After the test was over, Kagome and Sasuke went to train for a few hours. After that, the two went their separate ways home. Then Kagome went shopping for ingredients for her dinner tonight. When Kagome got all of the ingredients, she headed towards her apartment. On the way, she noticed Shikamaru walking along the road.
"Shikamaru!" Kagome shouted. Shikamaru stopped in his tracks and looked over his shoulder to see Kagome waving at him.
"Kagome." Shikamaru said as she ran up to him.
"Where are you headed?" Kagome asked when she stood in front of him.
"I was just leaving the hill where I cloud watch. So now I'm bored and decided to walk around." Shikamaru said.
"I see." Kagome said, "Hey, would you like to have dinner with me?"
"Uh...sure." Shikamaru said nervously while pink dusted his cheeks.
"Great! Follow me then." Kagome said as she walked past him while grabbing his hand. Shikamaru started to blush even harder as Kagome held his hand. For some strange reason, he felt warm inside as she held his hand.
Her hands are warm...and soft. Shikamaru thought.
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Kagome entered the apartment with Shikamaru behind her. This wouldn't be the first time that Shikamaru has been to her apartment. He often came here when he was bored or if he was in the neighborhood. She placed the groceries on the table and instantly began to work on preparing. She took out a pot and boiled the water. Then she placed the spaghetti into the water, letting it cook for five minutes. After that was done, she reserved in ¾ cup of the pasta water and drained it. While at the same time, she heated oil on medium heat and added the pieces of bacon on it.
"Do you want help, Kagome?" Shikamaru asked.
"No, it's okay. I'll be done in less than ten minutes." Kagome said.
"Alright." Shikamaru said. He was always amazed that Kagome knew how to cook such great tasting meals. He wondered who she learned it from. It was probably one of the civilians she was friends with or possibly his mom. He heard a 'meow' sound at his feet and saw Kirara sitting on the floor in front of him. She jumped up and sat on his shoulder and rubbed her cheek against his. He had always liked Kirara's company. He scratched behind her ears which made her purr loudly.
"Actually, could you get the plates and utensils out for me?" Kagome asked.
"Sure." Shikamaru said. He walked over to the cabinets and took out the plates and then the drawers where the utensils were. By the time he set the table, Kagome was finished making the meal. She got out a hot pad for the pot.
"So what did you make, Kagome?" Shikamaru asked, curious.
"Tomato Bacon Pasta." Kagome said.
"Sounds good." Shikamaru said with a small smile. Kirara jumped off from his shoulder as he noticed that Kagome had put a certain portion of the food on their plates. Then they sat down across from each other. They put their hands in prayer form.
"Thanks for the meal."
The meal was partly quiet between the two. Well, there was three of them which included Kirara was eating the same thing as them while sitting at the end of the table. Shikamaru liked the quietness, but he wanted to hear Kagome's voice. Somehow, he liked listening to Kagome's voice. It was kind and soothing. But only when she's angry it can sound boiling and hot. It can be cold and dark as well. Sometimes Kagome was worse that his mom.
"So are you excited for your mission tomorrow?" Kagome asked. Her voice broke Shikamaru out of his thoughts, which he was glad of. Thankfully, he got to hear her voice.
"Somewhat. But I wonder what kind of mission we'll have though. Troublesome." Shikamaru said, before taking a bite of the pasta. The tomato, bacon, and pasta went great together. The parmesan and black pepper made a great combo with the pasta and bacon.
"My team and I will be having D-rank missions for a while. Hopeful we might get a C-rank later on as well." Kagome said, sighed.
"You can only hope." Shikamaru said, taking another bite of the pasta. He was glad to spend dinner time with Kagome.
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When the meal was done, Kagome was putting away the leftovers and Shikamaru decided to do the dishes for her. Kirara went into Kagome's room to take a nap on her bed.
"Thanks for helping me with the dishes, Shikamaru." Kagome said.
"It's the least I can do." Shikamaru said, focusing on his task. Unnoticed, a small puddle of water began to form near his feet. When the last dish was put away, Kagome turned towards Shikamaru and took a step towards him, only to slide backwards. At the last second, Shikamaru caught her wrist. But only to fall to the floor with her.
"Ow." Kagome groaned.
"Ugh." Shikamaru groaned.
"Are you okay, Shikamaru?" Kagome asked as she looked up. Then she froze at that moment. Shikamaru was hovering over her. She could feel his breath against her lips. Her cheeks were turning red as Shikamaru stared at her. For some strange reason, she couldn't move.
