Please see first chapter for disclaimer, rating, warnings, pairings, etc.
Special Thanks: goes out to DivineGlory, wolf-enzeru, Sachiko Heiwajima, BlackMoonTiger, Tamani, Dani Stark, lilshadow lover, Toadettegirl2012, rockyourlove, mangetsu no hime, Emperor of Pandemonium, LaydiiV, MuffinMan9223, Doddlehead, Anonymous, Melanieciel, Guest, and Hikari To Seimei for all your reviews! Also thanks to everyone who added this story (and me!) to your favorites and follows lists!
Author's Note: So this is it: Moving Day! Hanabi's coming, but that means we're only one day away from Sunday, and SasuHina's date! (Which makes me look forward even more to the next chapter - and the chapter after that! There was so much, I had to split the date into two chapters!) Thank you all so much for reading, and I hope you enjoy!
*~Chapter XXI~*
~Relocation~
At exactly seven o'clock Saturday morning, Hinata's phone buzzed.
Bleary-eyed, Hinata felt across the top of her bedside table until she found the offending object, then squinted until she could read the notification: A text from Hanabi.
Feeling like she was getting ready to face an angry beehive, Hinata opened the message. It consisted of only two words, in all caps, far too exciting for such an outrageously early hour of the morning:
MOVING DAY!
Dropping her phone back onto the tabletop, Hinata hid her head under her pillow and groaned. The sun was barely over the horizon, and Hanabi was typically not a morning person. The fact she'd just texted her older sister in such an hyper way made it clear how over-the-top excited she was.
At least one of the sisters was. Hinata felt rather like she'd been dealt a very harsh prison sentence. As a matter of fact, she momentarily considered changing her entire diet to bread and water, at least while she was in the condo. Perhaps she'd get lucky and develop a social life, and for the next few months conveniently be gone most of every day and evening.
Yes, and Sasuke was going to write the next Pride and Prejudice. Like that would ever happen.
Dragging out of bed, Hinata fixed herself a big, steaming mug of caffeinated tea before taking a quick shower. Dressed comfortably in long pants and a sleeveless tee, her hair up in a ponytail, she returned to the kitchen and ate breakfast, keeping one ear open for the sound of her sister's sports car or the mover's truck, whichever showed up first.
Hinata made it through breakfast and dishes before she heard a knock on the door. She peeked out the window down into the parking lot, nodding in resignation when she saw her sister's slick convertible parked in Tenten's old space.
"Good morning, Hinata!" Hanabi greeted her cheerfully when her elder sister opened the door. "The movers will be here in a couple of hours, but I wanted to come on ahead. I brought some stuff in my car, including some boxes Father sent over - said you wanted them?"
The Japanese heirlooms. Good, he didn't forget. Hinata slid on a pair of shoes and followed Hanabi down the stairs, hoping her sister hadn't just thrown things helter-skelter into the car and damaged anything. Then again, if Hiashi had sent the heirlooms with his younger daughter, he had probably impressed upon Hanabi not to do anything which might endanger the boxes' contents.
A handful of boxes filled the backseat of Hanabi's car, and another couple (slightly larger) rested in the trunk. Most of them were labeledin Hanabi's distinctive scrawl, but the two in the trunk bore Hiashi's bold handwriting. These, then, were the boxes Hinata was interested in, and she insisted on carrying them upstairs herself.
Hanabi carried her things into her new bedroom while Hinata settled the other two boxes in a discreet corner of her own room. She could hardly wait to go through their contents with Sasuke tomorrow. If only she could figure out a way to get Hanabi out of the house...
"This is going to be great!" Hanabi bounced back into the main room, her wide grin in direct opposition to Hinata's inner thoughts. "Thanks for letting me move in here, Hinata. We're going to have so much fun!"
As much fun as a root canal, maybe. Hinata bit back the words, knowing she was being unfair to her sister. But Hanabi had always been a wild child, more interested in partying and goofing off; whereas Hinata was quieter, content to stay at home and read a book instead of staying out all hours. Hiashi had always kept as tight a rein as he could on Hanabi's activities. Hinata privately wondered if Hanabi wanted to move in with her simply because she figured her sister would be easier to get around than their father.
Regardless, Hinata had a feeling they were both going to wind up in big trouble at some point. She couldn't stay at home every hour of the day and night essentially babysitting her younger sister; and since Hanabi had graduated, she wasn't going to be safely occupied throughout the day. It constituted a recipe for disaster, one Hinata was extremely surprised her father hadn't anticipated. Couldn't he see how bad an idea this was? Or did he just not care?
