So all he had to do was try again, huh?

Lee's drunken blunder had managed to get swept under the rug and no one aside from Sakura knew about it. She was acting like it didn't happen which made Lee feel terrible. It was probably worse than her being angry at him. But she allowed him another chance and this time he was not going to blow it!

One night he was watching TV with the girls. Or at least trying to.

The girls were watching TV while Lee and Guy were training in the yard. Lee did his best to catch glimpses of the sappy romance show that was playing and came up with his grand plan. He would ask Sakura on a date, it was so simple, so natural... He was stupid not to think of it before. It only made sense for a youth like him to ask a girl out on a date.

The nervous glances at one another...

Sweaty palms for hand holding...

Butterflies in his stomach, making him want to puke.

These thoughts kept him awake at night. He turned to see Guy sleeping next to him. His Sensei taught him as much as a could another martial arts, life, and women but Lee never got to the point of learning about asking a girl out.

He knew plenty about what to do on a date and what was appropriate for a date and then some; probably way more than he needed to know at his youthful age. But the point of getting there? That was the hard part.

Reaching over, Lee gave Guy a shake. "Guy Sensei..." He whisper-yelled, "wake up."

Nothing.

Lee shook him harder. "Sensei are you still asleep?"

"Yes."

"O— wait a moment. How are you asleep if you responded to me?"

Guy turned to look at the boy. "Dammit, Lee. What could you possibly want at this time? If it has nothing to do with training, then go back to sleep. Your body needs to rest too."

Lee fiddled with his fingers. "I was just wondering... How does one ask a girl out on a date?"

Guy's eyes softened. "Oh Lee... That's what's keeping you up?"

Lee nodded. "Mhm..."

Guy gave a sigh and reached out to pet Lee on the head. "You don't need to worry so much. All you have to do is just ask."

Lee cherished the touch. He might not have a father, but Guy was the closest thing he had to one. "Oh Guy Sensei, your infinite wisdom never ceases to amaze me."

Chuckling, Guy retracted his hand and retreated under the covers. "I know it does. Now go to sleep."

Lee spent the next few days preparing for his date with Sakura, making sure that everything was going to be perfect. He asked Ino about the type of flowers he should get and asked Hinata for hints about where he should take Sakura. He went to Guy Sensei for any last minute advice about dating before he would finally ask Sakura out.

He did everything he could except check the forecast.

Lee knocked on Sakura's door, hiding the flowers he had got her behind his back. After very careful deliberation over his options, Lee had decided to get her heart shaped flowers by the name of bleeding hearts. He wanted to give Sakura a representation of his youthful compassionate and unconditional love for her.

"Just a minute!"

Perspiration formed on his palms, making it harder to hold onto the pot. Please open the door. Lee wasn't sure if he could hold onto it much longer. His nerves were getting the best of him.

Sakura opened the door after freshly brushing her hair. She was positively glowing. "Oh, hello Lee." She noted his pale expression. Looking up and down the hall, she leans in to whisper into his ear, "You didn't drink anything this time did you...?"

"I assure you that I did nothing of the sort."

Sakura poked Lee's side and inspected him. He tried his best to keep the flowers concealed until he was ready. "Then how come you look so sweaty... and shakey...?"

"Well, I—"

She continued on, poking and prodding at him like a vulture. "And your knees are all wobbly... And your skin is all pale..."

"Sakura—"

"And your eyes... Oh nevermind, they always look like that."

"Sakura!"

"Yes?" Sakura tilted her head at him curiously.

Lee exhaled and presented the flowers, holding it out to her with his arms fully extended. "Will you go out on a date with me?" He flinched and screwed his eyes shut in case Sakura decided to hit him for being so bold.

Instead, Sakura took the pot of flowers from him gingerly. "Of course," she said. She walked further into her room to place the bleeding hearts by her window.

Lee slowly opened his eyes. "You agreed?"

Sakura nodded as she approached him once more. "Mhm."

Heat rose up to his cheeks, turning his skin bright red. "Ha... Haha."

Sakura arched a brow at him. "Are you sure that you didn't do any drinking?" She didn't smell any alcohol on his but he was acting more strange than usual.

Although the blush stayed on his face, Lee was able to snap back to reality. "My dearest Sakura, when have I ever lied to you?" He couldn't lie if he tried, it went against his moral compass. That and he was just a really bad one.

"Hm. I dunno, maybe you're such a good liar, I haven't found out yet." She stared at him with her teal eyes, boring into his flesh. Peeling him like a tangerine with her gaze.

Lee trembled where he stood. She was scaring him but he also never felt more attracted to her.

Sakura suddenly smiled. "I'm just teasing you," her words were laced with laughter.

"Ah, yes! Hahaha—" Lee gave an awkward laugh, averting his gaze. "Right. Hilarious." He then cleared his throat. "If it is all the same to you, we should get going now."

"Right now?" She had expected the date to comment a week from then, even a few days. Leave it to Lee to ask her the same day he planned it. His enthusiasm was still admirable, she had to admit. Sakura softly shook her head. "Lead the way."

Overjoyed, Lee grasped her hand and bounded down the stairs. As soon as he put his shoes on, he bounced on his feet as he waited for Sakura to do the same.

"Hold on you two," Ino warned from her place in front of the TV. The news was playing. "It's going to rain all day today."

Rain? Lee panicked on the inside. If he were to get wet, their date would have to be postponed because there was no way Sakura was going to date a squirrel. He would hate to put their date on hold so that Sakura would have to save him again by getting him to some warm water. His hot-bloodedness has froze over from the mere thought.

"We'll just have to share an umbrella then," Sakura said, pulling Lee out of his thoughts. She picked one up from the umbrella storage. Denoted by its red color, it had to be hers.

Sharing an umbrella with Sakura didn't sound too bad. The corners of Lee's lips upturned into a smile. "Rain will be no issue."