AN/ Hi everyone, thank you all for your follows and favorites. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get the next chapter out, but it's here now! Enjoy!
Hinata did not have a chance to find out if Naruto managed to meet with Sakura's parents to inform them of the unfortunate news, it being an inevitable consequence of his absence from work since their return from the onsen trip. A week after they're return, all that had been communicated to the team by a stern looking Kakashi, was that Sakura was on sick leave and would remain that way until her recovery was adequate enough to sustain her journey back from the coast.
She hadn't intended to look for him, but like the tide's pull to the gravity of the moon, she couldn't help herself as she craned her neck every morning at the double doors as they opened to let in more and more staff but none were the tall, broad and blonde one she instinctively sought. When questioning herself Hinata had no answer as to why she was so keen to see him again, of course she knew she was still in love with him, and she felt that the recent events had likely changed his opinion of her, but she had made up her mind during that tearful conversation with Kiba that she would take measures to stop being in pain, so she knew her current actions were guiltily counterproductive.
She expected nothing, and yet she felt she was bordering on the cusp of something. Shaking her head she returned to her keyboard and neat desktop, she knew she was being foolish. Naruto was an honorable man, who currently had a girlfriend, Hinata knew she couldn't be in his sights or even on his radar, and if she were, she squirmed in pleasured guilt at the thought, it wouldn't be fair to Sakura who she had last seen unconscious, with a dislocated shoulder and a shade away from death's grasp.
Two weeks passed by in this way, Hinata wanted to ask her boss if he knew anything about Naruto's absence, but she did not have the courage to verbalize her concern to Kakashi. Kiba, on the other hand, seemed to read her perfectly. On their return he had been very happy to be rejoined with his own girlfriend and initially Hinata hadn't heard or seen him for the first week back, but then he emerged from his hibernation and entered a rather persistent protective mode around her.
"He's not here."
Hinata shifted her eyes away from him, blushing slightly, "I know."
"Then why do you keep looking for him every morning?" He wore a disapproving frown on his face, "he doesn't deserve it."
"You don't know him like I do."
"People change over time, Hinata. He's definitely moved on." But Hinata wasn't so sure of that, her mind replayed possibly for the hundredth time, his fierceness at Lee's house, and his addresses to her on the train. "I know what you're thinking, he has definitely moved on Hinata."
"I'm not saying he hasn't. And I don't want to cause trouble. I know when I'm not wanted." Something in the way the words fell out of her mouth made her feel disconsolate.
"Have you given in your notice?"
Hinata squirmed, despite resolving to do so, she hadn't been able to make the necessary communication with her seniors, especially with Naruto's absence, like cutting off the last strings of hope, Hinata was hoping to delay it for as long as possible. She told herself she would commit to her decision once she saw Natuto was back and well, but she knew deep in the chemistry of her liver that if left to her own devices, she would delay the separation for as long as possible. She sighed and answered her friend in the negative.
"I don't want to see you go either, but this is not healthy. You're setting yourself up for heartache," Hinata wanted to retort that she was quite used to heartache, but she knew she wouldn't ever be immune to the pain, "you deserve to be with someone who actually wants you and acts like a fucking adult."
This made Hinata's head to snap up from her computer screen, "of course he acts like an adult." The fire to defend him was ripe in her stomach.
"No, he doesn't. An adult doesn't flirt with two women at the same time only to take months and months on end to decide if he wants to actually date either of them, and then only take the one left that is available. A real adult knows what he wants and goes for it. A real adult would be sensitive to any ex lovers around him and not lead them on when his girlfriend is in the hospital from almost dying!"
"Uzumaki-san has not lead me on, he's not said anything to me that was inappropriate."
