CrushCrushCrush

He very clearly remembered the day he met the oddity that was Hyuga Xin. He'd been about eight or so and was playing in the sandbox with Naruto and a couple of other boys. And then this small, pigtailed wearing monster marched right up to them, squinted at them and then savagely punched one of their friends right in the face. They were obviously speechless as she climbed into the sandpit, standing over the poor boy she'd assaulted with no warning. "If you keep pulling my sister's hair, I'm going to break your nose!"

No one said anything for a long time until they collectively burst into squawks of laughter. In hindsight, it probably wasn't funny but they were a bunch of seven and eight year old boys who just witnessed their friend get clocked in the face. The boy only rubbed his face, skin glowing hot as they mercilessly teased him. Another little girl ran up to the sandpit, hair pulled into similar pigtails. "Xin, you're going to get in trouble," she whined, reaching for the Devil incarnate.

"He teased you, Hina. But he won't anymore," Xin replied with her hands placed on her nonexistent hips. Hinata only grabbed Xin and tugged her out of the sandbox. Gaara didn't have the heart to tell the Devil that Kiba only teased Hinata because he had a harmless crush on her. Where's the fun in that?

"Oi, your nose is bleeding," Naruto pointed out around his grin, pointing a dirty finger at Kiba's bloody nose.

They didn't let him live that down.

Eventually Xin had been dragged back over to them by her mother and was forced to apologize. She did so begrudgingly but the damage had been done and the impression had been made. No one on the playground messed with the Hyuga sisters. They became friends with Gaara and Naruto after that. It seemed like they were the only two besides the girls' cousin that didn't actively fear Xin. The four of them were practically inseparable as they got older.

And then the girls were sent off to some snooty, all-girls' boarding school and weren't heard from since. It was a bummer once he realized that ironically, he formed an actual crush on Xin. Gaara never told her, knowing full well that the pint-sized hellion just might punch him in the face like she'd done to Kiba. Time went on and he eventually forgot about the Hyuga sisters. Every so often the infamous punch would be brought up here and there to humble Kiba but the Hyuga sisters were a distant memory and life continued on.

Until High School. He didn't exactly have the best reputation in High School and Naruto was no better with his prankster reputation. His father was often too busy to pay him any mind and unsupervised kids tended to get into mischief. It got worse the older he got and he turned out to be one of those boys that concerned parents warned their daughters away from.

Daughters like Hyuga Xin.

"Remember that little demon girl we were friends with? The one with the twin sister?" Naruto asked as he vaulted over the back of the couch one afternoon after a long day of school, jostling Sasuke and Sakura.

"The girl who punched Kiba in the face?" Sakura asked innocently, twirling a lock of pink hair around her finger. She hadn't been there that day but her friends brought it up enough for her to know the story.

Kiba slumped into the ratty La-Z boy. "Why do we constantly have to bring that up?"

"Because it was funny," Gaara snorted from across from him, leaning back into the chair they'd drag down once the basement became more occupied with Naruto's friends. "That girl was the size of a garden gnome and she bloodied your nose and threatened to break it."

Kiba grumbled to himself and folded his arms across his chest like a petulant child. Naruto grinned impishly, not the least bit sorry of all the teasing Kiba endured. "Anyway, they transferred to our school. I heard a couple of people talking about them today at the end of classes."

Gaara frowned, trying to remember if he'd heard anything about that. But then he remembered taking a nap at the end of his classes so maybe that's why he hadn't been aware of the conversation. "Yeah, so?" he grunted, feigning indifference.

"Sooo," Naruto drummed his hands against his lap for a dramatic flare. "I heard they got really hot. Like….Ino level hot," he grinned impishly, causing Sakura to huff.

"You're disgusting."

"You sure you want to go down that road, Uzumaki?" Sasuke finally spoke up, impressed with the blond's antics. "This is the girl that punched Kiba in the face because of some harmless crush on her sister. Imagine what she would do now."

"We called her the Devil for a reason," Shikamaru pointed out from his spot at the bottom of the stairs.

"Yeah, yeah, I thought about that but see, here's what I'm thinking—"

"An amazing feat," Gaara mumbled into his can of soda.

"—fuck off, Gaara. So the Devil girl and her sister got transferred to one of those fancy-schmancy private girls' schools, right? Their family is loaded, I think, so wouldn't going to a school like that kind of cool her down?"

