10-13-2007, 05:42 PM
Naruto Uzamaki. One look from him, and I absolutely m e l t e d. If he addressed me, I would be left breathless. My heart dead stopped; that is, after a back flip or two. Though, I could never tell him my true feelings. No, no, I could only quietly watch him from the shadows. And, for me, thatâs enough.
At least, thatâs what Iâd convinced myself. But then, Sakura Haruno, his teammate, came along. She was looking for Sasuke, but instead found me. I was staring longingly at Naruto who was in the midst of a sparring session with himself. She asked, innocently enough, what I was doing. I stammered a response, quietly mumbling. Unsure of myself, I made up some excuse about Kiba and Shino sending me on some chore- she held up a hand, interrupting my lie. She had a slight smirk on her face; a knowing glint in her eyes. A blush slowly crept up my face, embarrassed.
âYou like Naruto, donât you?â She asked in her singsong voice, drawing out the word âdonâtâ as it dawned upon her, grinning widely. I looked to my feet, frowning slightly.
â⌠NoâŚâ I paused, as she continued her interrogating stare.
"âŚYesâŚ" I responded after another moment, so quietly I barely heard myself. Therefore, I was surprised when she nodded in approval of⌠something. I wasnât entirely sure what of, perhaps in confirmation of her suspicion?
Suddenly, I found things happening a bit too quickly to comprehend. That, however, was probably her intent, as I would have run away if I understood what she was about to do. As fate would have it, I didnât. That left me in my spot as Sakura confidently ran out to Naruto. My heart skipped a beat as he looked straight at me, past her.
âHey, Naruto.â She started in her slightly irritating know-it-all voice, loud enough for me to hear clearly, getting his attention. She whispered something, which I didnât hear, and he grinned one of those larger than life, over dramatic grins. My god, I felt faint right then.
âYou know, I kinda thought so. I mean, it explains why I always see someone out of the corner of my eye.â
Naruto laughed again, and started walking straight towards me. And thatâs about when I realized I was glued to my spot, and that I couldnât move away, back into my comfort zone, even if I wanted to.
âHey, Hinata.â He greeted me casually, in a manner that made it seem as if weâd known each other forever. As if we were the best of friends. Willing my body to move, I succeeded in cautiously taking a few steps nearer to him. AndâŚ
Tripped. He caught me. And let me rest in his arms, leaning against his body, supporting me. It seemed an eternity before I was capable of moving again, much less supporting myself. My body had shut down, and that meant I stopped breathing. Once my body restarted, though, it reminded me that I needed to breath and I separated myself for his grip, coughing violently.
âS-s-sorry, NarutoâŚâ I stuttered.
He waved it off, grinning like an idiot. âItâs fine, itâs fine.â There was a moment of silence, interrupted by a grumbling stomach. I laughed softly, and Naruto scratched the back of his head, somewhat embarrassed. We started walking, somewhat aimlessly, together.
âAre you, um, hungry?â I spoke shyly, quietly⌠I was waaay out of my comfort zone, but trying not to show it.
âYeah, kind of.â He nodded eagerly, and his stomach growled loudly.
I was looking at my feet again, and went for the most daring thing I could comprehend, asking before I could stop myself.
âNaruto, um⌠Would you like to have lunch with me?â I stopped walking, waiting for his response. He was clearly shocked at my daring. Quite frankly, so was I.
âNaruto?â I prompted him gently after a few moments of no response. âIf youâd rather not, itâs oka-â I started, slightly hurt but not surprised.
âNo! Itâs okay, I want to. Iâd really like to.â He smiled, and we began walking again. And, when he lightly grabbed my hand is about when I decided to become just a little bit less shy, a little more confident.
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