She stood before her father who was looking at her with serious eyes. She had been summoned to her childhood home for a meeting with her father and she dressed in her best—excluding her business attire—and rushed right over.

"Hinata, I've been sent a proposal from Sasuke Uchiha. You mentioned a second date, but I was unaware it had gotten so serious. You were so against getting married. What made you change your mind?" He asked.

Hinata, sitting across from him with her back straight and posture proper, smiled nervously. "Mr. Uchiha made me laugh," she said. "He made me feel comfortable enough and treated me with respect…and he is very good-looking."

"I see. So you think he'll make a good husband for you?" She nodded. "Then it looks like you'll be getting married."

"You approve, father?"

"He's an Uchiha. Your marriage with him will bring positive publicity to our family name, especially since you decided to be a writer of such filth. Your marriage to him will be a good thing," he explained. Hinata's brow twitched at the mention of her career but it was better than when he kicked her out when he discovered her profession and exactly what she was writing. Despite his utter distaste for it, Hinata looked up at the bookshelf that was right behind him and saw all the books she had published. He was proud in his own way and she was willing to accept that.

"Thank you, Father."

"That being said. Your marriage will take place in two months. We have a wedding planner who will take care of everything, but of course, you should check in with Sasuke's mother to see if there's anything she would like to add."

"Yes, I will visit their household soon to meet his family. What day will work for you to meet him?" She asked.

"He will be here tomorrow night for dinner," he replied. "The wedding planning needs to begin soon, so I suggest doing some research tonight to bring up with the wedding planner. You're only going to get married once. I suggest you pour your whole heart into it."

"Yes, Father. I already have some ideas in mind," she said.

"Very good. That'll be all. Dinner will be tomorrow at six."

She left her father's house feeling the weight on her shoulders. Two months was too soon and left little time to plan the big wedding they wanted. She was positive they would've set the wedding for a week if it was possible because they were afraid she was going to change her mind. She pulled out her phone and sent a text to her fiancé.

Dinner tomorrow at 6 p.m. The wedding will be in two months.

I just received your father's reply. I'll be there. I talked with my family and my mother is excited to meet you. I'll introduce you this weekend.

Am I the smitten fiancée or…?

I think you can just be yourself.

Understood. I will see you tomorrow.

She pocketed her phone and got in her car to return home. She turned the music up a little louder than it should've been but she was able to clear her head and that's what she wanted.

That night, while she was working on her latest book, she received a phone call from Sasuke. Confused, she hesitantly picked it up.

"Hello?" She answered.

"It's me. I was wondering what I should bring as a gift for your father. I'm at the store right now. I don't want to go overboard but I also don't want it to be underwhelming," Sasuke said. His voice sounded different through the phone, deeper and smoother.

"Ah, my father enjoys red wine quite a bit. As far as I know, he still has a glass every night before bed."

"As far as you know?" There was a sigh in his voice that Hinata realized meant he was a bit annoyed.

"Yes, that's right. I left home when I was eighteen, so I can't say positively that he still does it. What I do know is that my father is a creature of habit."

"That's good enough for me. My mother is practically bouncing off the walls, she's looking forward to meeting you. My brother is also coming into town in order to meet you."

"Oh, that sounds nice. I can't wait to meet them either. What kind of gift shall I get your parents?" She asked as she pulled out her to-do list and grabbed a pen.

"My mother likes handmade gifts like baked goods and so on. My father has an odd collection of ties." Hinata wrote diligently.

"Should I get a gift for your brother?"

"It's not necessary. Unless you feel I should get something for your siblings? Do you have any?"

"I have a younger sister. She's studying abroad, though. I'd still like to get something for your brother."

"Itachi likes The Beatles, weirdly."

Hinata giggled. "I don't think that's weird. I have all their records on vinyl. I have the perfect gift for him, then."

"Their music is too cheery for me."

"Then you must only be listening to their stuff from the beginning of their careers. I recommend listening to their older stuff, from right before they disbanded," she said.

"I don't really have time for music."

"That's fair. Okay, for our next date, I'll play one of their songs."

Sasuke sighed. "Fine."

"You can say no, Mr. Uchiha. I'm not going to twist your arm about it," she assured him, grinning to herself.

"I'll listen to it. Also, you should probably just call me Sasuke," he said suddenly. "It'd be better to seem like we have a strong connection already because my father was a bit suspicious."

"That's funny. My father was the same way. I just explained to him that you made me laugh and you respect me, and he was sold."

"That sort of makes it seem like you're too easy to please, doesn't it?"

"I think the bar is on the floor for me. My father easily accepted it." Hinata stifled a yawn. "Well, I'm going to head to bed. I've been staring at my computer screen since I got home earlier. I'll see you tomorrow, Sasuke."

"Yeah. Have a good night…Hinata," he said and then quickly hung up. Hinata snickered at her phone. Sasuke seemed awfully shy to her sometimes, maybe a little awkward as well, but she found it endearing.