"Yeah, maybe so but they probably think they'd be too good to date someone like you," Gaara pointed out indifferently.

Naruto grinned wolfishly, "Who said anything about dating?"

Sakura made a noise of disgust and shook her head. "And on that note, it's time for me to head out. You know, one of these days you're going to meet a girl and develop feelings for her and she's going to break your heart. That goes for you too, Gaara," Sakura began, standing up while gathering her things. Sometimes she really had to ask herself why she hung out with a bunch of idiotic boys all of the time.

Gaara only peered up at her, frowning indignantly. "I didn't even say anything."

She only stared back, pink eyebrow slightly raised as if she knew all about the shallow crush he once had on the Devil girl. She didn't say anything else, turning sharply and leaving the hangout spot. Sasuke watched her go, grumbling darkly while pushing himself up. "Great, now she's upset. Thanks, Uzumaki," he pointed out dryly. Naruto only waved him off, not at all concerned. Sakura was Sasuke's girlfriend, not his. Sasuke left soon after that, intent on smoothing out the pinkett's ruffled feathers. Shikamaru shoved Naruto over and joined him on the couch, not at all concerned with Naruto's schemings. If he wanted to deal with pissing off the girl with the Devil nickname, that was his business.

They actually didn't see either twin for a good couple of weeks. They were a year younger than any of them and apparently only interacted with their fellow first years. That didn't sway Naruto's determination and they finally spotted the Hyuga sisters one afternoon. The resemblance the two shared was unnerving, even for twins. The only difference that truly set them apart were the look in their eyes. Hinata had a more shy disposition, sporting a softer look in her gaze. Her sister, Gaara noted, had a more mischievous look.

"See, she doesn't look so scary," Naruto pointed out, motioning to Xin. "Definitely hotter than Ino."

"Their standards are probably higher than hers too," Gaara replied with a mean-spirited smirk. "Fooling around with a girl with their social background isn't easy, Uzumaki."

"That's the fun part, the challenge."

"Sakura would definitely kick your ass if she were here right about now."

"Don't be like that. You can't tell me you don't think they're pretty."

"They are. And they're probably a lot of trouble too."

Before he could talk Naruto out of doing something dumb, the Devil incarnate looked up, spotting them. Her face scrunched up, eyes squinted at them. She probably recognized them but couldn't place their faces. "Hyuga!" Uzumaki explained, probably having a hard time telling them apart. He journeyed towards them, leaving Gaara with no choice but to follow after him. He didn't necessarily agree with Naruto's plan but he'd be there to watch it blow up in his face. "You remember us?"

"Don't involve me," Gaara muttered.

"Vaguely," the Devil frowned, tilting her head back to look Naruto right in the eye. "We used to play together when we were kids, right?"

"You punched their friend in the face because he was picking on me," her sister reminded her in a soft tone, looking everywhere but up.

Xin took a moment, fishing for the memory before a satisfied smile pulled at her plump lips. "I did, didn't I?"

"Yeah, we still make fun of him for that. I'm Naruto, if you forgot, and this is Gaara," he slapped a hand against Gaara's shoulder, ignoring his earlier statement of not involving him.

"I'm Xin and this is Hinata, if you couldn't tell us apart," Xin replied, amusement sparking in her eyes. Gaara was not going to admit that he could actually tell the difference, based on their mannerisms. Hinata was the softer of the two and Xin was the more outgoing sister. It hadn't changed, even after all these years. Gaara soon tuned them out after that, feigning indifference as Naruto continued to chat up the Hyuga sisters. He snuck glances at Xin, watching the motions of her lips as she spoke with Naruto, unaware of his plotting.

The warning bell rang, signaling the end of their conversation. The Hyuga sisters left first, waving with smiles as they hurried to their next class. Gaara and Naruto watched them go, a grin on Naruto's face. "I've decided that I want Hinata."

Gaara only sighed, "you're gonna die dude."

Naruto wished he could have said he accomplished his goal fairly easily but then that would be a big fat ass lie. True to Sakura's words, Naruto ended up getting his heart broken. Two weeks into trying to bed Hinata proved to be futile and with an ironic twist, Naruto ended up developing very deep feelings for Hinata. And for months, Hinata shot him down ruthlessly and with a smile. It was entertaining to watch, to be honest, because Naruto just wasn't used to this sort of thing. What was more surprising was that her Devil of a sister didn't immediately try to put him in the hospital.

