"Somebody Out There"

A Rocket to the Moon

"Ugh! Why does this keep happening to me?" Tenten groaned, slamming her head against the table. The mugs rattled, threatening to topple over and spill the coffee within. Her friends stared at her with blank expressions, not the least bit surprised by her outburst. It was the third time this month that Tenten had been dumped by someone, and she was getting sick of it.

"That jerk didn't deserve you anyway, Tenten." Her friend Sakura Haruno said with a consoling pat to her shoulder. "You can do much better than him."

"Yeah," Ino Yamanaka added. "He stood you up on two dates and didn't even have the audacity to call and apologise. You shouldn't mope around because of someone like him."

"I'm not moping and especially not over him." Tenten retorted. "It's just… you both have steady boyfriends already. Hell, even Hinata is dating, and we all know how nervous she gets around guys." She groaned, banging her head on the table again. "Why can't I find someone? Am I really that undesirable?"

Her two friends gave each other sad look over her head, not knowing what they should say to her. The four of them—Hinata included—had grown up together, having been in the same school until graduation, and now the same college. They had been inseparable their whole lives, but Tenten had always been a bit different to the rest of them. Sakura and Ino possessed that charismatic beauty that seemed to attract everyone around them, and Hinata was the cute, innocent type that guys couldn't seem to resist. Tenten, however, had been a tomboy for most of her life. She had participated in sports throughout middle and high school, never really making an effort when it came to her looks. She always had plenty of male friends, but none that seemed to view her as a woman. At first, Tenten didn't mind; she didn't have the time or the desire to date in high school. But she was twenty years old now, halfway through college, and she had never even had a proper boyfriend. She had gone on a few blind dates, but they never seemed to turn out well. She was headstrong and didn't like it when men looked down on her because she was a woman, which they seemed to do a lot.

"Why don't you come to the party that Naruto is throwing tonight?" Sakura suggested with a smile. "You might find someone nice there."

The brunette shook her head, her face shifting into a look of disgust. "No, thank you. I refuse to go to a party to meet someone. They're all looking for a hook-up, not a relationship."

Ino rolled her eyes at her stubborn friend. And she thinks we're difficult to deal with, the blonde thought dryly. "Fine, but you should still come along anyway. Let your hair down, forget about your worries and just have a good time for once. Stop being such a stick in the mud."

It took a lot of willpower for Tenten to resist the urge to groan again. She hated parties. They were full of hormonal young adults whose sole purpose was to get drunk and have sex. But then again, Tenten had been so busy with her assignments for so long that even she was worried about her sanity. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad thing to go, to let loose for once? It wasn't like she was obliged to talk to any of the guys there.

"Fine!" She finally gave in and her friends expressed their excitement that she had decided to tag along. Tenten tried to share their enthusiasm, but it wasn't convincing. Even though she had decided to enjoy a night out for once, she would much rather spend the evening in her dorm, wearing an oversized jumper, sweatpants and watching re-runs of her favourite television show.

"C'mon," Tenten mumbled, her chair squeaking as she pushed it back to stand up. "Let's go. I've got a class starting soon."

Tenten was the first to the door, the girls close behind her as they chatted enthusiastically about what they would wear that evening. She didn't notice the person opening the door to enter the café at the same time she was exiting, and ended up smacking right into a hard chest, letting out a grunt of surprise. She skittered away from the body, an apology on her lips. In her rush, Tenten tripped over her own feet and began to fall backwards. A hand whipped out and grabbed her around the waist, effectively stopping what would have been an incredibly embarrassing moment for her.

The mysterious arm helped her stand upright and Tenten glanced at their face, the chance to see who her saviour was overpowering the desire to hide her flushed cheeks. She had to hold in a gasp at the sight that greeted her, her eyes turning into wide saucers at the sight of him. He was the most beautiful man Tenten had ever seen.

"T-thank you." She realized too late that she had been staring at the man, and she took a step back, her cheeks reddening even more.

The man was staring back at her, his pale lavender eyes bright with amusement. "You're welcome." Even his voice was smooth, and Tenten had to stop herself from swooning in front of him. He had long, black hair tied loosely behind his back and, although Tenten usually didn't like men with long hair, she found that it suited him.

"Neji, what's keeping you? Let's go in already." A head poked around the man's shoulder, his astonishingly bushy eyebrows creasing in confusion. "Hello." He smiled at seeing what was holding up his friend, giving the girls a friendly wave.

Tenten finally managed to move out of the boys' way, allowing them to enter the café. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest, unused to feeling this awkward around men. She stole a glance at the man—Neji, his friend had called him—from the corner of her eye and noticed that he was still watching her, eyebrows drawn as if in thought.

"We should really be going," Ino piped up from behind Tenten, her voice an octave higher than usual. "Or you'll be late for your class." Her two friends exchanged knowing looks behind her back and grinned. "Hey Lee," Ino greeted the man next to Neji with a smile. "Will you be at Naruto's party tonight?"

"Yes, of course!" Lee replied enthusiastically, and Tenten's first thought was that he must be a handful to hang around. "I was just trying to persuade Neji to go with me, but he keeps refusing."

Sakura grinned, slinging an arm around Tenten's shoulder as she gave the men a sly look. "We'll be there. Gotta wind down after an exhausting week, right?" She sent Neji a wink before giving Tenten's shoulder a nudge. "Someone has a class to get to, so we need to go. We might see you tonight." She gave her friend another nudge, moving her towards the door.

The three girls exited the café, two of them grinning with anticipation while the other stole one last glance behind her. She sighed and turned back around, hanging her head with a pout.

"What's wrong this time, Tenten?" Sakura asked, her hand touching her friend's arm comfortingly.

She lifted her head to look at Sakura, pout deepening. "I didn't get his number." She replied, as if she would have been brave enough to do so even if she did have the opportunity.

Ino laughed and hooked her arm through the brunette's. "Don't worry Tenten. I'm sure you'll see him again soon."

This was going to be a one-shot based on the song mentioned at the outset. However, I've left the ending open, and if there is enough interest in another part of the story, I will make it a two-shot. So if you like it, please let me know. :3

Thank you for reading.