When logic fails ...

When Decisions Collide

He himself was just a first-semester student making ends meet with a badly paid side job. There was no overlap between them, they were simply too different.

He flipped the pillow to the cooler side and pushed it even harder over his head. The longer he thought about it, the clearer it became: he was just reading too much into the whole situation. Wishful thinking, nothing more, not worth wasting energy on.

A bitter smile crossed his lips. His decision was made. He would avoid her, consistently and for as long as it took until this chaos inside him subsided. No chance encounters in the hallway, no visits, no more shogi. Distance was the only reasonable solution he could think of. Only that way could he prevent himself from getting lost in something doomed from the start.

With that resolution, he pressed the pillow against his ears as if that could silence his thoughts.

***

Temari sank onto the sofa and reached for the soft blanket. The light was dim, the TV flickered quietly, but her eyes kept returning to the shogi board still on the coffee table. She had meant to go through her notes for the exam, yet her thoughts slipped away—straight to him. Shikamaru.

The look in his eyes when he saw the board, the seriousness with which he placed every piece. The brief, almost imperceptible touch when they both stood up at once, and the way he had suddenly pulled away from her. She still couldn't quite make sense of it, but something about him simply stuck with her.

A faint smile touched her lips. Damn, why did she have to keep thinking about him?

The ringing of her phone tore her from her thoughts. Annoyed, she grabbed the device, and when she saw the name on the display, her lips curved in a wry line. Tenten. Of course. She took a deep breath and answered.

"Well, spill it!" her friend's voice chirped immediately through the line. "Is it the guy you let into your apartment earlier?"

Temari blinked and straightened up a little. Her gaze slipped back to the shogi board as she pressed the phone closer to her ear. "You're imagining things... Shikamaru is my new upstairs neighbor... he just fixed my laptop, like he said," she replied, aiming for a casual tone. But her voice sounded less certain than she wanted.

"Sure, I'll take that at face value... So, did you at least have fun?" Tenten asked bluntly.

Temari's eyes stayed on the shogi piece—the gold general that he had used to beat her both times. "He only explained the program and then left. That was all," she answered deliberately matter-of-fact.

"Temariiii," Tenten drew her name out teasingly, "I can hear you're holding something back. So, out with it."

Temari exhaled audibly and pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders. "No, there was nothing. Honestly. He's just the new freshman neighbor who sorted out my tech issues. Stop trying to read into it..."

She could practically see Tenten grinning through the line. One more reason to change the subject quickly. "Was there actually a reason for your call, or are you just being nosy again?"

"Oh right... yeah..." Tenten finally relented. "I wanted to ask if I should grab us tickets for the big university party in two weeks... you know, that anniversary thing."

Of course Temari knew which party she meant; last year she had been on the planning committee herself. "I don't really feel like partying... and the first exams are coming up soon..." she murmured.

Her friend had no intention of giving in: "Come on, you can't just study 24/7... you need breaks too. It'll be fun... plus, your brother's coming all the way from Suna."

That made Temari perk up, since her brothers rarely set foot in Konoha. "Which one?" she asked skeptically.

Tenten laughed. "Kankuro, of course. Or do you seriously think anyone could drag Gaara to a party?"

Temari sighed softly, because if Kankuro showed up, he would definitely insist she come along. "Fine, whatever... get the tickets, but I won't stay long," she gave in.

"Perfect. See you tomorrow!" Tenten sang before hanging up.

Temari lowered the phone. A party was the last thing she felt like right now. But she knew her brother would probably manage to distract her.

She swung her legs off the sofa and started tidying up. Yet when her fingers picked up the shogi pieces, her thoughts strayed back to Shikamaru—his calm and composed manner, his focused expression, and that strange pull in her chest she felt more and more whenever she thought of him.

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and let out a quiet scoff at herself. Honestly, it was ridiculous. He was just her neighbor and, on top of that, a few years younger. Still, she had to admit he occupied her mind far more than she liked.

With a sigh, she dropped back onto the sofa, some of the shogi pieces still in her hands. Maybe she actually liked him a little more than she had admitted to herself... and maybe, just maybe, Tenten was right—perhaps she really had developed a bit of a crush on him.

It was a thought she couldn't just push aside. On the contrary, the more she thought about it, the more certain she felt. She needed to follow that feeling and find out what exactly was going on between them, and whether he felt the same. Because deciphering his behavior was difficult. If he liked her, why did he avoid her touch? And if he didn't like her, why did he go out of his way to fix her problems? Temari drew in a deep breath and made a decision: she had to see him again to get clarity. There was no other way.