Author's Note: I meant to have this chapter posted a few days ago, so I apologize for the delay. Also, Naruto will be making an appearance next chapter.
Chapter Summary: It had barely been a day since she left. And the doubts begin to surface.
Prompt: #22 cathedral
Word Count: 250
Chapter Six:
Carol of the Bells
Shikamaru proved to be an excellent tour guide. His slow gait made him easy to walk beside and he seemed to anticipate her questions before Hinata needed to ask them. And when she did ask him to explain something further, he would pretend to grumble about it but still willingly answered the question confirming her earlier suspicion that his indifferent air was only for show.
"We're passing the grocery store on the left. It's the only one in town unless you want to drive ten minutes to the next town over."
"We're coming up to an intersection," he continued, "It's a four way stop but it's usually only busy in the morning when the kids are headed to school or when school gets out."
"The school's nearby?"
"Yeah it's just past the church on your right."
"Church?"
"It's a big cathedral type thing. Built back in the 1800s, it closed down about twenty years back. The historical preservation site keeps it spruced up nowadays."
"Interesting," she said trying to imagine its appearance. "Is it made out of limestone?"
"Yeah, it even has the whole stain glass windows bit. If you stick around long enough you'll hear the bells. They used to chime every hour but nowadays they only ring them on Sundays."
She fell silent after that and let Shikamaru continue with the tour. She struggled to pay attention, distracted by the persistent thought of whether or not she would be around long enough to hear the church bells ring.