Rating: K+

Summary: In which Ino dreams of a love like the ones in her books and Shikamaru simply wants her.

a/n: First time writing shikaino, I'm very excited since this is one of my favorite pairings. I like reading with music so here's a rec, I was listening to 'I want Crazy' by Hunter Hayes when I wrote this so go ahead and check it out. It's cute, I think. Alright, enjoy x

She was 16 when she first approached him with a stack of novels and they were all about the same thing: cliché love. Since then she would always cling to her romance novels and always make sure to share her findings, review the book to him, recommend it, even if she knew that he would never read it.

He didn't like it at first.

But he grew accustomed to watching her walk into his room on a random night and sit in his room and read the novels until she was reduced to nothing but a mass of tears and running mascara. He would always keep a tissue box after the first time that happened, and when she began crying he would sit with her while she blew her nose and ask her what happened in the book that made her so upset, she would always laugh and tell him the same thing;

"Their love -it's perfect, I want love like this Shika."

She was a hopeless romantic who would fawn for the smallest thing instead of worrying about real things, he always called her troublesome for it.

On rainy afternoons she would come over and they would lay on his bed, she would read from her novel out loud and he would listen. The stories she read were always far-fetched and they didn't go with the reality of the world. Those stories were of a love that was perfect, too perfect, with no fights and with no complications, in the real world he believed that would make them fake.

Soon after she had began to drag him to the book stores or a library and he'd walk around with her as she selected new novels for herself, new stories of far-fetched love.

He was never sure why he didn't tell her that such love doesn't exist in the real world, perhaps it was because of the way her eyes would light up as she talked about the books and the love the character's shared. He had always heard her say that she wanted love like the ones in the books, they were all important to her therefore they were important to him.

Even if he hated them.

When they turned 17 he had bought her new novels he found while trying to look for study guides in a bookstore far from where they lived. He was sure she'd never read them because the summary's weren't any he remembered from the endless books she read to him. At their joint birthday party he handed them to her in private, she had squealed and told him that he was the most amazing best friend in the whole world. She had hugged him and told him that she was glad there was someone who understood what she wanted and she wouldn't want.

He swore nothing felt better than knowing he was the cause of her happiness, even if it was for a moment.

She had her first heartbreak at the age of 18, when she thought she had finally found her romance novel love. She had been head over heels for the guy, from what he saw, and the guy had turned out to be a massive asshole who didn't really care about her at all, it was all about her looks.

He had held her the night it happened as she cried and clung to his shirt.

When her crying had stopped and she was simply sniffling she told him that she would still cling to her novels and hope for the best. She had laughed slightly and told him that wasn't going to give up because of the small bump in the road she was presented.

He had scoffed and called her troublesome.

She had giggled and told him that he was a great person for always being there for her and always listening to her pointless ranting about her novels. She had fallen asleep in his arms that night and as he kissed the top of her head he whispered something he'd never had the courage to say to her;

"I'll always be here for you, troublesome."

Three months later she came to him with a new novel in hand, she was excited about reading this one. She claimed the main character shared her problem at the moment, a broken heart from the man she thought was the one.

She had sat with him on his porch while she read the book out loud to him. He listened and almost chuckled at the story itself, nothing but a book built on cliché's, same as all the books she brought home with her.

When she stopped reading she looked at him with determination in her eyes, "I will find love like this, Shika."

He gave her a small smile before shutting his eyes and falling back against the steps, she followed suit and asked him what he thought was so amusing, that she wasn't making jokes and that she was truly serious about the situation. He had merely placed a hand over her mouth to keep her quiet, his eyes still closed.

"Don't be troublesome, Ino."

"Damn you, Shika."

And for the rest of the afternoon they laid there while she ranted about pointless things that no other man would have bothered listening to. He wondered if perhaps he should be as determined as her to find a love like that.

He merely slapped himself.

Love like that didn't exist, besides he felt like he had something better than that at the moment.

When they were 20 they had begun to sit on a grassy hill overlooking the city and on a warm August night she had looked away from the sky and towards him before she asked him a very strange question;

"What kind of love do you want, Shika?"

He shrugged and then looked at the sky above them pensively.

"I don't know," he told her honestly, "but I certainly don't want a love like the ones from your novels."

She sighed softly, "is it too troublesome to be romantic, Shika?"

"Yeah," he had lied.

"You're never going to find a girlfriend like that, Shikamaru," she warned.

