deck the wrapped around the exterior of the house and there was a small place for a garden out front.
"Do you want to go in?" asked Shikamaru.
I nodded and started forward. Shikamaru grasped my hand and pulled me through the front door. I was right about it not being finished. The flooring seemed to be all in and all the dry walling done, but the walls had no paint and by the sounds of it, the workers were installing the kitchen at the moment. I went towards the sound, but Shikamaru tugged me back. I looked at him, raising an eyebrow.
"We shouldn't disturb them."
I nodded and led the way into the room to our left. It was large and open. The windows lit the room well and carpet covered the floor. It was a beige; a practical colour, easy to clean, but not to dark. I could picture how this room was going to look; it was going to be a family room, there was going to be a big comfy couch, a piano, a couple bookcases and a place to play Go. If you looked out one of the windows, you could see into the backyard. It was spacious and I could already see our child running around, wildly playing.
Shikamaru squeezed my hand and I looked up at him smiling. He started to pull me from the room to see what else we could see. I followed, but I couldn't help but glance back as we left the room. We wandered through the house trying not to disturb the workers.
Shikamaru pulled me up the stairs and wandered into a room. I looked around; it was bare, but I could see exactly how it was going to look. I could see the mural painted on the wall; the woods. I could see the rocking chair that was going to sit in the corner and the oak changing table that was going to be beside it. I saw the crib that my baby was going to sleep in. A smile spread across my face.
"Her room," Shikamaru said.
"I still don't understand how you are so sure that our baby will be a girl," I said shaking my head at him.
"I'm sure it will be a girl and she will be just as beautiful as her mother."
"Whatever you say," I answered.
"You think it will be a boy?"
"I am still not sure, but I will love our child either way," I said smiling at him.
"It will be a girl," he said as he pulled me from the room.
We walked down the hall and entered the master bedroom. I gaped when I saw it. On the roof, above our bed was a huge skylight. The light filled the room brilliantly. The bed itself was a beige colour with a matching bedspread that reminded her of sand, and it had held several tan and cobalt blue pillows. It seemed abstract, but it suited it perfectly. The wall held an intricately designed fan with deep blues and green. Across the room was another large window with a window seat that was large enough to fit me and Shikamaru. Out of the window you could see the front pathway. If you turned, there were small hallways that lead to a large bathroom with a huge Jacuzzi tub and a walk-in closet.
The entire room seemed very lavish and too luxurious, but it was perfect. It may not seem too many but even ninja like to indulge every once and a while and a room like this was the perfect way to do it.
The smile that I had plastered on my face only grew.
"You like it?"
"Of course I do!"
"Good," he said and gave me a kiss.
"Your father even gave you a window you can cloud watch out of, while still in bed."
"Ingenius," he said as he turned to look toward me.
I looked into his dark eyes and was slightly startled when he gave me another kiss; deeper with more passion than the last. The kiss left me breathless and then I chided him,
"Shikamaru! Your mother's expecting us back for lunch."
He kissed me again greedily. Then he pulled away ever so slightly.
"We can say we got carried away."
I turned beat red.
"Shikamaru! We cannot tell your mother that!"
He chuckled at me and responded,
"I meant looking at the house. We got carried away looking at the house. What were you thinking, Temari?"
His eyes danced with mischief.
We were so gonna be late.
We shuffled our way back to Yoshino's and apologized for our tardiness and soon we were on our way back to the apartment to get our things for our move into the compound.
I was laughing when we made it back to our apartment. I smiled when I saw Choji waiting for us. He was helping us. He was a lot more welcoming than Shikamaru's other teammate and he treated me like a sister.
"Heyo Shikamaru!" he said waving. "Hello Temari."
"Hey Choji," I said giving a warm smile. "How are you doing?"
"Great, yourself?"
"Pretty good."
"So the plan is a go, I take it?" asked Choji.
"Indeed it is," I answered.
We began to move things to Yoshino's and Shikaku's. Well more so Shikamaru and Choji did seeing as my fiancé forbid me from lifting anything. So I just followed along as a cheerleader. Thankfully Shikamaru didn't live too far from the compound so it wasn't a ridiculous amount of walking. We only had to make six trips because Shikamaru and I really didn't have a lot of things to bring.
When we had finished Yoshino had already prepared us a meal, making tons of extra food for Choji.
"It was so nice of you to help them move Choji," said Yoshino with a smile.
She sat next to me after she brought out the plates of food for Choji.
"It's no problem Mrs. Nara," he replied while inhaling his food.
"So Temari, how have you been lately?" Yoshino asked.