In fact, she reacted the opposite way of what everyone thought. Amusement danced in Xin's eyes every time her sister rejected Naruto's flirtations. They at least expected a punch to the nose like she'd done to Kiba all those years ago. Instead, Xin offered one piece of advice: "Be her friend first, moron."

It took the remainder of the school year for Hinata to actually give Naruto a chance. But once they started dating, the rest was history. They were high school sweethearts and the school's golden couple. Xin, on the other hand, was even more ruthless than her sister when it came to shooting boys down. No one really knew why she refused to date but it almost became like a game to the male student body. None, so far, had been successful.

With Hinata dating Naruto, it created a spot in their group of friends for the twins. It wasn't a bad thing, they actually got along well with everyone. They fit in so well that it was almost like they never stopped being friends in the first place.

That wasn't the problem.

The problem was the crush that eight year-old Gaara once had on a seven year-old Xin reared its unwanted head once more. It was alarming how quickly it resurfaced but there it fuckin' was, staring him in the face every time he glanced at the pint-sized Devil incarnate. That had to say a lot about him because they could barely be described as actual friends. They were more like frenemies that mostly tolerated one another because of Naruto's relationship with Hinata. They were antagonistic towards one another, usually trading verbal barbs and scathing remarks. So how a crush redeveloped was beyond him but it was there. Maybe it had something to do with the way she treated him.

Gaara found himself trudging down towards the Uzumaki's basement, his face throbbing something awful. He could've gone home to fix all the scrapes and bruises up but he didn't feel like listening to his older sister nag him about his fighting. It's not like he went looking for fights but what was he supposed to do? Not defend himself?

He shoved the door open and noticed to his dismay that the basement was empty. That was a rare occurrence. He leaned against the frame, contemplating on what to do. Maybe he could go upstairs and find Kushina? But then he'd have to sit through her scolding him for hours on end. Besides, he didn't want to bother the older redhead anyway. Yes, she allowed him to hang out in her basement whenever he felt like it but she wasn't his mother or even his caregiver.

As Gaara continued to think over his options, a sudden stirring from the couch caught his eye. "Were you raised in a barn? Shut the door," the She-Devil herself suddenly sat up into view, the book that had been covering her face falling to her lap. Her nap was evident due to the drowsy look slapped onto her face. They stared at one another for a long moment before realization dawned on her. "Jesus Christ, you're bleeding!" she exclaimed while launching herself off of the couch. Gaara watched silently as she flew up the stairs, screeching nonsense to herself. She came back only seconds later, toting Kushina's massive first aid kit with her.

Xin nearled bowled him over in her haste to get to him. "Well?" she asked impatiently, craning her neck back to look up at him. "Gaara, you're taller than me, you dork! Sit down," she pointed out with a scowl, motioning towards the couch. The tall redhead glared at her but stepped around her to lean against the arm of the couch. She glared right back at him but dropped the kit on the ratty La-Z boy to rifle through it. She nudged at his knee, forcing him to part his legs to stand between them. She leaned in, meticulously cleaning up the blood smattered across his face. "Don't you ever get tired of being a delinquent and fighting all the time?"

There was a spark of amusement in her eyes as he continued to glare at her. "It's not like I ask to fight," he pointed out dryly as she focused on the bleeding cut below his cheekbone.

"That's not what I heard," Xin mused with pursed lips, fingers curling around his jaw to tilt his head back. "I heard you were always looking for trouble in middle school."

Gaara almost pulled back from her, wanting to slap her hands away. "That was middle school," he reminded her in that same dry tone. "Where'd you hear that from, anyway? Been asking around about me, Princess?"

It was his turn to look at her in amusement as she flushed heavily. "Oh, please, I was being warned to stay away from you. I didn't ask about you," Xin huffed primly. "I hope you at least won the fight."

"Of course I won," Gaara rolled his eyes. "What are you even doing here alone? Aren't your parents wondering where you are?"

