The doors to the airport opened and Neji immediately felt lost in the crowd. His uncle had dropped him off while on his way to a business meeting, it was the only reason Neji had been able to come today. Neji tried his best to work his way through the sea of people and luggage bags but nearly tripped more than once.

'How can so many people, walking in different directions, ever mange to get where they're going so fast?' he wondered to himself.

A large man bumped into him, crumpling the package Neji carried in his hands. Before Neji could even raise a complaint, the man was gone from his view. Fighting against the mob, Neji sought a seat in a quiet terminal corner he saw. Finally sitting down, he opened the parcel and found it to be unharmed. Breathing a sigh of relief, Neji checked his watch.

"10:30, her plane should arrive in another half hour."

Looking through an open window, Neji saw the planes land and take off. Even from his seat he could feel the vibrations of the jet engines as they powered up and took to the skies.

Carefully handling his package he walked over to the map and found the terminal where Tenten's plane would be landing. Knowing it was back through the mass of people, Neji looked for a back way through. Finally satisfied with the stairwells as his route, he hoped he would beat the crowd.

When he finally arrived at terminal eighteen he was surprised at the preparations that had been made. Decorations, balloons, flags, people carrying home-made signs, flower arrangements, and a full compliment of the nation's press had gathered. A table with a line of microphones had been set up in front of the television cameras. Neji looked at his package and felt minimal in comparison.

He stood in a corner in the back of the room and waited with everyone else…

"Remember what we talked about. There are going to be a lot of flash photographers, do try hard not to shield your eyes." The head coach said, "Just smile and take your seats at the conference table. Medal winners sitting down, team mates standing behind."

Tenten had heard the speech countless time by now, perhaps more often than hearing the woman give gymnastic advice. That thought gave her reason to smile as she prepared to step out of the plane and onto the boarding ramp leading to the terminal.

"Tenten!" the woman shouted from the front of the plane, "For the last time, you're supposed to wear your medal on the outside of your jacket."

"Yes." Tenten said with as much humility as she could muster.

Walking up the ramp Tenten remembered her performance at the Olympics. The crowds, the lights, the spectacle of it all. Her father had been too busy to come, but the presence of her mother had helped Tenten significantly. She wondered why she felt so odd, winning was supposed to be something you should celebrate.

Sitting down in front of the cameras Tenten felt numb to it all. She politely smiled and nodded at the compliments and praise her coach had for her. Her team mates expressed their pride in their achievements. Scanning the crowd Tenten saw that once again that her father had not made it. A familiar shape in the back of the crowd caught her attention for a moment before being lost between reporters crowding into each other.

A light came on the table in front of her indicating that it was her turn to speak. She put her brave face on and looked at the camera.

"It was my honor to represent out country at the Olympics. I owe a great deal to everyone who helped me, my coach, my choreographer, my parents…"

She remembered the lines that had been written for her, thanking the sponsors and what not, but it all felt so wrong. This was not what was in her heart.

"The only reason I'm here today is because of a very special friend of mine. He was really the one who put in late hours helping me practice, who encouraged me, helped me stick to my training and diet plan, and also helped me break it at times. Seeing his smile while I was practicing meant more to me than all the words of 'encouragement' my coach ever gave me."

Seeing the light in front of her turn off, Tenten knew her microphone had been cut. She smiled gently as her coach began speaking again. Bowing her head, she said into the powerless microphone, "Thank you Neji."

Vaulting onto the table, Tenten ran a few feet on top of it before somersaulting over the heads of the reporters and into a clear area of the terminal. She ran as fast as she could, trying to hold back her tears.

Reporters seemed to break away from the conference in all directions, but Neji knew they wouldn't find her. He would have laughed, but he knew somewhere Tenten would be crying. Taking the same back stairs that had taken him to the terminal, Neji navigated his way through the quiet corners of the airport. Going away from the cameras, Neji found a closed down section of the station and found Tenten crouched behind a stall.

Placing his package under his arm Neji pulled out a pocket handkerchief and handed it to Tenten as he took a position in front of her. She looked up in disbelief as she took the handkerchief, seemingly, without even thinking.

"Neji!" she said in surprise, "How did… what are you doing here?"

"I know it's a little out of the way, but I ditched school and convinced Uncle to give me a ride here."

"Then you…" her sentence faded but Neji knew what she asked.

"Yes. I'm sorry Tenten."

"Sorry? For what?"

"Sorry for putting you through all this. The pressure, the national exposure. I was just encouraging a friend to do what she wanted." Neji said as he took a seat next to her.

Tenten fingered the gold medal hanging from her neck and looked sad.

"I loved the competition, the friendships I made. It's all the fake people and hype I can't stand." Having finally calmed down, Tenten's eyes moved to the package Neji had set down on the ground. "What's that?"

"It's my present to you."

Lifting the crumpled package, Neji handed it to her. Pulling the string and opening the lid revealed the single rose wrapped in florist paper.

"I know it's not much but…"

Tenten closed the lid on the box and took Neji's hand in hers. She smiled as she looked at him.

"Thank you Neji."

They sat sharing stories of the friends she had met at the Olympics and the response the school and town had over her. When things finally quieted down they left the airport to get a ride home with Neji's Uncle Hiashi.

Over the weeks to come Neji would pick up Tenten to go to their study sessions. Before leaving her room she would glance over to the corner of her room. There she had organized a small table with her Olympic memorabilia on it, lying on top of her Gold medal was a single dried rose.