A/N: Hi! :) How are y'all doin'? Hope you're doing well! Here's the next installation of An Unexpected Night, and is also the last short chapter to come! Of that I am sure. ::grins::

I thank everyone who reviewed! Much love and cookies to you all!

Real quick thing: Um…to uh, respond to Jill Bioskop's reviews. :) Firstly, the…seal-activating itself was yes, initially supposed to kill him but was toned down so-to-speak, so it wouldn't be too much since Neji's still a major part of the village's fighting force-thing. It was activated enough to punish him, but not enough to do too much permanent damage to him. Like, just enough that he'll come out like 95 percent okay. And the main reason for his non-responsiveness is more shock than the actual activation itself, although that did have a part in it. The seal changing color thing is more of a representation of the seal being activated and his removal from the clan more than anything else. And although it wasn't explicitly said, although in retrospect I probably should've said it, Sakura did check up on him every day for an hour or two to see how he was doing and such. Uh…I think that's all. O.o I'm writing this from memory, so if there's anything else, just ask. XD

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An Unexpected Night

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Chapter Twelve

It was…quiet. Quieter than usual, which actually was pretty strange since it was normally pretty quiet on its own.

Neji sighed as he took a sip of the hot tea he had prepared, his hands mindlessly flipping through the magazine he had found in Shikamaru's room. On top of being quiet, it was unbearably boring.

Why did the Nara have to leave, again? Oh, right. Mission. Can't ever avoid those.

Sighing again, he closed the magazine and set his cup of tea down on the table next to the couch and stood, his body automatically moving to stretch. It was the first day out of a week that Shikamaru had a mission, meaning that he wouldn't return for another six days. Another six, long, boring days without anyone to talk to in the apartment. But, it wasn't like he was lonely or anything, nor did he truly enjoy the Nara's company any, especially since that awkward time last night when Shikamaru had returned home from 'working' at Tsunade's office…

Nope. He was doing just fine on his own, thankyouverymuch. Now if only he could convince himself of that…

Neji groaned softly in disgust at himself as he made his way to the back so he could take a quick shower. Shikamaru wasn't even worth thinking about right then, because of what happened yesterday. His company wasn't so…'enjoyable' ever since his revelation about whatever it was he had been thinking about. Or was it, not-revelation? Even when Shikamaru had returned home he couldn't tell which one it was. It was confusing, and in all honesty didn't matter. Or at least, it shouldn't matter.

But it did, didn't it? Why was that? Was it because Shikamaru had cared when he had been too messed up to take care of himself properly, and had even cared for him without asking any questions, and that he just wanted to extend his gratitude in the same manner of caring? Or was it something completely different that he hadn't even thought about? Either way he cared about Shikamaru and was…worried about the guy, and that irked him to high heaven and back.

Mentally he shook his head to clear his thoughts and begun running the water for the shower as he slowly peeled off the clothes he hadn't bothered to change out of before going to bed last night. Normally he would take off at least his shirt, but he had been too tired and too bothered by Shikamaru's attitude to really care about such trivialities.

Sighing in annoyance, Neji closed his eyes tight and clenched a fist, his mind silently berating himself for returning his thoughts back to Shikamaru. Didn't he seriously have anything better to think about than his roommate? Or was he really that…pathetic, that he really had nothing better to do with the guy gone? Did Shikamaru really have that big of a role in his life now, that he couldn't think straight without the thought of him somewhere in his mind?

That was skirting around certain…things that he really didn't want to ponder, so he quickly stepped into the steaming water in hopes of distracting himself. Hissing slightly at the sudden heat, Neji raised his face to the water and clenched his eyes shut against the onslaught of liquid pouring down on him. His body moving on autopilot, he grabbed the bottle of shampoo when his hair was sufficiently wet and began massaging the soap through it, rinsed, then repeated before doing the same with the bottle of conditioner, sans the repeat. When done with that he quickly soaped the rag that he used to wash himself with, then methodically began to wash himself down before rinsing the rag of any soap that might've still been in it. After letting the water run the suds off his body, he stayed in the water a little longer to savor the feeling of the water pounding down on his back and neck, before he sighed and turned it off.

Carefully he stepped out of the tub and grabbed the first towel his hand touched and proceeded to dry his face off. Almost immediately a scent rose up to greet his nose, making him scrunch up his face and pull the cloth away. Why was it that when his roommate was gone, all of the things he touched had to haunt him and force him to think about the guy? It honestly made no sense to him whatsoever!

