I'm Your Bet To Lose

Written by: chocoGONEsushi

Disclaimer: The plot, although confusing and half-assed, is mine. Everything else belongs to whomever it belongs to.

Chapter Four

You Devil

So breathe in so deep
Breathe me in; I'm yours to keep
And hold on to your words, 'cause talk is cheap
And remember me tonight when you're asleep

"And this is another hall, full of stuff. There are doors with plates on them. These plates tell you a number. That number is the number of the classroom. If you're really sharp, you'll notice a name under those numbers. That's the name of the teacher. But if you're really, really sharp, you'll see a word next to—"

Neji stopped listening to the boy three halls ago, choosing instead to stare at his ass. The guy clearly didn't want to be there, and he could sympathize, but to treat him like some mentally challenged chicken was a little disrespectful. As a result, he made sure to make the pineapple-headed male feel uncomfortable by openly checking him out.

Shikamaru was well aware of the pair of eyes stuck to his behind—he could practically feel them burning holes into his buttocks. He didn't really care, though. The guy—it took him a while to realize it was a guy—obviously didn't care about where his classes were, so neither did he. In fact, Shikamaru was tired and wanted to be asleep at his desk, but because people thought it'd be oh so funny to elect him as student council president, he had duties now. He had responsibilities.

This was his way of pay back.

"Ne, Shikamaru-kun," started Neji, bored of watching his butt, "do we have any classes together?"

Shikamaru pondered this for a moment, before realizing that yes, they did. "One."

Neji smirked. Sweetness.

"What class would that be?"

Shikamaru stopped walking and turned to him, meeting his eyes with curiosity. "Advanced Government."

Neji smirked.

"Swell."

Then he stopped smirking and giggled, walking past Shikamaru and into the classroom he knew held his class.

Shikamaru stood there for a moment, then smirked. He continued walking past the door and down the hall.

Finally, something interesting.

-

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Hinata stared at her feet, noting with interest how white the floors were and how black her shoes were. To her, it was like a piece of art. Something bubbled in her chest when she pictured how the floors would look with thousands of shiny black shoes on them. This made her smile.

Sasuke walked in front of her silently. He wasn't much of a conversation starter, and evidently neither was she. The girl was pretty, he'll admit to that, but had as much charisma as a dead fish. He peeked over his shoulder, wondering if maybe she had trailed off the path and gotten herself lost—her footfalls were extremely silent—when he noticed she had her head bent down and was staring at her feet, a smile on her face as a light blush dusted her cheeks.

It creeped him out at first, because, I mean, she had been obviously checking him out right? People had always warned him about the silent ones.

And of course, by 'people', he meant Naruto.

"Are you alright?" he finally asked, stopping.

It took her a while to register what he had said and to stop walking. Hinata almost started to cry when she realized she had almost walked into him. Him, the kid with the eyes!

"W-what?"

She wasn't checking you out, idiot, Sasuke realized. She had been daydreaming.

"Never mind," he said slowly, turning toward a door. "This is your class."

Hinata stared at the door, pretty sure it hadn't been there a minute ago. She seriously needed to stop looking down so much.

"A... thank you," she told him, staring at the door now with dread.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow and shrugged. The chick was weird.

When he realized she had no intent of walking in, he walked past her and opened the door. It was his class as well.

Hinata's blush darkened, and she swallowed the knot in her throat. People. Most likely chatty people.

People that liked small talk. She wasn't fond of these people.

And here she was, in a school full of them.

Dear God, she thought. What am I doing here?

With a deep breath she managed to calm herself and take the first step.

Remember, Hina, no connections.

Do not get attached.

-

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Ino and Hanabi walked side by side, both talking and chatting happily.

Hanabi was capable of making friends with anyone, and Ino had been too easy. All she had to do was laugh along and occasionally answer with a "mhm" or an "I know right?"

Ino wasn't stupid—she realized almost immediately that the kid walking by her side wasn't just a kid. Hyuuga Hanabi had some tricks up her sleeve, and Ino enjoyed playing along.

"I can't believe you're just now starting high school," Ino commented with a smile as they turned a corner. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were at least a sophomore."

Hanabi smiled, nodding. "I may be a freshman, but I'm taking advanced classes. On another note, how are the sport teams in this school?"

Ino was herself a cheerleader, so this was something she enjoyed talking about. "We've got amazing sport teams—we're one of Japan's greatest. Why, are you planning on joining?"

Hanabi shrugged. "I'm not sure yet."

"Well, you look like you'd be able to play anything you'd set your mind to."

Hanabi smirked. "Do I?"

Ino walked to the end of the hall and stopped before a door. "Here, this is your class."

Hanabi smiled at her, grateful. "Thank you, Yamanaka-san."

"Nah, Ino's fine."

"Then please, call me Hanabi."

Ino smiled at her. "Alright, Hanabi-chan. If you need anymore help, just come and find me."

Hanabi nodded, knowing she wouldn't need anymore help. "I'll do that. Thanks again."

