Love in the Rose

He felt a suffocating and paralyzing grip possess his body as he stared, wide-eyed, at the wall as Neji's words echoed through his brain. Had he heard Neji correctly? Did Neji say what he thought he said? Shikamaru blinked slowly, now feeling confusion grasp him. His heart came back to life and began to hammer in his chest, pulsating through his ears.

Does Neji...love me?

Shikamaru realized that Neji hadn't moved from his position, as he continued to cradle him on his lap with his cheek against his hair. Shikamaru took the lack of physical movement as the strong possibility of Neji's words just being a figment of his imagination. As this thought passed through his mind, he felt his heart sink.

Was he disappointed about the possibility of Neji's words being a part of his imagination?

He needed to know, the confusion and curiosity were overwhelming. If it turned out that Neji hadn't spoken, then he'll just say that he thought he heard him say something. Slowly, Shikamaru looked up at Neji, causing the Hyuuga to lift his head from his hair. Doe eyes searched Neji's face, trying to see if Neji had spoken before asking him.

"What?" He asked cautiously, waiting for Neji's confusion to flitter across his flawless features. But he saw a gentle smile cross Neji's lips as he reached up and brushed a stray hair away from his face, tucking it behind his ear, his fingers lingering on his jaw. Neji remained quiet, while his thoughts raced. He had deliberately told Shikamaru that he would die before he broke a promise with someone he loved. When he uttered the words, he felt a huge pressure being lifted away from him and he knew why. He has held strong feelings for Shikamaru for months, but was too afraid to truly act on them with Shikamaru being in his current condition. He didn't want to confuse and overwhelm him more than he already was, so he kept the strong feelings to himself.

It was Hinata's suggestion that he tell Shikamaru about the feelings that he has for him, or at least drop a hint of them. He didn't see her point right away, but after some explanation, he understood what she was saying. Shikamaru has a major trust issue and feels terribly alone because of that issue. Hinata had told him that Shikamaru needs to know that someone at least cares deeply about him in order for the Nara to open up and move forward with healing. That was when she told him to at least drop a hint of his love that he holds for Shikamaru.

"It will be a major starting point if he knows that someone loves him intimately because he's never experienced such a thing."

Neji did feel his heart get lodged in his throat when she said 'intimately'. He truly loved Shikamaru, but wasn't sure how the Nara would react to knowing this fact.

"You won't know until you tell him, but like I said…if you tell him, he'll begin to heal because he knows that someone loves him intimately. His mother loved him, yes. But that type of love is very different compared to the type that you feel for him and that I'm fairly certain that he feels for you…he just doesn't understand yet that he's in love because he's never experienced it, so he's confused."

"Neji?" Shikamaru's soft voice brought him back after he realized that he had zoned out. He looked deep into Shikamaru's doe eyes and started to see what Hinata was saying; Shikamaru's confused because he's never experienced intimate love, so he doesn't how to process it.

"Did you say something?" Shikamaru asked, still looking up at him. Neji began to rub his back soothingly.

"Yes, I said that I would have to die before I break a promise with someone I love." Shikamaru blinked slowly as he processed Neji's words.

So he did say what I thought he did.

"You…you…." Shikamaru tried to ask his question, but felt his throat begin to close as he felt the unfamiliar feeling clamp his throat shut.

"I didn't want to say anything before." Neji muttered, redirecting his eyes, briefly wondering if he should back-pedal with his whole confession. "I just thought that it would…be in your best interest if I didn't say anything." More confusion filled Shikamaru as his dark eyes continued to search Neji's face.

"In my best interest? Meaning?" Neji looked back down at him, thinking through his response carefully.

"You have a lot of things going on…and I didn't want to make things harder for you."

Their eyes locked.

Shikamaru continued to analyze Neji in silence, his large doe eyes looking widely up at him. Neji clearly saw confusion in their depths, but also something else he couldn't quite place. But then his heart stopped and his brow furrowed when he saw that Shikamaru's pupils began to slowly dilate.

NejiXShikamaru

"Child?" Shikamaru's eyes slowly opened and stared up at the light purple sky and pink clouds. His eyes shifted slightly to his right as he looked up at Alecto. "Why are you not out there with the Boy?" Alecto asked, helping Shikamaru to his feet.

"You know why." Shikamaru replied quietly, staring down at the ground and rubbing his arms absentmindedly.

"It is a brand new thing for you, Child. It is going to feel overwhelming and quite confusing." Shikamaru glanced up at him.

"What do I do?" He was somewhat surprised at the small tone of his voice. Alecto smiled slightly.

"I can't tell you that." Shikamaru's eyes widened.

"Why?" Alecto's smile widened by a fraction of an inch as he held out his hand.

"Come with me." Shikamaru quirked an eyebrow.

"Why?" Alecto remained quiet, still holding his hand out and with a small smile on his face. Shikamaru's eyes darted from Alecto's face to his hand, which he tentatively reached out and grabbed.