Quicker than before he dried off – mood suddenly turning slightly sour because Shikamaru's towel was the only towel that wasn't in the clothes bin waiting to be washed – and dressed; before long he was headed back to the couch to finish his cup of tea and to finish flipping through the magazine he hadn't truly been paying attention to before.

When his cup was drained and his temporary interest in the magazine faltered, Neji stood and set the magazine back on the bookshelf – that action alone normally bothered Shikamaru, but since he wasn't here it didn't matter – and walked to the kitchen where he set the empty cup into the sink. Before leaving the kitchen he poured the remaining tea into a pitcher, mixed some sugar into it, and then put it into the fridge for later. Nonchalantly he glanced at the clock, and deciding that it was as good as any time to leave, and gathered the things he needed before leaving the apartment to head to his normal destination.

Briskly he made his way down the street toward the hospital, walking quickly enough to let anyone who might know him and want to stop him to talk know that he was headed somewhere and that it was probably better to not stop him. In practically no time he arrived at the front doors of the hospital building. Pausing, he let out a breath to calm himself – Sakura wouldn't like it if he arrived breathing heavily, and would probably end up giving him a lecture about taking care of himself better – and stepped into the building when his heart was beating at a normal pace.

Almost immediately the girl sitting behind the desk greeted him, a friendly smile gracing her lips. "Ah, Neji-kun! Back again for more therapy?" At his silent nod, the girl's smile grew a little. "I think Sakura-senpai and Maguro-sensei are free right now, so you probably can get in early if you can find them."

"Thank you, Makiko-san." Neji tilted his head slightly in thanks, and then proceeded to walk farther into the building. Before he managed to reach very far, he spotted the familiar back of a certain pink-haired girl who was walking in the general direction that his physical therapy took place. Not hurrying his steps any, he said a little louder than usual, "Sakura, wait."

Sakura turned upon hearing her name being called and grinned when Neji came into view. "You're early." She commented, her voice taking on a slightly amused tone. "Couldn't stand the quiet?"

Neji snorted in response, his pace matching Sakura's when he caught up to her. "Hardly. I just got bored and figured that getting this done early was better than waiting another hour or so."

Sakura laughed. "Listen to you! Making excuses like that…" Her grin widening, she nudged Neji as they turned the corner heading toward the physical therapy ward. "You never used to do that, Neji. I think a certain someone's rubbing off on you."

Neji merely rubbed the part of his arm that she nudged, and glared at her, his eyes narrowing some in mild annoyance. Frankly, he didn't believe that it was worth it to respond.

Sakura blinked in surprise, and then shrugged, figuring that there really was no need to…tease…the clearly bothered boy anymore than she already had, even though she had only teased him a little bit. Instead she changed the subject as they entered Neji's usual room. "I think Maguro-san's around here somewhere. I'll go find him if you wanna wait a bit."

Neji shrugged, not really caring either way. Silently he watched Sakura sigh at his reaction then walk out of his room before he went and sat in one of the available chairs. He didn't have to wait long before Sakura came back, Maguro-sensei in tow. Like every time before, Neji couldn't help but stare at the slightly aged man and wonder just what country could spawn such strange-looking people? He couldn't even think of a description that would fit the strange-looking man, with his disproportionate facial features, shoulders that looked too wide to fit his body properly, legs that didn't even remotely look like they should be capable of carrying a man of Maguro-sensei's stature…

It was like the guy was made out of all the spare body parts that nobody wanted to have because they were 'ugly' or weren't 'right for them'. Even though his appearance usually ended up making people shy away from him – and if Neji were honest, he'd admit that at first he didn't want to be around the man so much either, although now he was ashamed of that initial thought – his friendly smile and caring eyes tended to bring people back time and time again to see him.

"So, Neji-kun. Sakura here tells me that this will be your first time living on your own, without…" Maguro-sensei glanced down at the file in his hand, then locked eyes with Neji again, a smile in place, "Shikamaru-san, was it? Around. How does it feel?"

"It's fine. Just…quiet."

"And are you okay with this "just quiet"?"

Neji sent him a look before he spoke again. "Didn't I just say I was fine with it?"

"Ah, but you said you were fine with the 'living alone' part. You didn't say anything about the 'just quiet' part."

"I thought it was implied." Neji muttered quietly to himself, not really taking notice of the surprised look that both Sakura and Maguro-sensei sent him at his dark tone of voice.

After he spoke awkwardness entered the room, until Maguro-sensei cleared his throat and forced a smile. "Well then. We'll do the routine check up and assess where you are in your recovery period, and whether you need to keep coming back for further physical therapy or if you'll be fine on your own."

