Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor F.R.I.E.N.D.S;

Author's Notes: First, I want to thank everyone who reviewed, favorited or followed the story until now... You guys are the best! Second, I want to apologize for not posting a new chapter last saturday. Third, I'm looking for a cover for this story, so, if you can help me, just message me on my tumblr: cacauwrites.

The one with first impressions

Night had already fallen when the girls went back to their apartment. The clock on the wall currently displayed 11pm, and Ino had just got out of the shower, while Sakura and Hinata were chilling on the couch, watching a late night TV Show and eating potato chips.

"So, what did you think about the boys?" The blonde sighed, throwing herself at an empty spot on the couch beside Hinata.

"They're very nice..." The Hyuuga stated in a low voice, putting another potato chip on her mouth and standing up carefully. "S-sorry, I'd love to talk about it, but I have an early class tomorrow..." She smiled, excusing herself out of the living room. Ino eyed Hinata carefully as the girl closed her bedroom door.

"Did you notice how cozy she was with hottie?" Ino scooted closer to Sakura, whispering so their roommate couldn't hear them.

"Why are you still in your towel?" Sakura changed the subject, eyeing Ino's outfit - or lack of it - curiously.

"Because gossip is more important than clothes!" The blonde rolled her eyes, and Sakura let out a small snort. "C'mon, did you?"

"Of course I did!" The pinkette replied in a low voice, stuffing more potato chips into her mouth. When she stopped chewing, she added: "And I think it's great! I mean, for her… To be, you know, flirting. But I don't like him." Ino's eyebrows shot up her forehead and she smirked teasingly for her friend to continue. Sakura sighed. "Look, he was really rude to me. And he looks arrogant and mysterious. I get a bad vibe coming from him…"

"Or you're just jealous and..."

"I'm not!" Sakura ensured, but her voice ended up being a little louder than she expected. Ino's eyebrows arched even more in response. "Look, okay, he's hot! And at first of course I wanted to be the one flirting with him… Until I realized he is a dumbass with an ego as big as the Central Park!" She explained herself with a candid look in her eyes. "Besides, Hinata's my friend and I'd be really happy for her! I just think this guy is trouble and I don't want her to get hur…"

She stopped abruptly as her friend opened the bedroom door, carrying a change of clothes and her towel, ready to take a shower. "W-What are you guys talking about?" Hinata carefully asked, a blush adorning her cheeks. Silver eyes met green, and Sakura knew she couldn't lie.

"About you and that Uchiha boy." Sakura felt ashamed for talking about her friend behind her back, so she deviated her eyes from Hinata's and focused them on her own lap.

"Y-y-you were gossiping?! About m-me?" Hinata's voice came out so soft that Sakura had to look back up to her face to make sure the girl wasn't crying.

That's the thing about Hinata: she was sweet, shy and loyal, but too insecure for her own sake. She would rather spend her whole life being invisible and unnoticed than to have people talking about her, so catching her best friends doing it behind her back was probably crushing to her self-conscious heart.

"No!" Both Ino and Sakura shouted nervously. Sakura stood up, guilt filling up her stomach as she stepped closer to her friend. "I'm sorry, Hina! We weren't talking anything bad about you! We were just impressed with the way you were flirting with him." The pinkette gently put her hand on Hinata's shoulder.

"F-f-flirting? With who?" The Hyuuga's silver eyes changed from a sad to a confused expression.

"Sasuke Uchiha!"

And, at that, Hinata started giggling. She was almost laughing when she repeated, under her breath: "Sasuke Uchiha?" The girl shook her head. "He's like family to me! Like a big brother or cousin. Like Neji!" She nervously put a strand of hair behind her ear. "Of course I haven't seen him in a while, but he's a part of my childhood! I don't know if I could ever think of him like that..."

"So, you are not hot for him?" Ino asked, surprised.

"Of course not, Ino! That'd be like... Incestuous." Hinata made a disgusted expression, to which her friends giggled. "I like Sasuke and I think we can be good friends, but that's it! H-he's not even my type of guy."

Ino smirked, staring at her perfectly manicured nails. "Honey, he's everyone's type of guy."

"I-I c-can talk about you to him if you want to!" Offered Hinata.

"I think Ino-pig has her eyes on someone else…" Sakura snorted and sat back on the couch, grabbing a handful of potato chips.

Ino sighed dreamily, making Sakura roll her eyes. To the puzzled look on Hinata's face, the blonde exclaimed "Shikamaru Nara, man of my dreams! I'm not especially romantic, but it was love at first sight!" When her pink haired friend puffed mockingly at her side, she added "I know he looks a lot like the guys I used to date, but he's totally different! He's smart, and sarcastic in a good way, and the sound of his voice! I can already picture him moaning…"

"O-oh my God!" Hinata interrupted Ino's daydream, laughing nervously and putting both hands on her ears. Unlike her friends who talked about sex openly and actually liked discussing it, the girl shyness made her squirm every time they talked about that matter. She didn't know why, but she was sure it had something to do with the fact that Ino and Sakura were far more experienced than she was.

"Sakura, what about the blond boy… Naruto, isn't it? He's like a cutie! I could picture you two together!" Ino excitedly changed the subject. It was like a cue for Hinata, who excused herself in the way to the bathroom.