Alecto led them across the small field towards the black trees in silence, the bright white snow squishing underneath their feet. Shikamaru's brow furrowed as he noticed the different texture of the snow as they continued to walk towards the forest, but he chose to remain quiet, knowing that Alecto won't answer any of his questions until they reached their destination. He let his eyes wonder to his right, deciding that the back of Alecto's head wasn't interesting to look at anymore.

"Look." Alecto said softly, making them stop walking. Shikamaru turned back to the front and felt his confusion mount as he looked at what Alecto brought him to.

He knew they were in the middle of the dark forest, but he has never seen the new things that now accompanied the dark trees. Green vines had sprung from the ground and began to wind their way up the surrounding trees, each vine already holding buds of flowers ready to bloom; some of the vines' white flowers were already in bloom, releasing their light scents of lavender and jasmine. Shikamaru directed his eyes downward and saw tiny flowers had begun to sprout, small specks of white littering the forest floor. He blinked his eyes rapidly and directed his gaze back up when something bright caught his eye; light was coming through a small opening in the canopy of branches and leaves of the trees, sending a slightly dull light around him and Alecto.

"Alecto…I don't understand." Shikamaru said as Alecto starting walking again, still holding his hand. "This is stunning."

They walked past the small white flowers on the ground and Shikamaru's doe eyes lingered on the green vines, some with white flowers, and he became aware of the sharp contrast between the black bark of the trees to the shade of jade green of the vines. As he and Alecto walked, Shikamaru began to notice that more white flowers and green vines were appearing on the trees and ground around them. Along with these new things, he noticed that there seemed to be more light pushing its way through the canopy of tree branches and leaves. What was once a dark forest was slowly becoming brighter the closer they reached the center.

"Child," Alecto said quietly, stopping again. Shikamaru stood directly next to him, his doe eyes wide and confused as his heart thundered in his chest. He felt winded as he tightened his grip on Alecto's hand, not understanding anything that was happening in and around him.

They stood in a small clearing that was flooded with light, illuminating the small growing flowers sprouting from the ground. All the trees were wrapped with jade-green vines with the occasional blooming white flower giving of its light fragrant scent. In the center of the clearing was a large white rose that seemed to radiate in the light streaming down upon it, not having to fight its way through branches and leaves. A slightly smaller grey rose was wrapped around the stem of the large white rose, seeming to be nuzzling its grey petals against the glowing white ones.

"Alecto…" Shikamaru started, not knowing what to say. Alecto released his hand and turned to look at him fully; his dark eyes glistening lightly in the foreign light of the forest.

"Come," Alecto said as he walked towards the white and grey roses in the center of the clearing; Shikamaru followed closely and sat down next to him in front of the couple of roses.

"Alecto…what's going on? The white flowers, the vines, the light…where did it all come from?" Alecto turned to look at him again.

"The unfamiliar sensations that you have been experiencing as of late are because of these things." He gestured to the flowers, vines, and light.

"I still don't understand."

"We are at the heart of the forest, Child. If you noticed, the closer we came to the heart of the forest, the brighter things became and the more flowers and vines there were." Shikamaru nodded in agreement.

"That is because you are allowing light into your world. These things began to bloom when you began to feel love for the Boy." Shikamaru's face flushed slightly. "The love that you hold for the Boy, while it is unfamiliar, began right here...in the heart of darkness, if you will."

"So…Neji caused all this?" Shikamaru asked tentatively, looking at the flowers around him.

"In a sense, yes, but he didn't make you fall in love with him." Shikamaru cut his eyes towards Alecto and slowly turned to look at him.

"What?" Alecto smiled lightly.

"The Boy did not make you fall in love with him, Child. You fell in love with him on your own accord, and that feeling has been growing stronger, yes?" Shikamaru hesitated before nodding. "As your love for the Boy deepened, the flowers and vines have been spreading out from the heart of the forest...spreading the light that love generates to other parts of the forest. The forest is your heart, Child, understand?"

"Everything here is a symbol of me and the forest is my heart…we both know that." Shikamaru said slowly, processing what Alecto was saying.

"The love you hold for the Boy started in the center of the forest and is spreading outward to other parts. The forest will not be the only thing to change here, Child, or at least, I would imagine not."

"What do you mean by that?" Shikamaru asked quickly.

"Like you said earlier…everything here is a symbol for you. As your love for the Boy deepens, it will continue to spread and change other things."

"The snow..." Shikamaru whispered under his breath, thinking back to when they were walking towards the forest. "The snow was softer…it's…melting." Alecto nodded slightly.

"Do you know what that means?" Shikamaru made eye contact with him, his doe eyes slightly wide as things were starting to make sense.

"The snow is melting because…of what I feel for Neji is…warming everything, which is causing the snow to melt." Shikamaru said slowly.

"What is that feeling called?" Alecto pressed lightly. Shikamaru blinked.

"Love." Alecto smiled widely, which was a new sight for Shikamaru.