The next day, before dinner, Hinata went to the store to shop for Sasuke's parents. She had her earphones in so no one would bother her as she shopped, and looked closely at the ties they had in stock. For his mother, she decided to knit her a scarf since winter was coming up fast and she had something in her storage for Itachi that she needed to clean properly before gifting it to him.

It felt weird to her that she was now an engaged woman. The last time she thought she was getting married, she was seventeen. Again, she pushed that memory away and continued on her errands.

[Picture received] What do you think about this one?

Hinata stared at the picture of a bottle of red wine.

Yes, that looks good. [Picture sent] What about this for your father?

She was excited to see his reaction to a light blue tie filled with yellow ducks on it. Clearly, she wasn't going to get it but she wanted to mess with him a little bit.

My father will call off the wedding if you do that

Then you'll be happy to know that I chose a different one

Good. My father doesn't have a sense of humor. But my mother does.

That means you want me to get that tie to make your mom laugh, doesn't it?

Does it?

With a hefty sigh, Hinata went back into the store to grab that tie. Sasuke's mother better laugh or she was going to make him wear it. Hinata went home to get ready for the dinner and didn't check her phone the rest of the afternoon until she was already at her father's house.

"Did you end up getting that tie?" Hinata jumped and turned around to see Sasuke walking up to her as she was heading to the front door.

"Did I?" She replied, grinning.

Sasuke's lips twitched with a smile. "I told my closest friends about the wedding. They'll be driving in to stay with me while we plan for it. They want to get to know you or something like that," he explained.

"It'll be wonderful to meet them."

Sasuke knocked on the door and they were instantly greeted by a maid who welcomed them in.

"Are any of your friends driving in?" He asked.

"I have a friend who will be flying in closer to the wedding date. She has a demanding job. A few others live nearby. I'm sure they'll want to meet you when I tell them about it," she said.

He raised a brow. "You haven't told them yet?"

"I've been very busy trying to make my deadline. All my free time goes into my writing."

They were led to the dining room where her father was waiting for them. The older man stood and greeted them. He seemed pleased that they happened to come together and Hinata wasn't about to burst his bubble by telling him the truth, so she stayed quiet as he and Sasuke exchanged pleasantries.

"It's wonderful to meet you, Sasuke. Someone who can make my daughter settle down is very rare," he said.

Sasuke shook his hand firmly. "She's certainly…something else, but I appreciate that about her," he replied. He was good at faking it. Sasuke held the gift out. "I brought this for you, sir. I hope you enjoy it."

Hiashi took the gift and thanked him. "Red wine is my favorite, and I was running low. I appreciate this, thank you." Sasuke bowed his head and they took their seats as dinner was served. It wasn't much longer before Hiashi was talking about the wedding.

"Yes, I was told it was going to be held in two months," Sasuke said.

"Will that be a problem for you or your family?"

"Not at all. Is there a day that comes to mind?"

"We were thinking November 15th," Hiashi replied. "It'll be getting colder but the wedding will be indoors, so I don't think we need to worry about that."

"November 15th will be perfect. Hinata and I will be visiting my parents this weekend and I will tell them then."

"I will be inviting Sasuke's mother to help plan it with us," Hinata chimed in. She smiled up at Sasuke. "Do you think she'll be interested?"

"I believe she'll definitely jump at that opportunity," he answered.

"Before this goes any further, Sasuke, I want to make sure you know about Hinata's profession," her father stated.

"I don't mind the work she does. I think she's a very talented author."

Hinata looked up at him in surprise. "You've…read my work?"

He nodded. "Yes. I thought it would be best if I was familiar with it." Hinata's heart swelled and she thanked him sincerely. Hiashi watched this exchange with a soft expression. After what happened with her last relationship, he had been afraid she was going to be known as a spinster. This moment in front of him told him differently. He was glad.

The rest of dinner went by smoothly and they were both out the front door by eight.

"That wasn't too bad," Sasuke said. "Your father is a very intelligent man and he seems to care very deeply for you."

"Yes, he's a changed man and I'm thankful. I'm also glad you seemed to enjoy yourself," she added. "I look forward to meeting your family and friends."

Though he looked as though he wanted to ask questions, Hinata could see him holding back. "My friends will be getting in this weekend as well, but you'll be meeting them sometime next week once the wedding preparations begin," he stated instead.

"Will either of them like to help or be involved with the planning?" She asked.

"I'll have to ask. I'll let you know."

Hinata unlocked her car. "Okay. Have a good night, Sasuke."

"You, too."


Hi! We hope y'all enjoyed this chapter :) There's gonna be some serious drama happening before the story very much calms down and progresses faster. This fic was something I wrote as a spur-of-the-moment thing when I hit a block with Team Harmony, and I think that kinda shows ;-; At any rate, I hope this can still bring someone joy!

-hina
NEXT UPDATE: 10/04/24

Remember to check out the links on our profile :)) I'm sending out invitations every night to those who RSVP (again, we know it's probably silly but we think it's fun and we're happy to be getting as many as we are!)