The session then passed by relatively quickly; at least, it felt that way to Neji. Like it had been rushed somehow, although Maguro-sensei had done everything that he had done every session before. Before he knew it the session had ended, and roughly an hour had passed by.

"Well, everything looks like it's going along just fine." Maguro-sensei began as he jotted down some notes in Neji's file, "I think you'll be out of here in about another week, but there's still going to be a few minor complications that may never fully disappear. I'm sorry to have to say this, but you'll probably be permanently reliant on that vile that Sakura here gave you early on. The dose of chakra mixed in with it that had been made that way to help you recover your natural strength can be lessened, though, since your body is starting to return back to normal; or at least as normal as it can become."

Neji simply nodded in response, not bothering to vocalize his frustrations he was feeling toward the state his body was in; the state that his body apparently would remain in for the years to come. Out of the corner of his eye he watched Sakura and Maguro-sensei share a glance, before he sighed. "That's just something that can't be helped, I guess. Now, if there's nothing else…?"

Maguro-sensei shook his head, cuing Neji that it was okay to leave. Saying a quiet goodbye to Maguro-sensei and Sakura, he took the release form that Maguro-sensei gave him to take to the front desk and began walking out of the room. As he walked down the hallway he heard footsteps behind him before a head of pink hair appeared at his side.

"Hey. I'm off just about now. You wanna go grab a bite to eat for lunch?"

Neji shrugged as they reached the front of the hospital, his hand unconsciously moving to set the release form on Makiko's desk. "Don't we always?"

Sakura laughed. "Usually we do, Neji, not always."

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"So, how have you been doing?" Sakura was quick to ask when they arrived at the little café that they seemed to always eat at whenever they ate out for lunch. "And I don't mean how you feel about what Maguro-sensei told you just now. I mean how you are feeling over all."

Neji sighed; he should've expected something like this to come up. Silently he thought about Sakura's question for a few moments, and then said, "I guess I feel better than before, but…" Neji paused, his eyes trailing along the patterns in the wooden table before he continued on again. "It's just…I don't feel like there's really a purpose for me to be here. The clan was my life; without it, what's left?"

Sakura didn't reply; she knew full well that Neji wasn't actually asking for her to answer that question, and was instead asking himself the question out loud. After a few seconds of silence Neji spoke again, his voice quieter than before.

"Y'know…it's still strange to be living with the Nara, even though it's been over a month since we've been together. Can't say that I'm not grateful to him for being there, though. No matter how much I don't want to say it, his presence is…welcome."

Sakura 'hmm'ed quietly in response, before she sighed. "Y'know…Shikamaru probably wouldn't want me telling you this, but I really think that you should know. Especially if you plan on staying there for a while." She went quiet, and only continued when Neji quirked a curious eyebrow in her direction. Knowing full well that she probably shouldn't have opened this door, and since she couldn't shut it so soon after bringing it up, she continued on. "He asked if we were going out yesterday, and of course I said no. What's weird is that he had even asked the question; normally Shikamaru's the type to not really care any which way about whether or not his friends were dating. That's not even really the weirdest part though. When he had asked the question he had looked really jealous for some reason; I'm not even sure if he himself noticed it. And…" She paused again, her gaze falling to the table in front of them so as to not have to look into Neji's eyes. "As a joke I kinda…teased him about liking you. After saying something about…something that I don't quite remember, he just upped and left."

Neji's eyebrow rose farther as he took a sip of the complimentary tea that had been placed in front of him. "So he had gotten uncomfortable about you teasing him about liking a guy. What's so strange about that?"

"Well, that's not really the strange part. It's just…you've seen him, right? Doesn't he normally try and dispute false things about him a couple times before leaving?" At Neji's silent nod, she continued on. "But this time around he didn't. Instead as he was walking away he looked kind of…troubled; like what I had said was true and not just a joke."

"So, what? Do you think the Nara likes me or something?"

(This was an awkward conversation if he'd ever had one. Why was he being so calm when they were talking about a guy possibly feeling something for him? That simply wasn't normal behavior.)

"Mmm…I'm not really sure, honestly. I don't think it really would be too weird for either of you to have a small man-crush on each other since you guys have lived together for just under two months, and have gotten used to each others' presence and mannerisms during that time." Sakura paused, and then brought her gaze up to lock onto Neji's. "Does it…bother you? I mean, this whole talk of Shikamaru maybe liking you's probably gotta be uncomfortable or…disgusting, or something, since you're both guys 'n' all."

