Is there room for me?
Kiba stared inside his somewhat empty locker. He was in deep thought. Sato hadn't been to school for some time. He'd figured the boy had gone back to his old ways and old friends, but that was not the case. He had to leave Konoha because his mother had married another man. That pissed him off. Sato could have at least given him a heads-up. He didn't even find out until Sato was already in Suna.
Friends? Didn't anyone understand what being a friend meant? Didn't they understand loyalty? Kiba was deciding friends weren't worth it! Naruto speaking to him that way hurt him. There was a deep wound pierced within because he truly thought they were friends. That blonde bastard practically stayed with him, and they did a lot of things together. Anywhere Naruto went, he tagged along. They got into fights together, skipped classes together, and many more!
When he entered high school, he was placed in the lowest class because of his GPA. Middle school, he hadn't taken seriously but he was a smart kid! Schoolwork never appealed to him, and he would rather spend time helping his parents in their veterinary clinic or playing video games. He knew his parents had hope for him to run the family clinic because Hana, his sister, wanted to do something more with her life. Her mother was heartbroken, but they supported Hana's choices.
Then high school came, and he spent less time with his family and the clinic and more time with his newfound friends. His grades plummeted, but who cared? Skipping classes was so much fun. Being bad was a thrill.
But now, he had to pay for it. Although he started to take his work more seriously, his trail of delinquency had left a permanent stain on his reputation. No one wanted to be around him, despite his cleaner image. The only one he had was Sato and now he was gone.
A part of him thought Naruto would rekindle their friendship when they spotted each other by the school gates, but Naruto didn't give him the time of day! He just walked past him like he didn't exist. That infuriated Kiba. But he knew better than to get under Naruto's skin.
Hinata was lucky Naruto didn't do half the things to her he would usually do. From his observation, Naruto was more lenient with the girl. If only she truly knew.
His head snapped to his right when he heard someone sigh loudly.
Looking down, he noticed it was Ino. When had she become his locker buddy? Well, he had never used his locker, so he wouldn't know until now.
Sensing someone looking at her, she glanced at the male student. When she noticed it was Kiba, she quickly looked away. That kind of pissed him off because he noticed how she'd look at him. Like he was beneath her.
"You didn't have to look at me like that," he muttered under his breath.
"And you're imagining things," Ino mumbled.
Kiba glanced at her. "My eyes work perfectly well."
"And so does mine." Ino snorted. "Instead of assuming something, ask." Oh, the irony.
"So, why did you look at me like that?"
Ino closed her locker and then turned to Kiba. "I didn't look at you that way. I was just thinking, and I guess I gave that impression."
"What were you thinking about?"
Sighing, Ino crossed her arms. "I know you and Naruto aren't friends anymore, but he keeps messing with Hinata. He's seriously bullying her."
Kiba almost chuckled. If they thought that was bullying, then what Naruto usually does would probably be considered torture. "He'll get bored eventually."
She rolled her eyes. "He needs to get bored now. He keeps messing with Hinata and doesn't leave her alone."
"What do you want me to do about it?"
Ino was taken aback. "He used to be your friend! Can't you talk to him and ask him to leave Hinata alone?"
"Me and Naruto aren't friends anymore, and we probably were never friends to begin with. But even I know not to get in between Naruto and his target when he is in that kind of mood."
All of this made Ino feel hopeless. Kiba was tall and rough-looking, but if he was saying this about Naruto then she could only imagine how ruthless Naruto truly was.
"And if I were you, I would stay out of his business." He added. "Hinata will be fine."
"Fine? How could she be? This is the first semester and the last school year for us. She doesn't need to lose focus because it'll destroy her chances of getting into Konoha University."
Sighing, Kiba closed his locker door. "Ino. I've known Naruto for some time. Trust me when I tell you, Hinata will be fine."
A part of Ino wanted to believe him, and maybe Kiba was right. He had known Naruto for years now and was always by his side, so if anyone knew Naruto it would be Kiba, right?
"I'm kind of glad you're not around him anymore," She admitted.
That surprised Kiba.
Seeing that expression on his face made her laugh. "I'm serious. You're smart, so I never understood why you hung around them."
"Because they were my friends."
"Yeah? How did that work out for you?" Ino questioned, her eyebrow slightly raised.