Kiba bore into her eyes, "Then I dare you to tell me you haven't been thinking of what he said to you back at Lee-san's house." Hinata lowered her defensive gaze almost immediately. It was true, she had been reflecting a lot on Naruto's compliments, she had so few that the ones she had she nursed them at her heart, the thought brought back a sadness she could not contain and her soul let slip a tear from her eye. The sight altered Kiba's behavior considerably as he lowered his voice and softly said, "It's difficult seeing you torn like this. You really deserve to be happy, I don't know if you've waited for him all that time, but the harsh truth is he's not waiting for you." Her breath left her in a shudder that left her whole body humming in hurt, "I don't want to upset you, but hanging around here waiting for him is not going to do you any favours. You need to be selfish for a change and do what you need to do for yourself." With a new but forlorn resolve, Hinata nodded her head, she would put in her resignation letter that afternoon.
The letter was written, and Kiba walked with her to Kakashi's office as she laid it down on his desk, before turning around, shrugging her handbag onto her shoulder and making her way out the room without looking back.
But Fate seemed to laugh at her the next morning when Naruto himself finally appeared through the beige double doors. Hinata's heart fluttered in response, but she put months of practice into use by averting her eyes and getting back to setting up her desk for work. However, her routine wavered when Naruto made his way towards her, and Hinata thought she would go mad and run away. She need not do anything though, because by the time he was three feet in front of her, his mouth opened and closed like a goldfish, his blue eyes seemed to swim in uncertainty, and without saying a word he turned away from Hinata's questioning gaze and left. Stunned, she remained wide eyed but didn't make eye contact with Ino who very evidently wanted to talk about the odd incident, instead she carried on tending to emails with automatic fingers but a very occupied mind.
She observed that Naruto appeared well, his hair was a little disheveled as opposed to it's generally well groomed state. He didn't look like the heartbroken boyfriend of a woman about to die, so perhaps they would expect good news about Sakura soon. But why would he make his way towards her? What was he about to say? Why didn't he say it? Perhaps he wasn't even coming towards her, maybe he wanted to say something to Ino-San, but he had looked directly at her. Hinata shook her head, Kiba was right, this wasn't healthy.
The next fortnight passed by in a mode Hinata could only describe as an amalgamation of cliffhanger suspense and strange unexplained events. She remained her reserved self, speaking only on matters of work to Naruto and only when necessary, which were few and far between. But Naruto seemed not to follow the same protocol. She could not concretely say, but Hinata felt he was around her more, he certainly was on her floor more often than she remembered and whether it were a lunch time gathering or a team meeting, he seemed to sit closer to her than she could recall. He certainly looked at her more often, but maybe that was because she was looking at him more often too?
Several times he would walk up to her in the mornings and then turn around without saying anything, but at least three times he did manage to compliment her indirectly by motioning during a team meeting his recommendation for Hinata to perform a task backed up by his "belief that Huuga-san has the best skills for the job." Hinata shivered in pleasured flattery at the memory of his words, a light blush meeting the apple of her cheeks. Kiba would notice the subtle smile lingering on her lips and shake his head in disapprobation.
Hinata couldn't understand Naruto's altered behavior, but she was confident that he thought more favorably of her, the thought of which made her soul feel lighter than it had ever been in over a decade. Her improved happiness abruptly halted and sunk to an anxious low when, the next day, Sakura arrived back from her month long sick leave. Unable to contain herself Hinata observed the little she could of Naruto upon the new arrival, he appeared agitated too, something which made Hinata furrow her eyebrows in both confusion and concern. When Hinata could admit to herself that she could glean no meaningful inferences from the fleeting glances towards her senior, she turned her reflections onto Sakura herself.
The pink haired bubbly girl was no more, instead lay a calmer, more serious woman in her stead. The change was so marked Hinata could barely believe the same soul remained behind the beautiful emerald eyes. But more than that, Sakura appeared nervous, she didn't jump at loud noises, but her happy carefree disposition had awoken from its place of ignorance and metamorphosed into gratitude from a place of trauma. As the lunch hour approached, Hinata noticed with a thrill she knew she shouldn't feel, the spiked blonde hair and confident gait of Naruto, at first she thought he were approaching her desk as he had done before on so many mornings over the past two weeks, only to chastise herself for being incredibly foolish when he made a sharp turn from her desk to Sakura's.
