They were heading out for yakiniku, trying to include Hinata in the team. It had been good of Neji to organise her as his replacement, making sure they still had the byakugan to their advantage. Lee and Hinata were walking ahead, side by side, chatting. They had actually hit it off pretty well and tended to pair up a lot. It made Tenten miss Neji even more, their fighting styles were so perfectly matched to maximise each other's training, that they used to be like that. Maybe this was how Lee used to feel, like an outsider in his own team. It left her with Guy, and maybe it was a part of the reason Lee had clung to their sensei the way he had.

Ironically, since Neji's departure Guy had been more subdued, which Tenten knew her teammate would approve of. Of course she knew Neji's absence wasn't the true reason for the change, and she felt bad that her actions had brought on Guy's depression.

"Maybe we could invite Neji and Naruto next time?" she suggested, knowing Guy would like to catch up with Neji, and that Naruto was always fun to be around.

"Sure, Tenten. Why not?"

She wanted to make him feel better but didn't know how. The only thing she knew he liked were challenges, in training and on missions, but they couldn't break out jutsu constantly to cheer themselves up. Just then, Tenten spotted a familiar figure approaching them on the street. It was Kakashi, Guy sensei's old rival. If anything was going to perk Guy up, it would be an opportunity to best the copy ninja. Tenten glanced up at Guy's face, expecting to see the thrill of a challenge there, but instead he looked even glummer if that was possible. Tenten's eyes sought out Kakashi again and she realised why. Kakashi had a very pretty girl on his arm, who was obviously quite smitten with him. It was another arena Guy had lost in.

All of a sudden something came over Tenten and she couldn't stand to see her sensei so downcast. She looped her arm through his and laughed.

"Oh Guy, you're too much…"

The two couples pretty much ran right into each other, which meant they had to stop and talk.

"Hey Guy."

"Kakashi…"

Tenten stuck her hand out to Kakashi's girlfriend.

"I'm Tenten," she introduced. "And this is my boyfriend, Guy." In the background she could see Lee gaping and Hinata blushing furiously.

Please, just let them keep quiet for a minute.

"I'm Ayame," the girl smiled in return.

"Out on a date, Kakashi?" Guy questioned.

"Something like that," Kakashi replied.

"We're going to dinner and a movie," Ayame offered, totally unaware of the rivalry between the two men, which had suddenly taken hold of Tenten too.

"We're doing dinner, a movie and then dancing. Right, Guy?" she grinned, hoping he'd play along. He looked down at her, searching for an agonising moment before he agreed.

"Right, Tenten. Dinner, movie, dancing."

"Uh-huh…" Kakashi said.

"It's nice to meet friends of Kakashi's. We should double date some time," Ayame smiled, completely sincere.

"Sure," Tenten agreed. "We'd love that."

"We better get going," Kakashi prompted. "Wouldn't want to be late…" Then he quickly led his date away.

When they were gone, Guy stared down at her.

"Do you really mean it, Tenten?"

She didn't have the heart to say no, he looked so much brighter than he had in days.

"Sure, as fr-"

"What was that?!" Lee exclaimed, bursting into the conversation and cutting her off. "Are you two dating now?! Hinata! Did you know about this?!"

"Umm, no!" Hinata squeaked.

"Guy sensei! Tell me what is going on this very minute!" Lee demanded.

"Lee…"

"I cannot believe you would keep something like this from me!"

It got the better of Guy, and he broke down. If there was one thing Guy or Lee couldn't handle, it was disappointing the other.

"Lee! I'm sorry! I should have told you!"

"Yes, you should have! But if you're happy, I forgive you!"

Then they were crying and hugging.

Tenten simply stepped aside, she was used to their behaviour, but Hinata watched them in wide-eyed shock.

"Don't worry about it," Tenten told her. "It happens all the time."

"They mean a lot to each other, don't they?" Hinata observed.

"Yes, they do. I don't know two people more precious to each other, or more willing to display their feelings." In a way, it was actually pretty endearing and also quite admirable, that they were unafraid to be so emotionally honest.

"It's brave of them," Hinata admired, echoing Tenten's thought.

"Yeah," she agreed, just as Lee let out a particularly loud wail startling some passers-by. "Though sometimes it can be pretty embarrassing too."

x

Dinner was barbecue as they'd intended, and then Tenten managed to rope Lee and Hinata into seeing a movie as well.

At least this way I won't be alone with Guy.

The thing was though, that Lee and Hinata decided to be considerate, and offered to sit in another part of the cinema to give Tenten and Guy some space. It was really thoughtful and totally counterproductive.

Tenten wasn't sure how to act. She heard herself talking too much, and smiling too wide, was sure that none of it was fooling Guy but she didn't seem to be able to stop. At least when the movie started, she had that to focus on for an hour and a half, except that all she could think about was what would happen when it finished, and how she should handle the situation. What is he expecting from me? And how do I manage those expectations?

After the movie, Lee and Hinata decided to head off which left Tenten alone with Guy. Because she said she'd go dancing with him, they ended up at a retro club that was totally dorky and totally Guy, and Tenten found herself amused by that enough to have some fun. They busted out the silliest moves they could think of, and for a little while Tenten actually forgot all about her hang ups and just had a good time.

When the music slowed she let Guy pull her closer, one hand on her waist, the other holding her own. Doing anything else would have caused a scene.

They were ninja, which meant they could move freely and keep a rhythm without thinking about it too much. And the thing was, her hand in his felt nice, and his hand on her waist made her heart beat faster.

He was looking down at her, eyes brimming with emotion.

"Tell me honestly, Tenten. Was I that bad in bed?"

"What? No! It was actually really good." Truth be told, she was a little embarrassed by the reactions he'd managed to elicit from her.

"So, why won't you give me a chance?"

Looking at him in that moment, feeling the seamless way they fit together, she couldn't really think of a good reason. Sure, his hair was pretty bad, he could be embarrassingly intense, and then there were the eyebrows, but in all the things that really mattered, like devotion, loyalty and support, he had always excelled. "It's because I'm not cool like Kakashi, isn't it? But I just can't help being enthusiastic. If I care about something, there's no point giving it less than everything I've got."

He's right of course. He usually is.

"Guy?"

"Yeah, Tenten?"

"Stop talking and kiss me." He did as she asked, leaning in and meeting her mouth with his. It wasn't amazing, but it was nice. She didn't know if she could grow to love him, but she did know she wanted to try.