"Weren't you afraid of me a few months ago?"
"If it's anyone who scares me is Naruto."
"Wow," Kiba muttered, insulted by her confession.
While they were engrossed in their conversation, on the other side of the lockers stood Naruto and Hinata.
He wasn't doing anything, but that only annoyed Hinata. She was grabbing a few books from her locker when he decided to join her.
"Why are you here?" Hinata glared at him. "Didn't I tell you to leave me alone?"
"No good mornings?" He turned his head in her direction. "Oh, where did you go?" He pretended to look around.
Hinata's face turned red. "Baka!"
"Ah, there you are." He said, looking down at her.
His smile widened the more he saw her face had turned a scarlet red color.
"I hate you."
"So does everyone else." He grinned. "Did you bring me lunch?"
"Get your own!"
"But I like your food." Naruto frowned.
"You smeared my sandwich on the table last time."
"And I ate the other half. What's the big deal?" He slung his arm over her. "Come on. Get me a milk carton and I'll leave ya alone."
"You can kiss my ass," Hinata said, shrugging his arm off her.
Naruto shook his head. "You need some soap in your mouth."
"Don't. You. Dare." Hinata threatened.
"It's. Too. Late." Naruto went to her height. The girl struggled to break free from him, but it was impossible.
Kiba and Ino looked in the same direction when they heard a disgruntle. Naruto was pulling Hinata who was struggling to break free from his grasp while spewing profanity at him.
Naruto stumbled to his knees when Hinata managed to kick him in the back of his leg. At her expense, she did fall on her bottom, but it felt good seeing him hunched over in pain.
She got up before he could and jumped on his back. She grabbed a handful of his blonde hair and yanked his hair back.
"What is she doing?!" Ino screamed. She quickly left Kiba and pulled Hinata off Naruto and quickly led her away from the demon and other students.
Naruto got up slowly, rubbing his head. Sensing someone looking at him, he turned his head and spotted Kiba staring at him.
They stared at each other for some time, but Kiba ended up breaking his gaze. That wound was still there, bigger than ever.
Ever since the incident this morning, Ino scolded Hinata every chance she got for being impulsive. If a teacher had seen what happened, Hinata could have been suspended which was not a good track record if she planned on getting into Konoha University.
"Hinata, you have to remember the goal," Ino said, leading her two friends into the cafeteria. "We want to graduate so we can get into Konoha University. Once we get in, we'll share a dorm and be best friends forever."
Sakura nodded. "Yeah! Yeah! Don't go sabotaging our goals. We already planned this out. The three of us are best friends for life."
"But he started it Ino. You even saw it for yourself." Hinata pointed out.
"I understand, Hinata but you should have just run away instead of riding him like a horse."
Sakura's face reddened a second time when Ino explained what happened. "I feel like I'm the one who misses out in these moments." She laughed. "Hinata, why did you ride Naruto like a horse?"
"He had it coming."
Ino didn't find any joke in what was said. Naruto spelled trouble. Hopefully, with them being around a body of students Naruto wouldn't try any funny business. She scanned the cafeteria and her eyes locked onto Kiba who was sitting at the back of the cafeteria by himself. "Let's go over there."
Sakura and Hinata looked at one another suspiciously when they noticed where Ino had led them to.
Kiba looked up when he felt a presence. Ino plopped herself in the seat, and Sakura and Hinata hesitated.
Sighing, they sat across from him.
"Why are you sitting here?" It was clear Kiba was annoyed.
"Because it's far away from everyone else, and hopefully Naruto doesn't see us," Ino answered.
Sakura stared down at her bento box. She knew Kiba and Naruto no longer hung out, but Kiba was still a bully in her eyes. Someone like that doesn't change overnight.
He shrugged his shoulders and he continued to eat on the rice.
Hinata opened her bento box and as always, her food was prepared neatly. The cafeteria food wasn't bad, but she always found pleasure in waking up in the morning and preparing her and Hanabi's bento boxes.
"You know, I'm still having a hard time in Math class," Ino said, taking out her notebook.
"Hinata and I already showed you have to do the formula," Sakura mumbled.
"I know, but I don't know." Ino sighed. "This is going to be on the exam and Math is already my weakness. If I don't do good, I might drop a number and get put in class B."