Xin paused in her task, glancing at him from below thick lashes. "Aren't yours?" she asked pointedly. It was obvious that her parents were a sore spot for her, for whatever reason. Now that he thought about it, their parents never seemed all that concerned with Hinata and Xin's whereabouts when they hung around in the basement. You'd think they would at least call to check up on them like Sakura's parents often did. They were young girls, after all. Anything could happen but the only time he could ever recall the twins discussing their parents was when it involved their grades.

"Doubt it," Gaara snorted, unconcerned about his relationship with his father.

A silence fell over them momentarily but Xin continued to clean Gaara's face up of any blood. "I was hanging out with Naruto and Hinata but they left on a date," Xin suddenly said, steering the conversation out of awkward territory. "I didn't feel like going home just yet, so I took a nap. A short nap since you came stumbling in."

"You can't do that in your own house?"

"You can't do this in your own house?"

Point taken.

She finished up quickly, complaining about his blood getting all over the place. Despite her grievances, she looked highly amused as he settled down next to her on the couch. It wasn't often that the two sat so close, as their friends usually kept them apart. He might have imagined it but he was almost positive that she somehow shifted closer at some point.

They didn't talk about it.

Some days later found Gaara leaving school late. He'd been dumb enough to get caught skipping class and had been awarded two hours of detention. And now it was raining. Luckily he had an umbrella with him but walking home was going to be a real pain in the neck. Sakura tried to warn him about skipping Anko's class but hell if he listened.

Hyuga Xin, however, wasn't so lucky.

She was standing at the entrance, fist resting on the slope of her hip as she stared out into the downpour. Her back was to him but he could tell by her stance that she was annoyed with the weather conditions. Blankly, he glanced down at his umbrella. It was large enough, he thought, and Xin was pretty small to begin with. She could, hypothetically speaking, fit under his umbrella with him. "Yo, Princess," Gaara knocked into her, nearly sending her out into the downpour. She let out a squawk of indignation, whirling around to glare up at him. He almost smiled, as she had that devilish look in her eyes that she had right before she punched Kiba in the nose.

Good times, good times.

"Watch it, you oaf!" she snapped up at him.

"Sorry, didn't see you down there."

"Oh, you are full of absolute shit."

Gaara leered down at her, dipping low to shove his face into hers. "I don't think your folks would approve of that kind of language, Princess."

Her face flushed and he was almost positive it was because he was antagonizing her. She pulled back from him, shoving him away at the same time. "Get out of my face," she muttered almost petulantly. "What are you even still doing here? Shouldn't you be off making orphans cry?"

"Hilarious, really," Gaara replied dryly, childishly yanking on her ponytail. She swated his hand away with that devil look in her eyes. "I had detention."

"Not surprising."

"What about you? Shouldn't you be home where it's safe?"

The devil look in her pretty eyes dimmed as she frowned softly. "I had cleaning duty today," she answered, shrugging an uncaring shoulder. "And now I'm waiting for the rain to clear up."

"You headin' to Uzumaki's?" Gaara asked, wondering about the look now floating around in her eyes. He wasn't sure why he figured she'd be going to Naruto's house instead of her own. Maybe it was the same reason he often went there instead of his own home. Maybe it wasn't his business.

"Yeah, I guess so. I'm pretty sure Hinata is over there anyway," Xin replied thoughtlessly, finding the rain freakishly interesting. Her only problem was the heavy downpour, she'd be soaked through before getting halfway there.

Gaara wordlessly held the umbrella up, waving it in her face. "Cool, me too. Let's go," he tried to say in a casual tone. She glanced up at him, eyebrows high on her forehead.

"...why?"

"Because we're both going the same way so might as well go together. Why're you being so difficult about it?"

"I'm not," she huffed. "But...I mean…don't we hate each other?"

Gaara frowned at her question, staring down at her. "I never said I hated you," he muttered just barely above a whisper. Maybe it's the tone of his voice or the look in his eyes but her face was bright red, again. Her face was red and her mouth pinched and her eyes are wide and she looks…

Well...not like the Devil.

"Oh," Xin managed to get out. "I just always thought...well...you're always picking on me and we're always arguing so...y'know," her dark lashes fluttered against her cheekbones almost erratically. To be honest, school hierarchy dictated that the two should hate one another. After all, she was the wealthy popular girl and he was the grungy delinquent. They shouldn't even be in the same group of friends. But honestly, if she thinks hard, their bickering was never...cruel. It was sarcastic and mean but never outright...vicious.

