The Flower Shop [A Gaara Love Story]

13: Just Visiting

"So, you and Gaara?" Temari finally asked on the morning they were supposed to arrive in Konoha.

They left for the Leaf village two days after she had said goodbye to Gaara. Temari had met her at the gates of Suna and after collecting her wagon for the flowers and making sure they had the supplies necessary for the trip, they set off. Originally Momoko had planned to hire a few Suna shinobi to escort her on the trip, but with Temari wanting to come along she no longer found it necessary. She had never seen the other woman fight before, but she was Gaara's sibling and that was all she needed to earn Momoko's trust.

As they traveled, Momoko found that Temari was a rather serious individual. She only really talked to her when it was necessary on the first day of their trip, most of it spent in silence. Much to Momoko's delight, though, she was a little more talkative the next day, enough so to have a conversation over the fire when they set up camp. Now this morning the conversation came a little easier to them, and Momoko felt a little more comfortable with Temari than she had been at the start.

They had woken early so they could reach Konoha quicker, and the morning had been spent exchanging little bits about themselves. The conversation had shifted from family, to mutual friends they shared in the Leaf, and then to a topic in the middle: Gaara.

"We're friends," Momoko replied, a little smile on her lips as she did so.

Since they had last met, Gaara's words had often crossed her mind: 'with a friend'. It was nice to finally call someone a friend after living in Suna for three months. Of course she thought of Hana as a friend of sorts, but there was something about her new relationship with Gaara that just felt a little more real. They had only had lunch the one time but Momoko wasn't embarrassed to admit that she planned on asking him to lunch again when they got home. It was such a warm feeling, looking forward to spending time with someone.

"So I see," Temari commented, glancing over to watch the way Momoko smiled at the mention of it, "I've gotta say, I'm a little surprised. Gaara doesn't really do the friend thing."

He had gotten better with people, that was undeniable. Gaara was far kinder and more interested in spending time with his siblings, a development both Kankuro and she were incredibly thankful for. Outside of family, though, he still struggled a bit. Besides Naruto, Gaara still had a hard time forming meaningful relationships with other people. Of course the village treated him with more kindness now and people weren't scared to approach or talk to him, but he had never gone out of his way to pursue anything more. He was still working out how to show emotion when he interacted with others, or really even smile around them, but no one was rushing him. He would improve at his own rate, and Temari was pleased to see he already has.

Momoko shrugged, the smile on her lips now a little sheepish.

"I could kind of tell, but...I haven't exactly made a new friend in a while, so I guess we both have some learning to do."

Having grown up around friends her whole life, Momoko didn't really remember how to make them- they were always just there. That was why she struggled a bit when she came to Suna, and for a while it worried her that she may not make any friends anytime soon. Luckily, the opportunity to bring Gaara flowers came along and from there came this. They weren't the best of friends or really too close yet, but with a little more time and effort, Momoko was sure their bond would only strengthen.

"It's nice to see he's finally starting to let other people in, " Temari finally said, "Having a friend will be good for him."

The rest of the walk to Konoha was the most pleasant part of the trip, as they talked freely and consistently the whole time. Temari quickly saw what Gaara did: Momoko was kind, incredibly so, and her presence was warm and genuine. It almost surprised her that she hadn't made more friends in Suna yet. As stoic as Temari could be, even she couldn't stop the smiles that came to her lips while they talked.