"We'll help you this afternoon. Maybe we can talk to Kakashi-sensei? He can help you." Sakura said. "And I doubt you're going to drop to Class B."
Kiba looked at the workbook Ino had on the table. "I had the same problem with this formula. See, you did this wrong." He said, pointing to the number. He grabbed a pencil from his pocket and began to scribble the formula on Ino's sheet. "This is how I remember." And so, he explained in a way Ino could understand.
"Seriously?" Ino was baffled. "You made it sound so easy," she said, flipping to the answer sheet in the back of the workbook. And sure enough, Kiba was right.
He shrugged. "My dad is a math whiz, so he makes things easier to understand."
Sakura was slowly eating her riceball while glancing back and forth between Kiba and Ino. She looked comfortable speaking to him. How come? He was a delinquent just like Naruto.
And speaking of the devil.
"Ah, Hinata. I searched high and low for ya." He sat next to Kiba.
The table turned quiet and anyone could feel the tense atmosphere coming from Kiba.
"My lunch. Thank you." He said, grabbing the untouched bento box from her.
Hinata didn't say a word as she watched him eat every bit of her lunch. "Don't mind me. You guys can talk." Naruto said. "I'm just eating my lunch."
But how could they eat? It felt so awkward.
"Kiba, you teaching math class or some shit like that?" Naruto said, noticing Kiba's handwriting on the workbook. "You're always good with stuff like that." He dropped one of the omelets into his mouth.
"I'm leaving," Kiba said, shooting up. He grabbed the lunch tray and quickly left.
Ino felt her shoulders trembling. Just seeing Naruto's face irked her!
"I have to use the bathroom," Sakura said, quickly packing her bento box. Deep down, she was afraid Naruto would chuck her bento box across the room like last time. Ino began to pack up her things too, but she noticed Hinata hadn't attempted to move.
"Hinata?" Ino called out.
"Oh, you two can go without me."
Naruto raised his eyebrow when he saw her devious smile.
"We can stay."
Sakura said.
"No. It's fine. I need to talk to Naruto in private."
Ino sighed under her breath. There was just no speaking to Hinata. Her father always told her some people would have to learn the hard way. "Fine."
Sakura hesitated but decided to follow Ino. Hinata knew what she was doing.
"What's with that smile?" Naruto questioned. He grabbed her juice jug and began to drink the fruit punch juice she had made.
"When was the last time you ate?" Hinata questioned.
"I don't know. Probably yesterday afternoon."
Hearing that answer made her smile widen. "Did you enjoy my lunch, Naruto?"
Just as he was about to eat the remaining hot dog, he looked into her eyes. "I hope you enjoy taking a shit too."
He dropped the hot dog on the table. "What the hell did you do?"
"You'll find out in the next thirty minutes."
"Oi. What does that mean?" Naruto stood up.
"Already have the runs?" Hinata tilted her head to the side.
Suddenly, Naruto felt a strange sensation in his stomach, like a miniature cramp.
"Nobody eats my food and gets away with it." Hinata grinned madly. "Oh, and if I were you, I would probably try to make it home. You're probably going to find there's no tissue in the bathrooms." She intertwined her hands together. "Let the games begin."
Naruto held his stomach as a wave of cramps came on him. "I'm going to fuc—" He squeezed his eyes shut.
"Ah, music to my ears," Hinata said, standing up slowly. "I'll see you later you blonde hair bitch." She grabbed her belongings and walked away.
He sat back down on the chair, holding his stomach. All he could think about was finding a way to kill her.
It was chillier now that fall was here. Rain poured now and then, and the sky looked like it would always tear a new one.
Luckily, tonight didn't rain. Some time had passed since he'd last seen his mom. Work had been much busier now that fall had arrived, so the restaurant was booming. He knew that wasn't an excuse, but he was doing his best to save up as much money as he could so he would be able to afford his apartment when they released her.
Remaining there with his uncle, who didn't even like him, was out of the question. He knew it was his mother's brother, but that man didn't even like her too. None of them did.
His mother was the youngest sibling out of three. Naturally, no one paid attention to her as all of the attention was on their eldest child, her brother. The middle child, her sister, was a snob and only had her eyes on making money and her studies. Kushina was left all alone and became the black sheep of the family. What made matters worse was that she fell pregnant in high school by his father. Despite being so young, they had a real connection and they genuinely cared for and loved one another.