Odd.

"I pick on you because I like how red your face gets and how mean your eyes look. You look like the Devil," Gaara stated before he could really stop himself. That was probably a bit of information better left unsaid.

"You like—the Devil?!"

A bark of laughter interrupted her rage filled rant as he opened the umbrella. "C'mon, Princess, before it rains even harder."

"Are you dumb? It can't get any harder than this."

"You're clearly the dumb one. Ever hear of a hurricane?"

"A hurricane? In March?"

"Don't be a smartass."

"Can't help it, moron."

They bicker all the way to Naruto's house, pressed together so tightly they can barely walk without tripping over one another. He alleviates the problem by throwing an arm around her shoulders, trapping her against his side while keeping them both dry under the umbrella. They don't say much about it, filling the air with their mean-spirited insults and sarcastic jabs instead. It's not until they're loudly stomping down the basement stairs, listening to their friends watching television that Xin quietly mutteres:

"I don't hate you either."

Xin finally cracked during her third year of high school. Naruto, Gaara and the others had all graduated and were in college or employed while she and her sister finish up their last school year. Hinata and Naruto were still dating and they still all hang out in Naruto's basement.

A boy asks Xin out and for some reason, she says yes. Hinata is the one to tell them all about it. Xin, on the other hand, avoids their stares while occupying herself with her math homework. A plume of annoyance bloomed in Gaara's chest and he found himself childishly pulling on her hair.

He doesn't like this Masaru guy.

They date for awhile, much to Gaara's ever-growing annoyance. The guy is a complete asshole and they're constantly arguing. Not the same kind of arguing he and Xin share. Not the baseless name calling with curly smiles. Their arguing is nasty and usually ends up with Xin throwing something heavy in agitation. The others quickly learn to move valuables away from her grabby hands.

His holds on Xin are a bit too hard, Gaara notes. Fingers dig too tightly into her arm or her waist and her face always pinches in discomfort. She'd quietly mutter that he's hurting her and somehow it turns into a fight. None of them really understand why she doesn't break up with him. They don't really know that she's tried. Several times. Their verbal fights turn into physical fights and Xin finds herself frantically icing the bruises in an attempt to hide them from her friends. She fights back, of course, wildly throwing her own kicks and punches. But she's tinier than he is, softer, easier to bruise.

It's not until Masaru and Xin attend some party that things blow up. Gaara doesn't go, feeling like it was strange to go partying with high schoolers even though he's only a year older than most of the party goers. But Xin texted him around midnight, asking if he'd swing by and see her home. Or maybe to Naruto's basement. Her texts are a bit weird but he doesn't think much of it because Xin is a bit weird herself. He propped himself up against his car, waiting for her to come out once he arrived. The party music was loud, nearly shaking the house. Party goers are spread out on the property, some drinking or smoking, some passed out on the lawn while others are casually holding conversations.

Xin suddenly came storming out of the house, walking with an angry purpose. Masaru was close on her heels, shouting at her back as she stomped down the stairs. "Xin, wait, I can explain!"

"Fuck your explanation, Masaru!" she snapped over her shoulder, looking like the Devil she was. She easily spotted Gaara, relief flooding her pretty face, as she neared him. But Masaru, legs longer than hers, caught up fairly easily. Gaara realized that his clothes are a bit rumpled.

He's not liking where this is going.

Masaru's hand curled around Xin and he yanked her back so hard her damn arm looks like it'll pop from its socket.

Nope. Definitely not liking it.

"It wasn't anything serious, angel-face! It was just a little fun."

Angel-face, Gaara rolled his eyes. He's unaware that Xin also chooses that exact moment to also roll her eyes. "Are you serious right now? That's your explanation? A little fun? A little fun is having a few drinks and dancing together to shitty music. That's a little fun. What's not fun is finding your boyfriend balls deep in some random girl no one's ever seen before!"

Oh hell.

"Oh, c'mon, no relationship is perfect. It has its ups and downs."

"Cheating is not the downs of a relationship, you slimy sack of horseshit!" she snapped in anger. "Get off and fuck off! We're done and I mean it this time, slap me if you want but you're not forcing me to stay with you anymore."