"Well done, Child." Shikamaru turned back towards the intertwined roses.

"What about that? What does that mean?" Alecto looked over at the roses as well.

"What color are the Boy's eyes? Or at least, what color are they close to?" Shikamaru smiled slightly.

"White."

"The Boy is the white rose…that is also why it is the bigger of the two. The white rose, the Boy, is protecting the smaller grey rose, you."

"Grey?"

"White and black mixed together, Child. You are…coming into the light, as it were." Shikamaru chuckled lightly at Alecto's choice of words. "They are intertwined because that is how you and the Boy are." Shikamaru nodded slowly, feeling his confusion ebb away slightly.

"He's broken through to you." Silence fell between at Alecto's statement. Shikamaru looked back over at the white and grey rose, admitting that he was right. Slowly, Shikamaru felt his confusion lose its intensity as everything that Alecto was saying was making sense with what he was feeling. He stared at the large white rose and felt a smile cross his face as he thought of Neji. He felt the sense of security that only Neji can provide wrap around him, comforting and protecting him.

"Cute," Alecto said, causing Shikamaru to quirk an eyebrow at him, pulling him out of his thoughts.

"What's cute?"

"You. You're thinking about the Boy." Shikamaru chuckled lightly as his face grew warm. "You are feeling safe, yes?" Shikamaru nodded, a small smile on his face.

"What do you think that means?" Shikamaru hesitated, knowing the answer to Alecto's question.

"I…I…" He felt his throat tighten slightly as the feeling of being overwhelmed started to come back.

"You are trusting the Boy."

Silence fell between them as Shikamaru continued to stare at the white and grey rose, thinking. He knew that Alecto was right…he nearly always was. While the thought was frightening, he felt as though he can truly do what Alecto said he can. He felt a smile occupy his face once again as he felt his stomach tie itself into knots as Neji's face appeared in his mind again.

"Thinking about the Boy again." Alecto said with a laughing tone in his voice.

"Shut up." Shikamaru retorted, smiling.

"It will not be easy, Child." Alecto said seriously after a few minutes of silence. Shikamaru bit his lip gently.

"I know, but—" He stopped himself, spiking Alecto's curiosity.

"But what, Child?" Shikamaru hesitated.

"But…it'll…it'll be…worth it…right?" They locked eyes and Alecto draped an arm loosely over Shikamaru's bony shoulders.

"What do you think?" Shikamaru hesitated again.

"Yeah." Alecto smiled as silence fell between them again.

"It's beautiful." Shikamaru said quietly, speaking about the flowers and vines.

"Oh yes, very much so. And by the sounds of it…this place will become even more beautiful in time." Shikamaru laughed lightly as he stood carefully, staring at the white and grey intertwined roses again. Alecto looked up at him.

"Where are you heading off to?" Shikamaru smiled down at him, feeling a sense of determination become stronger within him.

"Neji is probably getting lonely."

NejiXShikamaru

Neji's heart jumped when he saw Shikamaru's eyes blink rapidly, bringing them back into focus. He noticed that Shikamaru's doe eyes held a brand new spark that has not been present in almost three months.

"You won't make it harder." Shikamaru said softly, causing Neji to furrow his brow in confusion.

"What?"

"You said that you didn't want to…tell me…what you did earlier because you didn't want to make things harder for me."

"Right," Neji said slowly, still hypnotized by the spark in Shikamaru's doe eyes.

"You'll make it—" He stopped himself, figuring that he'd use the correct term. "You'll make…getting better…easier because you—" He felt his throat tightened, but pushed through it. "You…make me feel safe no matter what." He tightened his thin arms around Neji's midsection. Neji tightened his hold on the man in his lap, wrapping his arms securely around his small body.

"I'm going to keep you safe at any cost, Shikamaru...it'll just be much harder to keep you safe from yourself."

"And you…you…" He had difficulty with the one word for an unknown reason now.

"And I what?" Neji pushed lightly. Shikamaru became breathless as he stared up at Neji, completely captivated by every aspect of him. He smiled wider than normal as his brightening eyes shown up at him, now leaving Neji breathless.

"And you love me." Shikamaru said, his warm breath brushing against Neji's face lightly as his eyes continued to shine up at him. Neji felt his face grown warm slightly, but was still hypnotized by the man on his lap.

"That's right." Neji said quietly.

Shikamaru hesitated for a couple of moments before he leaned up and pressed his lips lightly against Neji's. It was a chaste kiss that lasted a few seconds before they parted, their breaths continuing to linger between them. Their eyes locked.

"I…I…" Shikamaru breathed deeply, forcing his throat open. Neji's curiosity and confusion were spiked by Shikamaru's apparent difficulty to talk.

"Shikamaru?" Shikamaru paused again, his small smile returning and stealing Neji's breath away.

"I love you too."

NejiXShikamaru

Alright Gang,

As always, patience and reviews/PMs would be appreciated!

When-Rabbit-Howls