Neji didn't respond for a few moments as he tried to gather his thoughts on the matter that had suddenly been thrust into his face, and frowned when only one answer really came to him. "It…doesn't…much, for some reason. I don't really know what to think about it. It's all too sudden and…strange. I've never been in this kind of situation before. With time I can probably get a better answer worked up, but for now I don't have any…real…opinion about…this."

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One Week Later…

Shikamaru groaned softly as he arrived at the steps leading to his apartment door, his hand moving to rub his sore back. The mission he had been on had been long and vicious, and he now wanted for nothing else than to take a long soak in the shower to massage his aching, under-used muscles and to make himself a warm cup of tea before heading off to bed to recuperate properly. Just as his hand landed on the doorknob a light from inside caught his attention, causing him to frown slightly in confusion.

Wasn't it like, two in the morning? So why was the light still on? Clearly that meant that Neji was still awake – which was strange. It certainly didn't mean that the older boy had forgotten to turn off the lights since Neji was always the one who made sure the lights were off before they both went to bed…

So why the late-night/early-morning…whatever it was the guy was doing?

Shrugging, he turned the knob and pushed the door open just enough to allow himself in and quietly closed the door behind him as he stepped into the room. Upon turning, his gaze landed on Neji's hunched over position on the floor by the couch, leading him to momentarily believe that he had had another attack before something caught his eye that was located just in front of the other boy. Although he hadn't seen it in quite a while, he could easily recognize it from anywhere; there was no way he'd ever forget the shogi board that Asuma had given him for his thirteenth birthday.

So that meant that Neji had been snooping around while he had been gone, since even he hadn't known where he had stored it after Asuma's death. Heck, he hadn't even known that it was even in his apartment! As far as he knew, he had left it at home in his old room; apparently that was wrong, or his mother had brought it over and left it. But…why? Why would she­­­­­­—

No. That's not what he was supposed to be focusing on. What he was supposed to be focusing on was why Neji was still up, and why hadn't he reacted to his presence yet? He had been standing there for a couple minutes already, and Neji had yet to make any sign that he had even noticed him coming in, which was highly strange for Neji to not do. Normally the older boy would glance at him, or welcome him back with a silent nod, or even sometimes a quiet "Nara" would pass through his lips. But this time it seemed like Neji was too much into the shogi game he was playing against himself to really notice anything else.

And besides that, something just seemed…off about Neji that he couldn't quite put his finger on. What had happened while he had been gone? Why did it feel like Neji was specifically not acknowledging his presence because he didn't want to, and why did it hurt so much? Why did it feel like—

"Nara."

Shikamaru blinked in surprise when Neji quietly spoke his name, then returned his gaze from the floor where it had ended up to Neji's form. Neji hadn't turned around when he had spoken, but – to Shikamaru's relief – he at least had noticed him and had greeted him in some way. "Hm?"

"Wanna play?"

It took Shikamaru a few moments to respond, mostly because of surprise. Shrugging he set the bag he took with him on his mission on the floor, slipped off his sandals, then walked over to the opposite side Neji was on and sat down. "Sure."

The game started silently, which, he supposed, really wasn't all that strange considering who was playing. But what he was tempted to ask, which he knew he wouldn't, was why Neji wasn't looking at him, and why he was staring so intently at the shogi board like his life depended on it. So, for some reason Neji was avoiding him but not at the same time.

Wait. Wasn't this backward? Wasn't he the one who had made everything feel all awkward like this just last week, and not Neji? So why the switch? Maybe the reason Neji was 'avoiding' him was similar to the reason why Shikamaru himself had been acting, which could possibly mean that Neji—

No. He had promised himself that he wouldn't cross that line; that he wouldn't even think of that possibility. But…that was back when it appeared to have only been his problem; if he was right, it seemed like now it was Neji's problem as well…

Then again it could be something completely unrelated and he was just trying to make himself feel better for having to block those…thoughts…from his mind that he didn't want to dwell on.

"Nara. It's your move."

Shikamaru mentally shook his head and refocused on the game in front of him. Guessing wouldn't get him any closer to the truth, so he might as well as enjoy this shogi game with his roommate while he still could; for all he knew things might be changing in the future that he – consciously and subconsciously – didn't want to change.

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A/N: Annnd…that's the end of the twelfth chapter! Six more to go, plus an epilogue! :)

I'm going to try and finish this by…sometime in January, since after that 'sometime in January' I might not be able to write for like, 2 months for that surgery I had said I was going to - maybe - have sometime in December. So hopefully the school semester end won't interrupt with that plan!

Read and review!