Unlike Poles | Five
"I mean, come on, how was I supposed to know she didn't like me talking to that girl? All she did was insist that she was fine and she just wanted to go home," he grumbles heatedly, letting out a huff of annoyance as he slumps back into the seat. "I didn't even wrangle the problem out of her till like, yesterday."
Across from Kiba, Kankuro raises a doubtful brow, torn between amusement and pity for his friend. "I think it's not so much the fact that you talked to the girl, but the fact you've slept with her before and you brought it up in conversation. In front of Hinata, might I add." His tone seems to suggest that Kiba is mentally deficient in some way to not have understood that earlier.
"Hey, hey." Kiba raises his hands in front of him as if to fend of Kankuro's well-meaning attacks. "Honesty is the crux of a good relationship, remember? She knows about the crazy things I used to do, and she's cool with it. Or at least, she was until it smacked her in the face." He rubs at his forehead, looking frustrated. "Maybe this is all wrong. I mean, I don't know if she'll really be able to accept me in the end, y'know?"
Kankuro narrows his eyes at that, looking just as befuddled as his troubled friend. "Why are you asking me? I'm not the one in a relationship," he points out with a snort. "Go and talk to her since you're so into 'honesty' and all that. I can't help, man, I'm sorry. But for what it's worth, you've never stuck with a girl for four months before, so that's gotta count for something, right?"
"Yeah, that was what I thought too." Looking suddenly despondent, Kiba stands and tosses a few bills down onto the table. "Well, I'm gonna face the music. Wish me luck, man."
OoOoO
The path they're following is dimly lit, the chirping of nocturnal creatures the only sound they can hear for a long while. Kiba walks with his hands in his pockets, his lips pursed as he slides sideways glances over at Hinata. Her head is down, her dark hair shielding her face from view, and to Kiba the foot of empty space between them feels more like a gaping chasm than anything else.
"So…" He clears his throat, and a slight shift in Hinata's bearing tells him she's paying attention. "I wanted to say sorry for upsetting you. I didn't mean to bump into that girl intentionally, I promise. I don't make a habit of keeping in contact with, you know, those people, but I couldn't just ignore her when she was talking to me. This doesn't change anything between us, y'know?" He feels like he's digging a deeper pit for himself with every word he utters, but there's nothing to be done now.
He chews on his lip nervously, a nervous tic he seems to have picked up from his girlfriend, as the silence drags on. He wants to reach out to take her hand, but he doesn't dare, doesn't know if he's been forgiven yet. This is all new to him, the innocent cajoling and sweet-talking, the genuine desire to get back in someone's good graces, the guilt that's currently plaguing him.
Hinata's voice, when it finally comes, is very small. "I'm sorry too," she whispers, stopping in her tracks as she twists a lock of hair around her fingers. "I know you're used to…being with…girls, and I won't…" She trails off, her voice thickening with suppressed emotion. "Do you think I'm not enough? Because I won't…sleep with you?" Her last sentence is barely audible, so much so that Kiba is subtly attempting to lean closer to hear her better, and he immediately straightens with utter surprise on his face.
Impulsively, he grabs her hand and tugs her to face him, but she won't lift her head to look him in the eyes. "Hey, kitten, look at me," he says gently, reaching out to tap her chin until he catches sight of her eyes, glistening with unshed tears. "This isn't about sex, okay? That girl wasn't recent. I have completely, totally practiced abstinence ever since we started dating, I promise." His usual smirk creeps onto his face at that, especially at the absolutely mortified expression on Hinata's face.
He gives a low laugh then, and confesses boldly, "I'm not going to lie, I totally want to have sex with you. Sometimes you're just so damn irresistible, it should be illegal." His voice lowers intimately, and even though he doesn't move any closer to her, Hinata shivers ever so slightly. "But I'm cool with that, I'm okay with just the thought of an eventually. I mean, you gotta give me some credit, I do have some self control."
"So you didn't bring up sleeping with her to…to tell me you're not happy with me?" Hinata peers at him disbelievingly, her lips pressed together in a moue of uncertainty. Looking at her, with her face half hidden in shadow, her hands fumbling with each other, Kiba thinks she is adorable.
"I would never be unhappy with you for such a silly reason, kitten," he promises with a chuckle, finally allowing himself to pull her close. She sinks into him, limp with relief, and he leans down to press an affectionate kiss to her lips. As if emboldened by his words, his claim of self control, she responds with more enthusiasm than he expects, tiptoeing to nip at his bottom lip with her teeth. His arm tightens around her waist for a few more seconds, one hand playing with her silky hair, before he breaks away with a loud exhalation.
"Seriously, have some mercy on my poor self!" he cries jokingly, glaring at her in mock annoyance even as one hand moves to cup her cheek gently. "Come on, let's get out of here. There are better times to be at the park, and this isn't one of them. I like to be some place I can see your pretty face properly." Still grinning goofily to himself, Kiba grabs Hinata's hand, steering her back down the path the way they had come.