"A-Are you okay, Kagome?" Shikamaru asked, nervously as his cheeks were starting to turn red. He has never been this close to Kagome before. Actually, he's never been this close to a girl before. Her breath was brushing against his lips. It would only take a small movement to connect his lips with hers. But for some strange reason, he couldn't move.
"H-Hai." Kagome stuttered. Her voice suddenly gave him the will to move. Pushing his weight off of his hands, only to fall forward because of his left knee slid. The next thing that Shikamaru knew was that his lips were pressed against Kagome's.
Kagome's lips...
were against...
his lips...
Kagome and Shikamaru were unable move at that moment. They stared at each other with wide eyes as their lips were locked together. Then they slowly released each other's lips. An awkward silence came between the two and they quickly moved and turned away from each other.
I kissed Shikamaru! Kagome thought as she covered her mouth with both of her hands.
I kissed Kagome! Shikamaru thought as he covered his mouth with his hand.
The both of them were blushing really hard at what had just happened between them. They were too embarrassed to turn around to face each other. Kagome and Shikamaru were having a hard time trying to process the whole incident. After all, neither of them would have thought that they would kiss each other. Even though it was an accident.
"Um, would like some of my green tea cookies, S-Shikamaru?" Kagome asked, nervously, breaking the silence.
"H-Hai." Shikamaru said, nervously. He quickly got up, turned around, and held out his hand to Kagome. She looked at him and then his hand. Kagome placed her hand in his and he held onto it as he pulled her to her feet. Then they both turned away from each other once more. Kagome went over to the cabinet and took a towel to clean up the water.
"I'll do it." Shikamaru said, taking the towel from her hand and began to wipe up the water.
"Oh, thank you." Kagome said.
"Don't mention. I didn't notice that the sink water was dripping onto the floor." Shikamaru said.
"I admit that I didn't notice either." Kagome said. Then she went to the other cabinet to take out the green tea cookies she made yesterday. She also grabbed two glasses and placed the cookies and glasses on the table.
"Shikamaru, could you get the milk out please?" Kagome asked.
"Sure." Shikamaru said as he got up from wiping away the water from the floor. He walked over the fridge and took out the carton of milk. He placed the milk next the glasses.
"Thanks. Would you like milk with the cookies?" Kagome asked, smiling.
"That would be great." Shikamaru said with a small smile. He was glad that the awkwardness between them seemed to be gone, for the moment at least. He sat down as Kagome poured the milk into the glasses. Then she slid the glass towards him and held out the plate of cookies to him. After he took three of them, she took three as well. She placed the plate in the middle of the table and sat across from him. There was a silence between them again as they ate the cookies and drank the milk.
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Soon after they finished having their portion of the cookies and milk, Shikamaru decided that he should head home. He knew that his mom will not be that happy that he came home late. Maybe if he explained that he was at Kagome's he might not feel her wrath for long.
"Well, I better get going." Shikamaru said as he stood up.
"Oh." Kagome said, looking up at the clock, "Your mom."
"Yeah, I might not get punished if I explained to her of where I was." Shikamaru said.
"Even if there is a slight chance that she might not kill you?" Kagome asked, grinning with her brow arched.
"Hai. But you never know." Shikamaru said, shrugged.
"I suppose." Kagome said. Then she got up and followed Shikamaru to the door. The night air was still warm. The stars were about to come out now. Shikamaru walked out the door and turned around to face Kagome.
"Thank you for dinner, Kagome." Shikamaru said.
"You're welcome, Shikamaru. I'm glad that you enjoyed it." Kagome said.
"Hai, I did." Shikamaru said, "Well, good night, Kagome."
"Good night, Shikamaru." Kagome said. Then she started to close the door.
"By the way, Kagome." Shikamaru said.
"Hai?" Kagome asked before she fully closed the door.
"Dinner was great and your cookies were really good as well." Shikamaru said, smiling a little.
"Thank you, Shikamaru." Kagome said, smiling.
"Well, uh, good night, Kagome." Shikamaru said with a small blush, before he turned away and began walking away into the night.
"Good night, Shikamaru." Kagome said, slightly blushing, before she closed the door.
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A man snatches the first kiss, pleads for the second, demands the third, takes the fourth, accepts the fifth - and endures all the rest.
- Helen Rowland