Perhaps, after eighteen years of Hanabi's craziness, Hiashi was just anxious for some peace and quiet, and he didn't care what trouble he had to go through to get it. Having Hanabi become Hinata's problem was probably just what he wanted. After all, he wasn't responsible anymore for Hanabi and her packed social calendar.
Around eleven, the men from the moving company Hiashi hired finally showed up. They carried furniture and boxes up the staircase with professional ease. Hanabi literally took over, bossing them around and telling them exactly where she wanted everything - even if it was in a space where something of Hinata's already sat. Once what felt like every single piece of furniture - both old and new - had been moved, and boxes piled helter-skelter throughout, the movers left.
Hinata stared around the main room of her condo, feeling tears threaten at the back of her throat, stinging her eyes and tickling at her nose. After Tenten moved her things out, the place seemed a little empty, but at least all of Hinata's things had still been in their usual spots. Now only her bedroom (the door to which she had surreptitiously locked, lest Hanabi get any ideas) and the entertainment center in the main room were in their original positions. Everything else was different.
Hanabi sat next to the entertainment center, humming as she put her DVDs on the glassed-in shelves to the left of the television. At least she'd left Hinata's collection on the right alone...
Hinata turned to look at her bookshelves, which now stood against the wall opposite where they were before. She'd had to move all her books and knick-knacks and then put them back just so Hanabi could put her antique fainting couch (an oxymoron if ever there was one, since Hanabi seemed the least likely person of all who lived to faint) there, since it didn't fit in her new bedroom. "I don't want the sunlight to fade the upholstery," the younger sister had informed the elder when questioned.
Like Hinata wanted the sunlight to fade out the spines of her books (some of them quite rare and old) and all of her knick-knacks? But she kept her mouth shut and moved her things to keep the peace. Heaven knew there'd be plenty enough quarrels between the sisters before Hanabi moved out. She saw no point in starting before the teenager was even completely moved in.
After finishing her DVDs, Hanabi brought in a floor lamp and set it up behind her precious couch. "For when I paint my nails," she said at Hinata's questioning look.
Of course. When Hinata did bother with nail polish, she always did it at her bathroom counter. But of course such a mundane place was not good enough for Hanabi. She had to have a piece of furniture just for such an occasion.
At last Hurricane Hanabi finished terrorizing the main room and moved on to her bedroom. Hinata slumped down on the couch (now catty-corner to where it used to sit) and stared at the walls, just about the only part of the room that hadn't suffered from Hanabi's redecorating rampage. She'd imagined things being difficult at best when Hanabi moved in, but this was beyond difficult.
This was impossible.
Leaning forward, Hinata picked up her phone from where she'd put it on top of the coffee table. She cradled it in her hand for a minute, debating, before flipping it open and sending a text to Sasuke.
We still on for tomorrow?
Less than a minute later, her phone chimed.
Of course. Two still OK?
Hinata smiled at her screen. Two should give her plenty of time to get Hanabi up, dressed, and out of the condo. Perfect. Looking forward to seeing you then! She sent the text before she could second-guess her word choice. She didn't want it to sound like she was expecting this to be a date or something - but at the same time, she was kind of beginning to feel like it might possibly be something close.
Sasuke's responding text arrived at the same time as Hanabi's call for Hinata's attention.
Hinata picked the text over her sister. Only two words showed up on the screen, but they still made her smile, and forget all the stress and tension of the day.
Me too.
The house was quiet.
Too quiet.
Even Ninja seemed bothered by the silence as Sasuke sat in front of his computer, trying to concentrate on finishing his plot outline. The shepherd lay curled up in a corner of the office, soulful brown eyes staring vacantly at the door, ears and tail drooping. His lower lip even stuck out just a little in a pout.
Sasuke had never seen a dog pout before. But he had a strong feeling he saw it now with Ninja.
Scrubbing his hand through his dark hair, Sasuke let out a frustrated grunt and turned on some music, just so things wouldn't be so quiet. With the departure of his family, the house almost made a cemetary seem like a rave.
The music wasn't right. He changed playlists, but it didn't help.
Scowling, Sasuke jabbed down each key on the keyboard with more force than necessary, each word feeling like it was being chiseled from stone.
Or something even harder.