Minato was a grade ahead of her, so he finished school before her. He took on two jobs to support their family like he always dreamed of. When he was only seven, both of his parents died leaving him in the care of his grandpa. Everything was good with their relationship until his grandfather found out he had impregnated a girl. Any inheritance that was for him was given to charity per his grandfather's will.
Even after being kicked out, his father graduated school and still found a way to take care of them. Kushina also got a job to help support, but Minato didn't want that as he wanted her to be with Naruto until it was time for him to start school.
He had plans of marrying her and was saving up to get her the ring she wanted when he was struck down by a community bus. He was only twenty-one when he died.
His mother had saved some money given by the company, but she fell ill so he assumed it went to her hospital bills.
"Naru-chan!"
His head snapped in the direction of the voice. He was just about to enter the hospital when he heard his mother call out to him.
A soft smile landed on his face when he saw his mom smiling brightly at him. She was being wheeled by a raven-haired woman.
"Kaa-san, is it okay for you to be out this late?"
"I was tired of being cooped up in that room, ya know?" She grinned. "Have you gotten taller?"
"Do you think so? I don't feel any taller."
He glanced at the shorter woman standing behind his mother. "Good evening," he bowed.
She bowed. "You must be Kushina's son. You know, she talks about you nonstop." She smiled. "I see what you're saying, Kushina. He is quite handsome."
"I told ya, Miki." Kushina smiled as she stared fondly at her son. "Naru-chan, this is Mikoto. She works at the hospital."
"Oh, are you a new nurse for kaa-san?"
Mikoto laughed. "Oh no. I'm just a cleaner who so happened to meet your mother in the hallway one day."
"It's a pleasure to meet you," Naruto said, gazing at her. For some reason, this woman looked familiar.
"Likewise."
"Do you know Miki has a son who goes to your school, Naru-chan?"
"Oh? What's his name?"
"Sasuke."
Naruto tilted his head to the side. "Sasuke? I don't think I know anyone by that name."
Mikoto placed her hand over her mouth and let out a light chuckle. "Well, that means he's probably blending in. Sasuke doesn't like it when he's noticed."
"Kaa-san."
Naruto froze instantly when he heard that voice.
"Sasuke," Mikoto said, surprisingly. "What are you doing here?"
"You weren't answering your phone, so I came over."
"Oh dear. I lost track of time. I hope I didn't have you waiting long for me."
Sasuke walked up the steps. His mother had always been forgetful. It wasn't always like this, and he knew he couldn't blame her.
She clasped her hands together. "Kushina, this is my son Sasuke. I'm so glad we all got to meet."
Kushina's eyes twinkled. "Miki, he's a splitting image of you!" she exclaimed excitedly.
Mikoto couldn't help but laugh. "Sasuke, this is Kushina my friend who I was talking about."
Sasuke bowed at the woman in the wheelchair. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
"And this here is her son, Naruto."
Hearing that name made Sasuke snap his head in the direction his mother was pointing at.
"Oh, that's—"
At the speed of light, Sasuke covered Naruto's mouth and pulled him to the far end of the hospital.
"What the hell?" Naruto spat. He wiped his mouth.
Sasuke took a deep breath. "Keep your mouth shut and don't mention anything about me working that job. Do you understand me?" He glared at Naruto.
"Why the hell would I bring up something like that? And what the hell! Your name is Sasuke?" He scoffed.
"What the hell did you think my name was?" He barked. "We go to the same school and work the same job."
Naruto shrugged. "I don't care to know people's names."
"Just keep your mouth shut and I'll keep my mouth shut about how you act in school. Got it?"
"I wasn't going to bring anything up," Naruto mumbled.
They glared at each other before returning to their mothers. "Sorry about that," Sasuke said. "We had to discuss an assignment given to us."
"I thought you didn't know Sasuke," Kushina pointed out.
"Kaa-san, you know I'm not good at remembering names," Naruto whined. "Of course, I know Sasuke."
Mikoto smiled. "Well Naruto, I hope it's not too much to ask but can you look out for my son? He isn't a people person, but I'm glad to know he has someone like you in his life. I've never seen him so energetic before."
Sasuke's face turned red.
"And I hope Sasuke can also take care of Naru-chan. He can be a little troublemaker,"
"Kaa-san!" Naruto cried, throwing his hand up.
