7.23.10

Dull

Full Summary: For Hyuuga Hinata, seeing ghosts is an everyday thing. The dead come from all over to seek her much needed help – that's about the only thing she can do. Her grades are falling, her constant stutter bothers everyone, and her father's disappointment perpetually looms over her; how much lower could her self-esteem drop? It's only when she agrees to help the ghost, Sasuke, regain his memories and essentially pass on peacefully that her life takes a 180 degree turn – for the better. He may just be the savior she's searching for as he proves her self-worth and upholds the truth that love transcends all boundaries, even the untouchable world of death.

Disclaimer: Yeah, so I don't own Naruto. That should be obvious though…

a/n :: Welp, guys, as you have accurately guessed, writing during school time was a no-go. It was a horrible experience; I never had any inspiration because any I could've had was sucked out by the devil himself. Thankfully, I just graduated and now it's summertime and I'm filled with so much inspiration and so much desire to finish this story!

I really hope you haven't given up on me, people! I'm still here, however slow I may be, and hope that you still find this story as fun to read as when I first began!

Shout out to my friend for reading it and encouraging (more like threatening) me to continue! Couldn't have done it without you, hunny bun!

oo5 :: handsome

It was the first time Sasuke had entered the room since she had holed herself away in there, days ago. He looked to be upset and full of frustration, though with no way of expressing it healthily and without causing any emotional damage to her psyche. However, despite his noticeable exasperation with her current, hermit-like attitude, his words did surprise her.

"Let's go out."

Hinata managed to stammer out in confusion, "excuse me?"

"Don't play stupid." Sasuke rolled his eyes at her, annoyance and impatience radiating off him in waves (when weren't they?). "You've been stuck in this godforsaken room for five godforsaken days."

Frankly, she should've seen the lecture coming; the entire time she had been snuggled up beneath the covers, sulking and moping about the loss of her room and many belongings, he was quickly getting more and more irritated with her state; even if he wasn't around, it was obvious to conclude, considering how he had about as much patience as a wrathful demon. It was inevitable that it would lead to this, and however much she knew that she probably deserved it for acting like a kid, Hinata just didn't want to hear it. Frowning and turning away from him, the depressed girl stared at the wall and hoped he would get the message and just leave.

If there was ever a time for her to act like a baby, it was now – that was how she justified it. The fire had eaten everything, leaving nothing for the lonely freshman to remember her mother by; there weren't even little morsels or scraps that had been set aside for her. In her despair, Hinata was at a loss of what to do, and as such, the only solution she could come up with was to stay in the guest bedroom for five days, spending most of her time crying beneath the blankets or falling into a deep and dreamless sleep.

No one had visited her during that time, not the maids and butlers, not her sister, and not her father. She only wanted to be alone, and yet, at the same time, she wanted someone to come in and offer a shoulder to cry on – but no one did. Sasuke had left her to her thoughts for most of the time; she probably could have called out for him, asked him to company her and talked to him about how she was feeling, but she was too shy, too nervous, and too sad to come up with the courage to ask.

Pulling the comforters tighter around her, Hinata then closed her eyes, intent on sleeping off her sorrow; it was a better plan than sitting up for hours, thinking about every item that was unfortunate enough to have been caught in the clutches of the flames. However, sleep did not come as easily as she had hoped, and when her eyes fluttered to check if the wall that was there was part of her dream or part of reality, Sasuke's ghostly head had reared itself up through the mattress, glaring a storm at her. Any other day, she would've been terrified – but not today, not after everything that had happened.

"Get. Your lazy ass. Up."

"N-no. No."

"Hinata."

"I d-don't want to go anywhere."

Said girl rolled over, her back to him; in spite of that, Hinata quickly learned that the disadvantage of having a ghost as a roommate was that there were no boundaries he couldn't cross – as he showed when his head popped up on the other side as though unfazed by her attempt to ignore him.

"So. You're just gonna stay in bed. Forever. Like some pathetic baby."

She didn't answer, wiping at the tears that threatened her eyes instead.

"Well, what about me, then? Huh? Me and you have unfinished business; you're just gonna go back on your word and make me wait for you to grow up?"

"F-find somebody e-else…!" She hadn't meant what she had said, but Hinata was filled with so many emotions: anger, frustration, grief, agony. Her mind had so many things running through her head, and his words weren't making her feel any better, so she had just said the first thing that came to mind. Why couldn't he just understand?

"What about the other ghosts who need your help – you gonna abandon them, too?"

