I know it seems all like straight girls and there are some weird couples, but hold your horses, kids, I am going somewhere with this. I promise. - - - - - "Sakura, I apologize. I didn't mean to betray your confidence when I told Shikamaru." Sakura had come over to Ino's apartment for lunch, upset and ready to confront her friend. And confront she did-ranting and flailing her arms for a solid half hour before she allowed Ino a word in. "How could you have thought it would be ok? And why not tell me it was Shikamaru you had in mind for me in the first place!" "If I had, would you have gone on the date?" "Well, no, probably not. But that doesn't stop how completely embarrassing it was to be the only one in the dark as to the real reason of the date!" "You weren't in the dark about anything but the guy! I thought we had decided that it was time for your first kiss! And that you needed to start getting over that arrogant Uchiha!" Flustered, Sakura couldn't retort. It was true, the whole point of the date was to get her first kiss, to begin getting to know someone who wasn't her teammate. Her beautiful loner, his stoic face and angry eyes... "Besides, Sakura, and tell the truth, because I will know if you are lying: Did you have fun with Shikamaru?" She wanted to say no, to prove Ino wrong, but Ino was right—she would know if Sakura was lying. "Yes. It was much more fun than I expected." "And? Isn't Shikamaru hot?" The memory of the dark booth, the shadows falling over his face, his hair, the twinkle in his eyes made her smile. She didn't need to answer—Ino could see it on her face. "So why don't you ask him out again?" "Oh Ino. He didn't really want to go out with me. He told me you virtually pummeled him into submission!" This made the blond's face darken a bit. "Oh did he? He and I will need to have a little chat later. But he was lying, at least a little. I may have 'virtually pummeled' him, but only because he has thought about asking you out before and never did. He needed motivation, and I gave it to him in a semi-violent form." Sakura's eyes grew large. "No he didn't!" "He did! He just never asked you because he knew how hung up you were on Sasuke and because, let's face it, Shikamaru is a lazy bastard." Sakura blushed. Maybe I will ask him out again, then. The two girls were sitting at Ino's kitchen table, drinking tea. Ino was still in her bathrobe—apparently she and Choiji had spent a long night together. Earlier that morning he had kissed her goodbye and left for a mission with Shino and Kiba. He would be gone for several weeks, but Ino was making an effort to focus on her friend's pain. Afternoon sun stretched lazily through the curtains, falling on Ino's hair, making it shine. Sakura looked at her friend, with her large eyes and long gold hair. "You know, Ino...Chouji is one lucky ninja to have landed you. I had always assumed you and Shikamaru would get married." A smile sprung to Ino's mouth, lighting her face up. "Everyone thought that, even my parents. They used to joke that Shikamaru and I argued like we were already married. He and I did date, once." This bit of news shocked Sakura—she had never known. "When was this?" "About two years ago. We tried a few dates, but it was true—we did...do argue like a married couple. If we were arguing like that as friends, what was a romance going to be like? Plus, whenever we kissed, there was just nothing. No emotion. It felt like I was on automatic. He felt the same way." "I never knew!" "No one did, it was so short lived. But when I told my parents, they understood and respected my choice. Don't get me wrong, Shikamaru is an incredible kisser. And I have heard stories he is incredible at...other things. Which is why I wanted to set him up with you. Because I knew he was interested in you, and because I know what a great guy he is. I knew he should be your first kiss. At least I thought I knew." Sakura nodded. It did make sense, of course. Who would know Shikamaru better than his teammate and former almost-girlfriend? Sakura did want to be kissed—desperately, if she was going to be honest. Shikamaru seemed like the ideal candidate. Pulling her thoughts back, Sakura looked at her friend. Ino was smiling despite being sad—Sakura knew Chouji was gone. "Wow. So...I've always wanted to ask. Why Chouji of all people? I mean, I know he has shed a few pounds and all, but still..." "Hey, don't knock my man. I don't really know how Chouji and I happened, really. I was...torn when Sasuke returned to the village. I know we weren't friends, but I had watched how much his absence had affected you. And I guess I grew up a little while he was gone and realized that I didn't love Sasuke, I just loved the idea of Sasuke. Chouji was watching me the whole time and sympathized. He comforted me, we spent more and more time together. He listened to me talk about Sasuke, and when I was done talking, he was still there. Our relationship just sort of happened after that, step by step." "So you didn't go looking for him?" "No, he found me." "And I assume that, unlike Shikamaru, sparks flew when you kissed?" That made Ino pause. She had never compared the two. Her very brief relationship with Shikamaru had felt so forced that she had known straight