Sasuke glanced at Naruto and was surprised to see him act this way. His face was genuinely happy around his mother like it was around that strange Hyuga girl.
"Perhaps, we can all eat dinner one day," Mikoto suggested, her smile was uplifting.
Sasuke was surprised to see his mother smile that way. It had been quite some time since he saw that twinkle in her eyes.
There had been a time when his mother used to smile like that but as the years went by her smile faded.
"That would be nice," Kushina smiled. "Naru-chan, you should head home. It's already late out."
"I'll leave once I make sure you're inside," Naruto said, grabbing the handles of the wheelchair. "It's a pleasure meeting you," He bowed once more at the old woman.
"Take it easy, Naruto. I'll see you tomorrow, Kushina."
Mikoto watched as Naruto wheeled his mother inside. When the sliding door closed, she let out a soft sigh. "I feel so sorry for them,"
"What's the matter? Is his mother ill?" Sasuke took his mother's purse and the two walked side by side on their way to the bus stop.
"She isn't. Kushina has been in and out of the hospital for some time. Right now, she has an infection in her blood. That poor boy," Mikoto mumbled. "I can only imagine how she feels. She's so young to be going through this."
Sasuke remained quiet. He always hated how life wasn't fair. Although he had a stoic approach, deep down Sasuke had a caring side. He already knew what it felt like to watch the person you loved slowly fade away. Naruto probably had it rough growing up, so it was no wonder he acted this way.
"You don't have to pity him, Sasuke but we already know what it feels to lose someone. I'm not going to force you to be friends with someone but look out for him. He looks like a sweet boy, and it seems you've taken a liking to him," The corner of her lips tugged up.
"Mom." Sasuke groaned.
"I'm just saying," She grinned. "I got paid today, so let's get some beef to go."
"Yeah. Beef sounds good." He muttered.
Although she hated to admit it, seeing Naruto every day was becoming a custom routine. If he didn't meet her at the school gates, he would be at her locker. This had been the much she had seen him in school since the year began. He didn't learn his lesson during that laxative-bento incident, and he still took her lunch! As many times as they fought about it, that didn't deter him. Eventually, she had to make a second lunch for her.
Students and teachers were slowly getting used to seeing them together.
After school, he waited for her to tease her to her cram school. The boy was dedicated to making her life hell! Students from cram school started talking amongst themselves when they spotted the delinquent sitting outside, waiting. They figured he was there to beat someone up, but surprisingly he had waited for that blunt Hyuga girl.
Iruka didn't know what it was or if his prayers were answered, but he was glad to see Naruto attending school more. Now only if he could put some focus into his books, everything would be terrific!
Kurenai was upset because Hinata's reputation was being smeared the more she hung around Naruto. One day Ino and Sakura approached her to express their worries, so she had no choice but to talk to Hinata.
"He doesn't want to leave me alone, Kurenai-sensei." Hinata groaned.
"That's considered harassment, Hinata. Being around Naruto, or even having his name attached to yours isn't going to do you any good."
They were currently sitting outside on one of the benches during lunchtime.
"I'm fine, Kurenai-sensei. I can take care of myself."
Kurenai sighed. "I know you can, Hinata. But I've had countless students express their concerns."
"You mean Sakur and Ino." Hinata commented.
"They're just worried about you. We can always submit a complaint to the school's office."
"Kurenai, I said I'm fine." She was visibly upset. "If I wanted to report Naruto, then I would have."
"Do you like this boy?" Kurenai's eyes widened in shock.
"No!" Hinata shot up. "Never in a million years! He irritates me and I just want to punch him in his face, but I can handle it myself. I've done it for so long and I'll continue to do it."
"Hinata," Kurenai said softly. "There are a lot of rumors spreading like wildfire."
"That's nothing new, Kurenai. Please drop it." Hinata said, grabbing her belongings.
Kurenai watched as Hinata marched angrily away. She made it sound so easy, but it wasn't. Hinata was like the daughter she never had.