"I know, right?! He's adorable! Funny, sweet, good-looking…" Sakura exhaled loudly.

"Why do I sense a 'but' coming?"

"But…" The pinkette smiled as she added "I feel nothing for him! It's like Hinata just said: He could be my brother! Or a cousin, a simple friend… But that's it!"

"Oh, c'mon! Not everyone fall in love at first sight."

"Not like you and Shikamaru, you mean?" Sakura joked, receiving a small jab on the forearm in response. "I don't know, Ino! But after Sai I guess I just want to… feel something, you know?! Where are the butterflies in the stomach every cheesy person talks about?" She wondered, and her best friend put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I want to love someone so much I can't even describe it! I want passion, and desire, and nervousness… I want to feel like I can't live without this person, you know?"

"Sak, you're still so young…"

"I know!" The girl sighed "And I'm not even romantic, but I'm tired of being with guys I don't like just because I don't want to be alone! I don't want to find the love of my life, my soulmate or any of these things you and Hina always talk about... I just want to find someone who makes me feel something, you know?! I'm starting to think there's something wrong with me!"

"There's nothing wrong with you, forehead..." Ino put her arm around her best friend, pulling her closer and into a hug. "And don't worry, you will find someone soon. I promise."

Sakura let her body fall into Ino's embrace, and, cuddling in the couch with her best friend, she muttered "I really hope so".

"The girls are great! Aren't they?" Naruto asked excitedly as he threw himself on the couch, in the middle of Shikamaru and Sasuke, who were already siiting there and watching the replay of a football game on the television.

"Hm" Was Sasuke's reply.

"They're alright..." Even though Shikamaru wasn't a very eloquent person, it was clear that he liked their new neighbors. So clear that he was still eating what was left of Sakura's homemade cookies.

"Hm" Sasuke voiced again, but, this time, he added: "And how exactly do you plan on explaining to Temari about the blonde girl next-door hitting on you?"

Naruto never thought he could witness Shikamaru blush, so he let out a loud roar when that happened. Grabbing the last cookie out of his friend's plate and shoving it into his mouth, he asked:

"Why didn't you tell her you have a five-year-long relationship?"

"Because it would be kind of rude, don't you think?! 'Hey, I'm sorry for interrupting you, but can you stop flirting with me, please? I already have a girlfriend and I'm not planning on cheating on her!" The Nara walked away angrily, placing the empty plate on the sink and stuffing his hands inside his pockets.

"For a genius, you sure are stupid sometimes..." Sasuke snorted.

"Can you two please shut up?" Shikamaru stopped in the way to his room. "Look, I'm going to find a way to introduce the two of them without much damage. Maybe they can even become friends!"

"Sure! And maybe they'll braid each other's hair while they talk about how handsome you are!" Naruto quipped, and even Sasuke scoffed at the comment.

"I'm going to bed, idiots."

When Shikamaru slammed the bedroom door, Naruto turned his head to his best friend, looking at him inquiringly. The raven-haired boy never looked back, but sighed and rolled his eyes, never losing focus of the game on the TV.

"What do you want, Naruto?"

"What did you think about Sakura?" The blond boy put both hands behind the back of his own neck to support it while he looked at the apartment's ceiling dreamily.

"I think you're rushing things." Sasuke calmly stated.

"C'mon, what is there to wait for? She's funny, pretty, great cook…"

"And you met her today." Sasuke finally turned to look at his best friend, disapprovingly. "Look, it's not like I'm telling you not to ask her out! I'm just saying she's our new neighbor and you should wait a little longer before doing it. I mean, what if you guys don't work out and end up hating each other? It wouldn't make life any easier having your ex living 20 steps away from..."

Naruto let his head fall back into place and frowned.

"You didn't seem to wait a bit before seducing the silver-eyed beauty!"

"I wasn't seducing her, you dumbfuck!" Sasuke raised from the couch, throwing the remote at Naruto's lap. "I've known her since I was thirteen! We spent every summer until my eighteen birthday together!"

Realizing what that was about, Naruto sighed. When Sasuke left the orphanage with his brother, Itachi, they had to stay at their uncle Madara's house, and they hated it, because the man made both boy's lifes a living hell. Every summer, though, they had the chance to escape the Uchiha household and live the dream at one of Sasuke's best friends, Neji Hyuuga, mansion in St. Barts. Naruto recalled Sasuke used to say it was the only time of the year he could fully be happy, when all he had to care about was his friends and his surfboard. Apparently, Hinata was one of Neji's cousins, and reencountering her made him feel nostalgic.

Naruto was probably jumping to conclusions when he saw Hinata and Sasuke having fun together because she was the first girl that made his best friend smile after what happened. It had already been four months since Sasuke ex-fiancée left him, but the man hadn't shown any signs of moving on until today, when he was suddenly so comfortable and close to a beautiful girl from his past.

"I'm sorry, okay? I just thought you were finally forgetting..." Naruto stopped abruptly when he noticed Sasuke was glaring at him.

"Just shut the fuck up, man." The raven-haired boy pleaded, making his way to his room. "If you want to ask pink hair out, do it. Just don't come asking for my help afterwards. And turn off the TV before going to sleep, last month the eletricity bill came higher than my salary." He said before slamming the bedroom door even louder than Shikamaru had done earlier.