"Alright. I am still very tired all of the time, but I have been feeling better. How about yourself?"
"Oh you know, trying to amuse myself while Shikaku is gone. But at least I will have some company now, instead of being all by my lonesome."
I gave her a smile and returned my focus to my food. It was a quiet meal; the most sound came from Choji inhaling Yoshino's food.
We moved to the sitting room to have some tea following the meal.
"So have you started thinking of names?" asked Yoshino.
Shikamaru half-coughed as he drank his tea. I smiled at Yoshino and replied,
"Not really."
"Well you are practically almost to the mid-wife's chamber!"
My cheeks turned a nice rose colour at the comment. Shikamaru replied,
"Mom, she is only twenty weeks pregnant."
"Only sixteen left to go!"
I chuckled quietly and then said,
"I like the name Asuma, if our baby is a boy."
Everyone froze. The room went completely silent. Shikamaru, Choji and Yoshino just stared at me. I was starting to feel a little self-conscious when I saw a small smile start to spread from Shikamaru's mouth.
"That would definitely end the Ino-Shika-Cho trio," said Shikamaru.
I started to smile a bit too.
"That'd be a shame," said Choji.
"There are worse things," said Yoshino.
"But it's going to be a girl, so I think we should name her Karura."
"You are still thinking that?" I asked.
"Of course."
"I think that it's going to be a boy."
"No, a girl."
"Boy."
"Girl."
"Boy."
"Girl."
"Boy!"
"Gir-"
"What's going on in here?" asked Shikaku.
"They are debating the gender of our grandchild," said Yoshino, with an amused smirk. "Welcome home, dear."
Shikaku gave Yoshino a kiss and sat down beside her.
"So if you have a boy are you going to name him after your good old dad?" asked Shikaku.
"No, his name will be Asuma," I answered.
Shikaku was kind of amused that I answered instead of Shikamaru, but he didn't stare at me when I mentioned his son's late-sensei.
"But it'll be a girl, and her name will be Karura."
Shikaku raised an eyebrow and asked,
"You would rather a daughter?"
"I am indifferent when it comes to which I prefer, but I know Temari has a stubborn little girl inside her belly ready to lecture me about being too lazy to take her to the park."
The whole room laughed because we could all see it happening.
"I'd want a son," said Choji. "A big strong boy that will one day be able to out eat me. I don't know if I'd be able to understand a daughter. The opposite gender just doesn't make any sense to me at all," he finished, scratching the back of his head.
Yoshino and I laughed, while Shikaku and Shikamaru nodded in agreement.
We finished our tea and talked our way into the late evening. Choji left after Yoshino gave him all the leftovers she had in the fridge.
Shikamaru and I retreated to his old room after watching Yoshino pay Shikaku twenty dollars.
Shikamaru's room was covered with boxes, but we somehow found the way over to the bed. I grabbed one of Shikamaru's shirts and threw it on and sat on the edge of the bed waiting for Shikamaru to join me.
Suddenly I felt a jolt in my stomach. I looked down at it and then I felt it again; and then another time. I put my hand to my belly trying to figure out what was causing the jolt. I felt a faint nudge on my left hand. I froze and felt it again.
Shikamaru noticed the hands on my stomach and instantly asked,
"Are you feeling sick? Are you in pain?"
I felt the movement one more time and then I grabbed his hand and placed it where mine had been. He felt it and froze.
"What is that?" he said, slightly alarmed.
I smiled and looked at Shikamaru,
"That's Asuma, letting you know that he is really there."
Shikamaru's brow furrowed for a second before he put two and two together. A giant smile spread across his face.
"That's my beautiful baby girl stomping her feet in a rage because her mother thinks she is a boy."
"Oh stop it! You're going to give our boy an identity crisis before he is even born!"
"Or maybe you'll give her a complex about needing to be a boy to please her mother."
I rolled my eyes at him. He gave me a kiss and then pulled me under the covers of the bed.
"Goodnight, my girls," Shikamaru whispered before I drifted to sleep.
AN:/ I am so very sorry it has been so long since I updated! Please forgive me! I had a case of halted tongue! Plus finals, work, rugby, and maintaining a social life.
I feel so bad that it took forever to update! I check daily for alerts from stories I follow and I know it sucks when they never update!
I have a goal to get another update for this story as fast as I can and update on the other fanfics I have started too!
Anyone watch the Olympics? GO CANADA! I was practically glued to the TV, but with work and the time difference I missed a lot of it :(
I felt that this chapter was pretty good. What'd you think?
But Anyways I'll try my hardest to regulate my updates!
Spaz out!
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