"My pleasure."

Once the door closed behind Hanabi, Ino turned sharply on her heel and walked away, pulling out her cell phone.

I think I found our next cheerleader.

-

-

With every new school came new people she had to meet and introduce herself to. Occasionally the teachers spared her, but every once in a while there was a teacher that thoroughly enjoyed putting her on the spot.

Ibiki-sensei was one of these teachers.

"Silence," was all he said, and the class shut up at once, giving their undivided attention to the pretty girl up front. Hinata wanted to die.

"Introduce yourself," he barked at her.

He probably just talks like that, she realized with dread.

"Eh.. um, I'm Hyuuga Hinata. Hi."

They were obviously expecting more out of her, but that was all she was gonna say. After going from school to school, she realized making her introduction short and sweet was the best way to go. Besides, if these people really wanted to know more about her they'd have to be her friends, wouldn't they? And she wasn't here for friends.

"Hmm," was all Ibiki-sensei said. "Sit next to Sai."

When she didn't move, he realized she didn't know who Sai even was. He sighed.

"Sai, raise your hand."

Hinata walked quickly and sat next to a boy with short black hair and a face set in apathy. He smiled at her, and she smiled back. He didn't look like a talker, which was enough for her.

Although he didn't talk much (if at all), he, along with the rest of the class, couldn't keep their eyes off of her. It was freaking her out, honestly.

Why were they looking at her so much? Clearly she wasn't that interesting. I mean, this was a school for gifted kids. There was no way you would be in there if there wasn't something you excelled in. Why were they treating her as if she were something special?

"It's your eyes," someone whispered.

She turned her head to look at Sai.

He was staring at her with amusement dancing in his own eyes.

"Your eyes single you out, Hinata-chan."

Hinata felt dread pool at the bottom of her stomach. No, this could not be happening. She just started! How could these people be making her an outcast already?

"Don't worry," he said, as if reading her mind. "It's not something to be ashamed of."

Then he smiled.

"Unless you like being clumped into a certain group."

She had no idea what he was talking about, and preferred not to know. She was here to study. She was here to better herself.

Having a social life (or whatever this was) was out of the question.

I just hope Neji and Hanabi are better off than I am.

-

-

Neji was, to put it simply, having the best time of his life.

As soon as he had walked through the door all eyes were on him. Unlike Hinata, he loved the attention.

The girls surrounded his seat, commenting on how shiny his hair was and how smooth his skin looked. Although he liked the attention, he'd rather not be touched. He didn't know where their hands had been—and there was no way they were about to ruin his perfectly straight hair with their greasy fingers.

Some people got the message. One girl, though, did not.

"Ohmygosh, what shampoo do you use?"

Her fingers were combing through his hair like a rake through leaves. He knew exactly what she was looking for.

"My hair's real, sweetheart," he whispered to her.

"I'll be the judge of that," she countered, and sniffed his hair.

She sniffed his hair. What the hell.

Neji, now freaking out, pulled himself out of her grip. But she did not let go.

He turned to her, ready to do some physical damage when she said something that stopped him dead.

"Go out with me, Neji-san."

-

-

Hanabi sat by the window, watching the great field outside. One class had P.E., and they were playing soccer.

"Ne, Hanabi-chan, who are you looking at?"

Half the class was eager to be friends with her, but she had already gotten bored. These kids were still kids. She was looking for something more.

"What's his name?" she asked, pointing to a brunette that was currently dominating the soccer field.

The girl in front of her new who she was talking about immediately. "Kiba-kun? You like Kiba-kun, Hanabi-chan?"

Hanabi stared at the girl with a blush and a practiced smile. "Oh, no... that would be too disrespectful of me. He's just really good at soccer."

The girl nodded, watching him once again. "He's the best soccer player this school has. He's a junior, though."

Hanabi kept staring out the window.

Perfect.

-

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Neji calmly pulled his locks out of her grip then stared at her.

"No."

The girl smirked, obviously knowing something he didn't.

"Are you sure about that? Neji-kun, I don't think you know who I am."

It was his turn to smirk.

"And you obviously don't know who I am. Listen girl, I am not afraid of you or the power your daddy has in his pocket. Don't mess with me."

Her eyes widened, and he turned around to face the front of the class. He'd faced people like that everywhere he went. They always thought they were better than everyone else until they met him. Neji hated those types of girls the most.

And they wonder why I started to like men.

-

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When the bell rang, Hinata found herself being escorted by Sai to her next class. She was right about him - he rarely talked. But when he did, it wasn't a waste of breath. She found herself enjoying his company.

Then they turned a corner and something went wrong.

"That's enough, Sai."

She turned toward Sai, who's look of total apathy seemed a little more forced than before. Hinata turned toward the blonde before them, noticing how bright his blue eyes were.

Sai turned around to leave, and she was left alone with a total stranger that would not stop staring at her.

"Hi, I'm Naruto. Want to go eat lunch together?"

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