She shut her eyes to try and get his accusing voice out of her head.

Why should she care?

There was no point; they were dead! They were on their own, and Hinata trying to help would only bring my problems into her life, unnecessary problems that she could live without. She already had her hands full with her sister, her father, her grades, and her lack of friends and low self-esteem; why should they dump their desires onto her? It wasn't fair! She had a life to live, and because she tried to give assistance, her room and all her belongings were burned down.

"I-it's not f-fair…"

"What? Speak up!"

She sniffled softly, rubbing at her nose with the back of her hand.

"It's n-not f-fair!"

That seemed to really strike a nerve, though he had yet to say a word to show it; he hadn't needed to. Hinata could feel the change in atmosphere and his demeanor as he phased through the bed to end up standing beside it, glaring down at her, most likely – she couldn't tell, being too busy trying to avoid his gaze guiltily.

"Not fair?" he repeated monotonously, but the restraint was loud and clear. "Not fair? I'm dead with no idea why, no idea how, and no idea who I am. The only way I can even feel anything is if I'm within five feet of your ass when you're wearing that damn, stupid necklace; and the only person I can count on is a crybaby that's more worried about a few lost jewelry and presents than actually completing what she started! Not fair! Come talk to me when you're on my side of reality!"

Hinata buried her face into her pillow and cried softly, knowing that he had disappeared through the walls already. She felt horrible about what she had thought, about what she had said, but things were just so hard. She felt like she was alone in the world, and that this great burden had been given to her and only to her. The pressures to succeed were overwhelming, and the depression and difficulty of everything seemed to choke her and suffocate her to the point of breaking down. It wasn't an excuse; she knew that, but… Were things supposed to be this way?

Was she really supposed to feel so alone?

Before, when she had been helping the dead, things had never gotten so dangerous. It was obvious the fire hadn't started naturally, and she wasn't dumb enough not to know that the necklace had something to do with everything, but why her? Why did this have to happen to her? She didn't know what was going on anymore. It used to be that she had everything under control, that nothing too unexpected would happen – yet now there was somebody after her and the necklace, and that same person could possibly be the one that burned down her room. Things had changed so much; things had gotten so out of hands. Hianta was horrified and scared out of her wits.

"W-why c-can't I-I just say t-that?" she whispered between sobs. "Why can't I d-do any-anything ri-right? M-Mom… Mo-Mom, I'm s-so use-useless!"

The only sounds in the room were her muffled cries and heaves of breaths. She poured her heart out into the unfamiliar pillow, feeling a weight begin to lift off her shoulders only to have another one settle down on her back, weighing a ton, but she just sobbed that off, too.

Her eyes were focused on the waters glittering in the setting sun. She didn't recognize the place, having never been to a beach before, but it was beautiful. Her little legs were kicking from where she sat on a stone wall, and no matter how much she tried to stop them, they continued kicking. It was just like the last time. She wasn't in control of herself; as far as Hinata could tell, she wasn't even in her own body.

Her mouth opened without her permission. "My dad says we're moving." The voice wasn't hers, and yet it had come from her.

"Why? I thought we were gonna go to middle school together!"

"I dunno. There was a lot of screaming and yelling, but no one would tell me anything."

"Oh."

Her eyes had dropped to her blue shoes, too small to be her own. Then, she looked up and turned her attention to the boy next to her, one with her height. He had the most beautiful eyes and brightest hair she had ever seen, brighter than that of the morning sun.

"Are we…ever going to see each other again?"

The boy with bright hair punched her shoulder. It hurt, but she couldn't complain; neither did the body she was inhabiting.

"Of course we are! What are you, stupid? I'll visit you every day!"

She felt herself roll her eyes at his naïve answer, rubbing at the battle injury. "You're the stupid one, stupid. How are you going to visit me if you don't have a car?"

"I'll walk."

"What if I move to China?"

"Then, I'll walk to China!"

"Idiot!" she scoffed, dealing back the blow with an extra one. Her body smirked inwardly when the boy openly cringed, but just as she hadn't, he didn't say a word about the pain that he was obviously feeling. "You have to cross a giant ocean the size of Jupiter to get to China! You can't walk across the ocean, retard."

"Then, I'll swim!"

"You're a moron."

"Don't call me a moron! It's true! I'll visit you no matter where you move. I'll walk a million, bajillion, trillion miles, and I'll swim across oceans way bigger than Jupiter!" His arms spread out widely to help prove his point; he seemed to have been imagining it so passionately that he fell backward and landed on the sand, his arms still open as though trying to hug the skies.