He had laughed then and told her to not worry about such things, he still had a whole life ahead of him for that. She had laughed and told him that they weren't getting any younger and that he should hurry before all the girls were taken.

He had looked at her and smirked, "I only want one girl, she's too busy being unrealistic however."

She had rolled her eyes and looked back up to the star-filled sky.

That New Year's she had pulled him aside and gave him a big smile.

"I figured it out."

"What have you figured out?" he asked with a small yawn.

"Who you like, the girl," she giggled, "I figured it out, Shika."

"Enlighten me," he told her.

"The girl who just moved here from Suna," she smirked, "took me a while but I figured it out soon enough."

"Her name is Temari, Ino," he sighed, "she's not the girl I like."

She had pouted before scratching her head, "then who, Shikamaru?"

"I'll tell you if you come with me to the balcony," he told her taking a sip from his drink.

"Fine, fine, but hurry before the count down starts, I want to steal a kiss from Sai," she winked.

"You like him?"

"No," she shook her head, "he doesn't have a single romantic bone in his body, it would never work out that doesn't make him not-handsome, however."

He rolled his eyes and they headed for the balcony in Naruto's apartment. He looked at her as she clutched her coat tighter against her body. Her long blonde hair moving every which way in the cold wind.

"So tell me, why are you dying to know who I like," he asked.

"Well as you know, I am your best friend," she told him with a small smirk, "and your lack of girlfriend's worry me, Shikamaru."

"Tsk, troublesome," he grumbled.

"So who is she?"

"Shikamaru! Ino!" Sakura poked her head outside and smiled, "hurry, the countdown has started."

Ino smiled and made a move to go inside but Shikamaru halted her, she looked at him with an arched eyebrow.

"Shika, I have to get a kiss," she told him with a small frown, "let go."

He could hear the voices of his friends start at 10 and he looked at the girl before him, the overly complicated and oblivious girl who managed to steal his heart. The same girl who believed in the perfect love with no complications, a love that took little to no effort. His troublesome childhood best friend.

"Do you want to know who I like?"

5

"Don't see why you want to tell me now," she rolls her eyes

4

"You'll get your kiss, just tell me, do you want to find out who she is?" he smirked

3

"Who is she, then?" she asks once more, "hurry."

2

"You."

1

He didn't give her time to respond as he pulled her in for a kiss, she gasped softly when their lips made contact but she didn't pull away. He felt her smile and in turn it caused him to smile, here is was, giving her that typical New Years' scene from her stupid, overly dramatic, unrealistic romance novels.

"Only you," he whispered into their kiss.

When they turned 22 he had asked her to meet him on that same grassy hill they read her books in. She had joined him without questioning him, it was something strange for Ino, the girl who always demanded to know what it was you were doing and why you were doing it.

At 12:55 on September 22nd she had jogged up the hill with a smile on her face looking completely dazzling and breathtaking. When she reached him he pulled her in for a kiss and when they pulled apart he looked at the watch on his hand.

12:00. September 23rd.

She looked at him breathlessly, "what's wrong, Shika? Why did you call me out here?"

"Happy birthday, Ino," he smiled pressing his lips to hers once more.

She scoffed, "that's why? Shikamaru you're crazy, I have work tomorrow and I can't oversleep."

He ignored her and quietly dropped on to his knee and pulled out the velvet box he had held on to for a few months. He watched her hands fly up to her mouth and her baby blue eyes began to water slightly at the sight.

"You're the most troublesome woman I've ever met, you've dragged me with you to hell and back with all your crazy ideas, our love, it's never been normal, never been perfect or straight out of those novels you still read," he chuckled, "but I love you nonetheless, so Yamanaka Ino, will you do me the honor of marrying me?"

It was when she flung herself into his arms and continued to yell the word "Yes" that he realized that this love of theirs, although imperfect and filled with all the problems of the world he wouldn't have it any other way. Their love he realized had never been like the ones in her novels, he never went over the top to take her breath away, didn't dive off of cliffs or defeat dragons for her hand. He was sometimes rude and she was sometimes problematic but never once did he feel the need to act like those so-called prince charming's from her stories.

He found that cliché's were just that, overly used and dull, and when dealing with Yamanaka Ino, dull would never do. So he continued being himself and she continued being herself, no overly complicated promises of forever, all he did was love her despite her flaws and for her it seemed to be enough.

And that's all they ever needed.

That was cheesy, I apologize. Thanks for reading!