Slap her?

"What'd you expect, Xin? You don't let me touch you, you don't do anything to make me feel good! I have needs, angel-face, and you were ignoring them."

Disgust paints her face but she snatched her arm away. "Quit calling me that, Jesus Christ! We don't have sex so you go find it somewhere else? You—oh who cares!"

Gaara still couldn't wrap his brain around the fact that Masaru had slapped Xin before. Was that a recurring issue? What the fuck was wrong with her, why would she allow that? Why hadn't she told anyone? Why was he still just standing there?

Masaru caught her by the biceps before she could go storming off again, shaking her so hard that her head rattled unnaturally on her neck. "You think I'm gonna let you walk away from me?!"

Okay. He'd had enough.

Gaara stalked up to them in just a couple of long strides, sliding in between them and violently shoving Masaru back. The color drained from Masaru's face as Gaara guided Xin to the side, staring at him hard. "You've got one more time," he uttered calmly. "I've never fuckin' liked you and if you come near her again, I'm gonna fuckin' kill you."

Plain and simple. No reason to be dramatic about. It was all very simple.

Masaru doesn't argue against Gaara. Why would he? He's known to be violent, they called him a delinquent and a thug in school. He's tall and strong, unlike tiny little Xin.

They leave the party with no objections from Masaru. They drive in silence the entire time, Gaara openly glancing at Xin any chance he gets. Her face was stony as she sat next to him, lips pressed into a thin line. When the two arrive at Naruto's house, they didn't immediately climb out. They sat there for a full five minutes before Xin finally spoke, "I, uh, I'm sorry about dragging you out to come pick me up. I should've—"

"Masaru's been hitting you?"

"Oh..well..I mean.."

"Yes or no, Xin."

"Just sometimes. I mean, it wasn't that bad. I hit him back, we weren't...we weren't good for one another."

"Don't defend him. He's 5'10 and weighs about 180 pounds. You're 5'1 and weigh 110 pounds. He shouldn't be hitting you."

"115 pounds."

"Now isn't the time, Princess."

"Right."

"Why didn't you say anything? Why didn't you tell your parents?"

Xin suddenly sank into herself, that stony look coming right back. She leaned her head back against the seat, fire in her eyes extinguished. "My parents...I don't know. I'm not sure if they'd really care," she finally admitted, staring at nothing in particular. It was an unspoken thing among the group. It wasn't that the twins' parents didn't care about their daughters, they just cared about their jobs more. It made sense, Gaara realized, why they never seemed concerned with their daughters hanging out with a bunch of delinquents and troublemakers. Why they never really said much about Hinata dating a troublemaker.

As long as the cops didn't drag their girls home by their collars, it didn't matter.

"What about us?"

Xin turned her head, looking at him with a strange look in her eyes. "I dunno'. Everyone seemed so happy that I was dating so…"

"You think they'll be happy when they find out what's been going on?"

"They don't have to know."

"Xin…"

"Gaara, please."

He sighed loudly, knowing he'd do just about anything for the tiny girl sitting next to him. "Fine, Xin, fine. But if that motherfucker comes near you again, if he even breathes in your direction, tell me. I'm gonna fuck him up."

A sad smile pulled at her lips.

"Okay."

She doesn't date after that. She finishes her last year of high school and decided to take summer classes for a business degree. She wants to open a bakery, she tells them. Her parents could easily buy her bakery but she insisted on doing it herself. Hinata joins in on the summer classes, much to Naruto's dismay. None of them bring up Masaru but they were glad to see the relationship end. Gaara keeps Xin's secret to himself. Everything is fine.

Until it's not.

The basement was empty, for once, save for Gaara. He's not doing anything but watching some crappy tv show when Xin comes bouncing in. She looks happy, pink lips smiling down at him. "Hi," she chirped while throwing herself down next to him.

"Princess," he greeted tonelessly.

"Shouldn't you be at work?" she asked, tuning in on the shitty show. "Why're you watching this garbage?"

"I get a day off every now and then too," Gaara snorted. "And it's the only thing that's on."

"We have Netflix."

Gaara finally turned to her, smirking all the while. "Are you trying to Netflix and chill me?"

Her face flushed prettily and she snorted boyishly. "Don't be crude," she stuck her tongue out at him. "And anyway, you wish."