off it was wrong for her. But Chouji...things were so unexpected, and he was so gentle and sincere...she never had time to reflect or resist. "There aren't sparks. I don't know now if such a thing really exists. I don't feel passion with Choiji, I feel a deep sense of comfort. He is like a blanket of security and when I am with him I feel safe." "Safe from what?" Ino shrugged. "I don't know. Just...safe." - - - - - - - It was afternoon, and Sakura waited patiently outside of the school for class to be released. Swinging on the tree swing, she had a flood of different memories. She remembered Ino and herself pushing each other, young and happy. Ino had been like Chouji, a safety net for Sakura. The blond girl had been Sakura's first real friend, a protector and savior. She had taught Sakura to not be ashamed of herself (and her large forehead) and to stand up to people. It hadn't been until Sasuke had entered the picture that the friendship fell apart. The two had become equally competitive and mean-spirited, always fighting for his attention. Thinking back on it, Sakura pondered the nature of that rivalry. Had she really allowed Sasuke to split her first and greatest friendship? Older and wiser, it suddenly seemed that Sasuke was more of a catalyst for the two girls, sparking a rivalry that was already in the works. Ino had come to Sakura, embracing her, making her popular by default. Now Sakura could see that it wasn't Sasuke that had pushed her to compete with Ino...it was that she had needed to prove herself to the other girl. Ino was beautiful. She came from a genius family. She was smart and funny. She was full of confidence and an excellent ninja. All of the things Ino was, she was with ease. Other than being smart, Sakura had fought hard for every skill she had, and yet always felt bested by her blond counterpart. It had taken Tsunade-sama and the medical training for Sakura to find enough confidence to not need to constantly compare herself to the other girl. Swinging, Sakura laughed—so much seemed clear to her. It was no coincidence, she realized, that she had regained her friendship with Ino when she had stopped comparing herself to the girl. It explained a lot of the anger she had felt the past few days at her friend. Ino was trying to help, and Sakura had thought she was angry at the help—but she wasn't, she was grateful. She was angry because Ino had bested her again. She felt inferior to all of Ino's experience with men. Sakura was so deep in thought that she never saw school get out. A friendly tap on her shoulder brought her back to reality. Turning, she saw a smiling Shikamaru. He blocked out the sun, his hair a brilliant brunette in the light, his eyes bright with what looked to be amusement. God, he really is handsome. "I did not expect to find you out here, Sakura. Do you want a push on the swing? Or perhaps you need help perfecting Henge no jutsu?" Sakura laughed easily. They both knew quite well that in academy she had aced every technique Iruka taught them. "No, but thank you on both counts. I didn't come here to swing, I came here to find you." "Ahhhh. Then you suck, because I found you instead." They both laughed—did the awkwardness the other night even happen? She couldn't remember the last time she had felt so relaxed around another boy. Naruto was her friend as well, but really, who could relax around Naruto? "Shikamaru, listen, about the other night—" "Geez, don't worry about it." He let out an exaggerated sigh. "Talking about such things is so—" "Troublesome." They said it in unison and smiled at each other. "So you came here to find me. Here I am. What can I do for you, Sakura?" She looked down, allowing her pink hair to fall in her face and cover her blush. The ease she had just felt was replaced by nervousness. Her toe ground into the dirt and she clasped her hands. "You could...You could maybe try to go on another date with me?" She looked up, searching his face for any details that might let her know what he was thinking. Shikamaru was showing no signs, however, of his thoughts. He too, was studying her face. "If Ino is putting you up to this, Sakura, then don't worry about it. I think you will find someone to kiss in your own time." That made her turn bright red, her hands instinctually moving to hide her flushed cheeks. "It isn't like that! Ino didn't say anything to me. Well, she said that you had thought about asking me out but...but never did—" "So Ino really does have a problem with keeping secrets." He smiled at her before continuing. "Sakura, don't ask me out because you feel you have to kiss someone, or you have to try and make up to me. Really, it is alright, I understand." "No! I am asking you out because...because I had a fun time with you. Minus the awkward moments, of course, and the embarrassment. I...I really would like to try again, if you would." Instead of answering right away, Shikamaru threw an arm over her shoulder. Sakura noticed immediately how close they were. He was warm, and strong... "Let's discuss this second date as I walk you to your apartment, ok, Pink?" Shikamaru winked at her, making her giggle, and the two of them began the stroll back to her apartment.
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