Where Naruto usually sat was empty. Hinata stared awkwardly at the empty spot. Sighing, she turned on her heels and walked down the empty sidewalk by herself. It seems Naruto was back to his routine of skipping classes. Ever since the talk with Kurenai-sensei, Naruto hadn't bothered her or even shown up to school. She wrongly accused Kurenai of meddling in her affairs, but the raven-haired woman was confused. As much as she detested Naruto, she respected Hinata's boundaries. Hinata left the teacher's room, flushed, when Kurenai informed her, that she had no idea what she was talking about. Two weeks without Naruto being present should have been a vacation, but she had grown used to him being around and making a separate bento box for him. Well, it was good news if he decided to leave her. That's what she thought, but why did she feel the opposite?
"Must be Stockholm syndrome," She muttered.
The walk was lonesome, but it's not like she wasn't used to it. When she had made it to her home, she looked towards the sky and saw the stars twinkling above. Now that fall was here, they had switched to their autumn uniforms. She preferred the cold days because, on days like this, her mother used to make them hot chocolate. She had her very own recipe, something Hinata never had the chance to get.
Deep down, she knew about the verbal abuse her mother had received from her father but why couldn't she take them too? She claimed to love them, so why did she leave without saying goodbye?
At least a call would have sufficed, but instead, she had to hear from her grandparents that her mother had married into another wealthy family.
Hinata pushed the door open to her home and noticed it was quiet. She did recall Hanabi texting her that she would be late from cram school, and that her father and Saya would be out to a business meeting.
Great! That meant she had some time to herself.
The noise from her feet echoed throughout the house as she walked upstairs. She didn't care for the noise she was making since she was the only one at home. Pushing her room door open, she placed her school bag next to her study station.
"Did you have to make a ruckus coming upstairs?"
Hinata slowly turned around and her eyes widened in shock when she saw Naruto lying on top of her bed.
"And what took you so long? Cram school ended forty-five minutes ago." He put down one of her mangas he had been reading.
"How did you get inside my house?!" Hinata shouted.
"Rich people don't believe in locking their doors, apparently," He shrugged. "I'm hungry."
Naruto tilted his head to the side when he saw Hinata glaring at him. "What?"
"What do you mean what! You can't just break into someone's house! That's jail time."
A slight chuckle left Naruto. "I didn't break in. The door was unlocked. And this isn't just somebody's house. It's yours."
"You have to leave!" Hinata said, grabbing Naruto by his arm.
"But I'm hungry," He whined. "Geez. I thought you would be a little excited to see me since I haven't been to school in a while."
Hinata twirled around. "And whose fault is that?" She threw her hands in the air. "And why haven't you been to school?"
"I've been working."
She wanted to give him the "yeah right" face, but looking into his eyes she could tell he was serious. A lot of students had a part-time job, but that didn't mean they skipped school.
"You should seriously get your priorities in order." Hinata scolded him. "Isn't school better than this job that's causing you to miss work?"
The scolding she wore made Naruto laugh, but that didn't deter Hinata. She had her arms crossed, and she tapped her foot on the carpeted ground as she waited for his response.
"But my priorities are in order. This job is more important than school." Naruto finally answered.
"What about five years from now? Ten years? Don't you have a goal for yourself?"
Naruto hadn't thought about it. He'd just assumed he would be either living alone or dead. He shrugged. "Not really."
Hinata was mortified to know someone didn't care about their future. "A lot of doors will open up for you with a degree."
He couldn't help but roll his eyes. "You're beginning to sound like Iruka-sensei."
Hearing Iruka's name made Hinata realize something. "You and Iruka-sensei are close, huh?"
"I guess," Naruto mumbled.
"The school is going to kick you out if you don't get your act together."
"Awe, are you going to miss me?" He laughed.
Hinata stared at him in disgust. "Don't flatter yourself."
"If you say so," Naruto said, taking a seat on the edge of Hinata's bed.
"Hey! Hey! You need to leave! Don't get comfortable." Hinata frowned. She tried to grab him by the arm, but he was too strong to move. Strange. She had managed to grab him earlier.
"I'm hungry," Naruto said, pretending to faint on the bed. He placed the back of his hand over his forehead and peeked through one eye to see Hinata's expression.
Hinata's fist trembled to see him sprawled across her bed. For a second there, her heart skipped a beat when she saw his white t-shirt raised, slightly.
"Onee-chan! I'm home,"
Naruto watched as Hinata's soul left her body and that made him snicker.
"Is that your sister?"
"Shush!"