It was his turn to snort. "Yeah? So what if I do?"

Xin was rendered speechless. He's probably made a mistake, he realized during her silence. They've got a good thing going, a good friendship that balances them out well. There's absolutely no need to ruin it but too late for that. So he's wanted to kiss her since they all reunited, she didn't have to know that.

Things are not fine.

"Well?" Xin asked softly, not sounding like herself. "Do you?"

"What? Want to Netflix?"

"No," she gives him a cross look. "The other part."

They share a tense look, neither willing to budge. Things are definitely not fine. He's a fuckin' moron and he's probably just ruined their questionable friendship.

"Xin, listen, I—"

"I want to."

Things might be fine.

A part of him wanted to tell her that she has no business wanting that with him. She was such a nice girl with occasional bouts of violence and poor judgement skills. He was a literal walking disaster. He had no business fucking her up.

He pulled hard at a lock of her hair, not entirely expecting her to lean into his pulling. He kisses her hard, knowing she's never been kissed like that, bruising her mouth. They pull away, both sharing thoughtful looks, trying to decide if they liked it or not. And then Xin all but throws herself forward into his lap, nearly knocking him over in her haste to press her lips against his. Her kisses are just as hard, lips sucking hungrily at his bottom lip as he manages to get his arms around her. She's already moving on by the time his mind catches up with him, trailing frenzied kisses down his jaw and to his neck.

He tightened his arms around her waist, hauling her completely into his lap and pulling her lips back to him. They're pressed so tightly together that he's not sure where she ends and he begins but he feels nothing but absolute bliss. It was a shock that he even waited this long to kiss the she-Devil in the first place.

Something crashed above them upstairs, causing them to pull away. They both looked up towards the ceiling as Naruto and Sakura could be heard arguing above them. Xin's fingers tightened against his shoulders before gradually loosening, swollen lips forming into a pout. Using him as leverage, she climbed to her feet, blushing all the while. Ignoring his gaze, she turned away and began fixing her clothes. She mutters about their friends' awful timing, twisting her crooked shorts and smoothing the wrinkles from her nice blouse.

Gaara stood to his feet, towering over her just as she was turning back towards him. "Alright, we should..." she trailed off in confusion as Gaara snatched her hand up and promptly began dragging her towards the basement door. "Gaara? Where are we going?"

"My place," he replied gruffly, swinging the door open and marching her up the concrete stairs. Xin smiled so brightly it could have rivaled the sun. "No one's home."

She catches him by the shirt at the passenger door of his car, still grinning when she leans forward to kiss him again.

Maybe if they weren't so wrapped up in one another, they would have noticed Sakura and Naruto standing in the kitchen, watching them through the glass sliding door with different degrees of shock and happiness on their faces.

Naruto opened his fat ass mouth, no doubt to yell some provocative bullshit, but Sakura wordlessly slapped her hand against his mouth. Their group had been waiting literally years for Gaara and Xin to get ovet themselves and just get together and she wasn't going to let Naruto ruin the moment.

"Finally," Sakura grinned giddily, hurrying to snap a picture of the two with her free hand. "God, I didn't think it was possible to be so damn dense," she agonized over her idiot friends, pulling her hand away from Naruto. "Maybe now Gaara won't be so grouchy all the time."

"That's his personality," Naruto pointed out as the two climbed into the car and took off. He busily reached for his own phone on the table, excited to tell Hinata about what they just witnessed. "I can't wait to tell Hinata.."

"Oh no you don't," Sakura smacked the phone out of his hand. The two were quiet, staring down at the phone now laying down facedown on the kitchen floor. God, please don't be cracked. "We shouldn't tell them!"

"Okay, yeah I get that but did you have to smack my phone out of my hand?"

"It already had a crack in it."

Naruto ignored her, scooping his phone up once more. "Now there's two cracks," he agonized, staring at the big ass crack in the corner. "Why can't we tell everyone? We've been wanting them to get together since high school."

"We're gonna see how long it takes those idiots to figure out they're dating."

"Oh. Sounds like fun!"

"Doesn't it?"

Everything is fine.

TeeBeMe: I was watching That 70's Show and I realized Xin and Gaara are kind of similar to Hyde and Jackie so that's where this came. I thought it was cute.