"Hey Sakura" said he, Sakura looked startled as though surprised to see him,
"Oh, I wasn't expecting you yet, not for a few more minutes."
He shrugged his suit clad shoulders "I managed to finish what I needed to get done a bit earlier. Want to go for lunch? It will be quieter now than later." This seemed to spark Sakura's eyes and she consented by taking her coat immediately and the two walked side by side as they made their way towards the double door on their way out of the building.
Hinata was feeling borderline astonished at the encounter, since when did Sakura ever not exceed excitement at seeing Naruto? Hinata could never remember a time her pink haired colleague didn't gush over her blonde one. Perhaps the fall had changed Sakura on levels Hinata could only speculate at. Hinata wondered what their lunch rendezvous would be like. But nothing could astonish her more than the behaviors of both upon their return from lunch.
Sakura appeared much more relaxed and comfortable, she even wore a serene smile and her eyes sparkled, she had evidently good news, Hinata at first assumed Naruto had affirmed his affection for her, but that analysis was completely at odds when the man himself appeared shortly after Sakura and made his way towards their corner of desks.
Not wanting to make the same mistake, Hinata averted her eyes towards her computer and told herself sternly he was only going to see Sakura, maybe about something he forgot to mention earlier, maybe for a date and time for their next date. She noted before deflecting her gaze that he was absolutely beaming and appeared more relaxed, better than relaxed, he seemed incredibly happy. Her heart thumped loudly in her ears as she heard his footsteps approach, any minute now he would make that turn to Sakura's station. But the turn never came, instead she could see his shiny black shoes a foot away from her ergonomic chair. Not daring to believe he was standing there for her, she still didn't look up, a beat passed, then a second.
"Huuga-san?" His voice could scratch her skin if she willed it, it sounded hesitant, could he be feeling nervous? She didn't know what to do, but at the shade of a plea in his voice she looked up towards him. Had his eyes always been so blue?
"Erm… yes Uzumaki-san?" He probably needed her to do some work task.
"How are you?" Never had he asked her such a personal question since their reunion. The confusion was therefore mounting, but he looked joyful, confident.
"Uhh… I'm well." She answered, wondering if this was some sort of test she was passing or failing.
"That's good," he began, and then without warning he smiled a brilliant smile, and she was so grateful she were sitting down, "I just wanted to let you know I'm happy." Hinata couldn't piece any constructive meaning from this simple declaration that she said nothing at all, he stood there for a few moments, appearing to debate whether to say more, but his eyes shifted towards Sakura for a moment then back at Hinata, all warmth directed at her, a promise lingering in their blue depths. She withheld a shudder, it was almost like his gaze could touch her. And without another word he turned around and walked away.
What on earth had just happened? He had come up to her, voluntarily, and said he was happy! So shocked and at a loss was she, that she turned to her two colleagues for some kind of a hint of an explanation.
"Don't look at me," said Ino, "I'm just as stumped as you are." Hinata then moved her questioning eyes to Sakura.
"I'm glad he's not angry, but I can't explain why he's so obviously happy." Said Sakura, a tinge of bitterness in her tone.
"Why would you think he would be angry?"
Sakura squirmed a little, "Well, it's bound to get around sooner rather than later, you're better off hearing it straight from the horse's mouth." Hear what from the horse's mouth? Hinata wanted to scream her agitation but decided patience would be the better course of action, Sakura was twiddling her fingers in her lap.
"Spit it out already Sakura!" Interjected Ino, not one for patience.
"Well, I expected him to be angry because, well, before the accident we had agreed to start dating, but after the accident I sort of got on well with Sasuke-kun, then he asked me out. And… and I said yes."