His blue eyes followed her movement as she swiftly rushed to the door. Slowly, she opened it just a little bit to see Hanabi staring at her.
"What is it, Hanabi?"
"I have some news for you! I finally spoke to him." She intertwined her hands together; hearts entered her eyes. "I was like, you drop your pen, and he said thanks."
Hinata's shoulders trembled as she could hear Naruto holding in his laughter.
"What's wrong?"
"Oh, it's nothing. I'm a little tired. Can you tell me everything tomorrow, Hanabi?"
Hanabi nodded. "I have to tell Megumi what happened too."
"Good night, Hanabi."
Smiling, Hanabi rushed into her room across the hall. Sighing in relief, Hinata closed the door, and just as she turned around her heart dropped to the pits of her stomach. Naruto was standing right behind her. Her back pressed against the wooden door, and she couldn't look away from him. His eyes were staring into the depths of her soul.
"Feed me." He smiled.
"Fine, but after you're done eating you need to leave."
Content, Naruto jumped on the bed and picked up the manga book. When he heard her leave the room, he placed the manga book on his chest and stared at the ceiling. He wasn't even hungry.
Hinata watched as Naruto looked at the ramen suspiciously. "There's no laxative in there… this time. I'm not stupid because knowing you, you would have probably shit on my bed."
"Wow~" Naruto sang. "You know me quite well."
She sat on the chair and began to flip through some of her schoolwork. It was hard to concentrate on her work because one, there was a guy in her room, and two, it was Naruto.
"Do you just study?" Naruto asked. "Why don't you ever hang out with your friends after school? I saw them earlier going to a karaoke."
Hinata looked over her shoulder at Naruto. "They went to karaoke?"
"Yup," He made a popping sound with his mouth. "Aren't you three amigos?"
"We are. I had cram school, so I couldn't go anyway," She muttered.
"Well, at least they could have invited you." He slurped up some noodles.
Hinata twirled around in the chair to face Naruto. "What about you and Kiba? Weren't you two amigos?"
"I guess."
"So, what happened?"
"He talks shit about his mom and complains all the time about his home life," Naruto responded.
"And you ended a friendship over that?"
"No. I mean, it pisses me off when he talks shit about his family, but whatever relationship we had was bound to end and this was the right chance."
Hinata was stunned by Naruto's confession. The boy never held anything back and seemed to be honest when she asked him questions.
"Why?"
Naruto wiped the ramen juice from his mouth. "If you haven't noticed, Kiba is smart. Real smart. He's lazy and hates school, but he can make something out of himself and take over his family clinic one day. Being around people like us isn't going to do him any good."
That response honestly surprised Hinata. "I think he's a little hurt. He usually sits by himself."
"He'll make new friends and get over it."
"Is family important to you?"
Naruto let out a sigh. "My mom is the only important person to me. The rest of my family can kick rocks."
It was obvious Naruto was hurt, and Hinata could tell by the way his eyes lowered. "Well, you have a mom so cherish her. Some moms leave their kids behind and forget about them completely."
"I figured that's what your mom did to you."
"Yeah, but she had her reasons." Her eyes shifted to the outside window.
Surprisingly, Naruto was quite easy to talk to.
"Well, I'm leaving," Naruto said, standing up.
Hinata shot up. "You can't leave through the front door! My dad may see you."
"You don't expect me to leave through your window," Naruto scoffed.
"Yes, you will." Something was pleading about her tone, which made Naruto roll his eyes.
"Whatever," He mumbled.
Hinata followed him to her bedroom window. They faced one another, and she hated that she had to look up at him.
"Are you going to be in school tomorrow?" She asked.
"Probably not. I might just drop out sooner or later." He already had one of his legs out of the window. "At this point, I'm just honestly going to school to mess with ya."
"Please don't." She frowned. "Kurenai-sensei and my friends are already concerned with you bullying me."
"Bullying? Wow~" he whistled. "You must be one lucky girl if they consider that bullying," he chuckled. "If you want me to come to school tomorrow, then just say it."
"Over my dead body." Hinata lashed out. "Leave!" She whispered angrily.
"Same place, same time?" He grinned.
"No, and you better not show up in my room anymore."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Good night, Ms. Hyuga."
Hinata chewed down on her bottom lip as she refused to continue to acknowledge him.
Now that he was gone, her room didn't feel as lively as it did.
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