Though the supernatural thriller book idea seemed so good at the time, Sasuke now found himself losing inspiration fast. He loved the main character (how could he not? She was based on Hinata), but the setting for her just didn't seem right. He didn't like the plot, he didn't like his supporting cast, he didn't like the hero, he didn't even like the stupid ghosts; and the entire story was supposed to hinge on them.
Sasuke felt halfway tempted to print his outline, build a huge, roaring fire in his fireplace, and burn it. Maybe then he'd derive some sort of satisfaction from such a useless waste of space on his hard drive.
Then again, he hadn't been to the library in a while to do more research. Perhaps all he needed was to recharge his battery (as it were) by going back and reading some more books. Now that he had an updated library card, he could even check them out. But half the lure of the library was spending time with Hinata (he had no doubt his disguise wouldn't work now), and if he checked out the books, he wouldn't see her very much. Which would kind of defeat the purpose of visiting the library in the first place.
On the other hand, if Sasuke had the books directly on hand (for three weeks, or longer if he renewed them), it would make it easier for him to write. Hopefully.
Or maybe he was on the wrong track totally. With his writing. With his perhaps romance.
With his life.
Maybe he should just quit writing and go get a job as - as...
A ninja? the fanciful thought flitted through his mind.
He glanced over at his pouting dog. Nah.
Spinning his chair around, Sasuke stared up at the large hand-embroidered crest of the Uchiha clan hanging framed on the wall next to the door. The white fan and red crescent-moon-shaped flames had always brought him a fierce sense of pride to be an Uchiha, but now he felt like a failure. Like he didn't deserve to have such a powerful crest on the wall of his house - like he didn't deserve to be associated with it.
His ancestors had done such incredible things. They'd served the emperor and his family for generations. They had saved lives, and given their own. They had protected Japan against invaders, the royal family from machinations (both foreign and domestic), and become pretty darn close to being legendary for their endeavors.
Even Itachi was doing his part to carry on the legacy by running the family's own private bodyguard-for-hire business. He and his employees didn't run around dressed in samurai armor, brandishing katana and other traditional weapons, granted; but it was a noble pursuit - one of which their ancestors could be proud.
And Sasuke? Oh, he wrote thriller/horror novels. Something he used to be good at, yet now he couldn't even plot one, let alone write it. For crying out loud, his dog was a better Uchiha than Sasuke. At least he could live up to his name and reputation.
But we can't all be dogs, can we? Sasuke thought, paraphrasing a popular comic strip canine. Too bad: a dog's life seemed pretty cushy to him right about now.
His phone buzzed from its place sitting on the desk next to the keyboard. Sasuke sighed and reached for it. "If it's Jiraiya," he said aloud, "I'm flushing this stupid thing down the toilet."
But it wasn't his agent. It was Hinata. We still on for tomorrow?
Sasuke smiled down at the black words against a white background. Hadn't he just been thinking a few minutes ago spending some time with Hinata would recharge his battery? Granted, it wouldn't be in the library, and there might or might not be books involved, but Sunday afternoon with Hinata had been the one thing keeping him sane the past two days.
His thumbs flew over the keys on his phone, and he grinned as he sent his reply: Of course. Two still OK?
Setting down his phone, Sasuke drummed out on the edge of the desk the beat of the current song playing while he waited for Hinata's reply. Whether he was worthy of being an Uchiha or not, whether he was worthy of being Hinata's friend or not, he couldn't stop himself from being excited about tomorrow even if he wanted to.
It only took a few seconds for his phone to buzz. Perfect. Looking forward to seeing you then!
He could practically hear her saying those words. Sasuke closed his eyes and pictured her; probably dressed in capris and a sleeveless top since it was her day off. She'd be sitting on a window seat (his house had several, but did they even put those in condos?) curled up with a book in one hand and her phone in the other, her sunflower tattoo highlighted by a ray of sun...
Sasuke shook himself out of his daydream, realizing he hadn't responded. Smothering his (far too) enthusiastic smile, he typed out a two words response which did little to encompass his feelings:
Me too.
*~To Be Continued~*
Author's Ending Notes: Not face-to-face, but I did work some SasuHina interaction in! I don't know why, but I just love Sasuke's thought process in this chapter. And now Hanabi has moved in! I'm actually really excited about this, because I've got a plan for that which I'm looking foward to sharing with you over the course of the rest of the story. Before I sign off for this chapter, I want to send a shout out to Anonymous - thanks for catching the oops of my accidentally giving Sasuke two book fours in the last chapter! I fixed it. Thank you all for reading this chapter, I hope you enjoy it, and I hope to see you all again for the next update!