A bet on Love

16 | Tenten

Hinata pressed her hair brush to her head and pulled it down with one smooth movement, no stop due to knots or tangles. Smooth and glowing, whereas Tenten across from her struggled to get her brush through her hair in one movement. She clicked her tongue, dragging the brush down only for her to wince in pain. She scoffed in annoyance, angrily throwing the brown object to the floor where they sat.

"It seems Hinata-sama wins once again," Momona announced, flipping the paper on the stand to make it 12 instead of 11.

"I know! This is the 12th time and I followed Neji's instructions word for word! Maybe, kinda, sort of... okay maybe I only did it once but it wasn't my fault! Those instructions were too much effort!" Hinata shook her head with a little laugh. Her reverse psychology was working. "Stop laughing! I bet you using some kind of reverse psychology on me and your happy it's working!"

"Exactly." The bluenette chuckled, navigating her way towards the back of her friend and gathering a lock of hair into her hands. "Now I'm sure you didn't come here for our weekly 'Smooth Hair Competition' I presume?" The brunette shook her head in answer to the question, handing her hairbrush back to Hinata for use. "Would you like Momona to stay or should she leave?"

"It's fine. I trust she won't go around telling people about my miserable love life." Hinata nodded and gave her hairbrush to the brunette behind her so she had something to do while her friend ranted. "So," she heaved out a sigh, fidgeting with her fingers, "You know I like Neji. And you know about the time we went to Konoha City Centre. And how we almost kissed and how I was feeling alone so I asked him to stay over. Well turns out that was a bad idea."

- On the night of 'Day Out' -

"How do you have my spare clothes?" Neji called out from the bathroom that was on the lower floor, his voice just loud enough to be heard by the brunette.

"Remember that one time you spent extra time in the school gym and it started raining and my house was closer to yours and so you had to come over? And then you forgot to take your clothes with you? Yeah." She heard a muffled hum as he recalled exactly what she was talking about. He pulled his shirt down, fusing it out before walking out of the bathroom.

He watched from the dining room as the brunette arrange the sushi she had quickly cooked up on a tray, and like always, he felt his hand itch as he fought the urge not to wrap his hands around her waist and trap her in a hug. It was strange, to have the urge to hug someone at the most random time. He felt that way with Hinata, Naruto and people close to him, not in a romantic way but in a way to say he appreciated their presence in his life.

Maybe because he'd never felt that way in his life. But when it came to Tenten it was different and difficult. Every time he set eyes on the brunette, he fought the urge to hug her in more than an appreciative gesture but he wanted her to stay in his life forever. He watched her reach for the wasabi that was placed on the highest shelf of the cabinet, standing on her toes and still that wasn't enough.

It made him wonder, why would she keep it there in the first place if she knew she couldn't reach it, but the most important question was, how did she keep it there? Sometimes, Neji made decisions without thinking. It was rare but it happened and it always seemed to happen whenever he was around her, like right now, when he advanced towards her struggling figure and reached for the wasabi effortlessly.

She broke into a bright smile, turning round to thank him when she found herself in the same position as she was in before, and immediately cursed herself for turning around. She never learned, and that's why she always found herself in sticky situations. She held her breath, backing away slightly and wanting to become one with the white cabinets but alas she couldn't.

She was under the intense gaze of the Hyūga in front as he stared into her chocolate-coloured eyes and her into his lavender eyes. This happened before and she hadn't fully recovered from it and yet she was forced into the same situation. She swallowed a lump in her throat, placing her hand on the worktop behind her to support her weakening form as the Hyūga inched closer.

She felt his breath fan over her cheek and her heartbeat accelerated once again. She was tempted to close her eyes but kept it open, and slowly felt his lips pressed against hers. He kissed her.

He kissed her.

What was she supposed to do now? She felt paralysed with fear as his kiss deepened, pushing her back against the cabinet. Struggling to stay on her feet, her free hand travelled to the back of his head, gripping a handful of his hair and tugging at it. Her eyes widened with lack of oxygen and she felt her stomach twist and turn in a tight knot. She had no idea what, or how to feel at this point, but when he paused and slowly ripped himself away from her, she knew exactly what he was going to say, and she didn't like it.

His arms that were wrapped around her waist lingered as he buried his face in the crook of her neck, holding her in a firm hug. This was stupid, he was stupid. Just a hug, he told himself, but it obviously resulted in him kissing her without consent. "Sorry," he muttered, his voice low and hoarse. "Forget this ever happened." She felt a sharp pang in her chest as he slowly withdrew his hands from their place around her waist. She felt cold already, how could she?

She felt like screaming, how could she when he had kissed her so passionately it scared her, and now he was requesting she forgets that ever happened? But what pained her the most was the fact he was going to avoid her like a plague. She could never look him in the eye again. She watched him slip the wasabi from her hand that was resting on the worktop and disappear into the dining room. She felt lightheaded and sick to her stomach.

-

Hinata wrapped the braid into a tight neat bun, then brushed out the remaining half of Tenten's brown locks, paying full attention to the story the brunette told. Tenten was a strong girl, physically and mentally, but it didn't mean that once in a while her demeanour didn't break. She'd lost her real mom at such a young age she didn't even remember what she looked like, and then, as if the universe wanted to rub it in her face that they hated her, she also lost her adoptive mum. Being above the age where she couldn't be put in an orphanage anymore, she was forced to live alone in a huge mansion and carry on the company left for her.

It was not a surprise to see her saddened at times, but what surprised her was the fact it was over a boy, her cousin to be exact. "You like Neji right?" The brunette nodded her head, raising her hands to wipe away the tears that had started to bubble in her eyes before they fell. "And you don't like being away from him correct?" She nodded once more and Hinata finished up the braid and wrapped it around once again, "Then I think you should talk to him."

"Hinata-" She was interrupted by the warm gaze of her friend she had effortlessly turned her round so they were face to face. Hinata smiled at her

"I know my cousin Tenten, and when it comes to matters like this he is stupid. Never has he felt such and so he makes questionable decisions and says things he's going to regret. I can bet you right now he's kicking himself for telling you to forget what happened even though he can't and doesn't want to forget." She tugged the lock of hair that was left out to frame her face behind the brunette's ears, cupping her cheeks, "Speak to him if it really bothers you, okay?"

Nodding, Tenten took the girl into a warm hug, soft laughter leaving her lips, "What would I do without you?" Hinata chuckled, reciprocating the hug,

"I guess we'll never know."