"Bigger than Jupiter, huh?" She looked down at him, trying to hide a grin. There was a happiness and relief that bubbled inside her chest at his words, but she sensed that the owner of the body was too shy to say it out loud. "That's pretty big."

"Yeah," he breathed out, already lost in the journey before it even began. "Way big."

Her body fell backward alongside him, landing on the sand with a quiet thump. Her eyes followed where he was staring, up into the large skies that held a great unknown, much like how their lives would be once she – he? – moved.

"Then... I'll do it, too," she announced proudly. "I'll walk a gajillion, quadrajillion, killion miles, and I'll climb Mount Everest and cross the Gobi Desert!"

"It's a promise!"

She turned her head and grinned at him; the boy shared the same huge smile, flickers of determination enhancing his broad beam. He raised his hand to his mouth and nicked the palm with his teeth, holding it out to her. Her body seemed to understand, because she did the same to her hand, ignoring the blast of pain that occurred. They shook, making a silent vow that was more important than their words could ever hope to describe.

"We're blood brothers, now."

"Yeah," she nodded.

"Wherever you are, wherever I am, we'll always find each other. We'll never be alone. And if any assholes bully you, you call me and I'll come running over! I'll steal a car and learn to drive and I'll beat them up and kick their sorry asses!"

"You call me, too!"

"Don't forget each other!"

"Tch! How can I forget a loud moron like you?"

"You better not!"

She grinned when he shoved her.

"We'll always be best friends, Sasuke."

The image was disappearing, fading away into a blackness she couldn't penetrate, but the boy's voice was still loud and clear, ringing in her head.

"Sasuke."

"Don't forget...Sasuke..."

"Sasuke!"

Hinata shot up out of her bed, sweat beads sliding down the side of her face; the room was so hot and she didn't have any idea why, but that didn't matter. The dream, the dream! She could already feel it slipping away from her, just like the last, but she knew that they were important, that they were a part of Sasuke.

His memories.

They were his lost memories.

It must be the necklace; it was tying them together, letting her see some of his past, albeit it was quickly dying from her mind. At that point, she could only remember bits and pieces, but she'd sort it out later. At that moment, they had the biggest clue they could've ever wished for, and Sasuke wasn't even around for her to share it with!

She jumped out of her bed, falling to the ground when she had accidentally tangled herself in the blankets. With a frustrated huff, she quickly pried their warm embrace off her and scrambled to the door, wondering where he could've gone. There was no way for her to really know, considering that, no matter how much she whispered his name, he didn't seem to be in calling distance – that, or he was ignoring her. She sincerely hoped it wasn't the latter. True, they just had a fight, but they were still friends – I think.

"Sasuke?" she said softly, though again, there was no reply. Maybe he wasn't inside the mansion? Maybe he was outside. Hinata sighed. She'd never find him at that rate! The only thing she could probably do was to go back to the room and wait for him to fly through the walls and yell at her again. The entrance to the guest room silently gestured for her to come closer, though she was skeptical of going back. If she did, she'd never want to leave again just because the comforts of the bed were what had been keeping her sane the past few days.

Hinata sighed again, brushing a lost strand of hair behind her ear. She leaned her forehead against the window, staring outside into her large backyard with dejected eyes, hoping to see his familiar back standing in the middle of the lawn. Of course, her wish did not come true, and all that was left was her silently deciding that she'd get some fresh air.

As Hinata walked down the hall, she made a point to avoid her room – or what was left of it. She just wasn't ready to face it yet. Her detours made the trek to the front door needlessly longer, though she used that time to search for Sasuke wherever she went. Occasionally, she would call out his name quietly, voice barely above a breeze, but he never answered back.

When she finally reached the front entrance, she turned around and looked about fruitlessly; the ghost was still nowhere in sight. Figuring that the only thing left to do was go out into the front lawn and check there, as well as breathe in some air that didn't stink of dried tears and bottled sadness, Hinata opened the door only to cringe at the bright light. It had been five days of lying in bed either in the dark or in artificial lighting; to feel the actual brightness of the sun was killing her eyes.

Now that she caught herself shying away from the sun, she felt like a true hermit.

At long last, her eyes became accustomed to the intensity. Hinata stood on the front porch awkwardly, visually sweeping the lawn and neighborhood for any signs of a ghostly frown. Still nothing, though the mailbox did catch her attention. It looked to be overstuffed with items that no one had bothered to pick up, so she felt obligated to relieve the poor thing of its responsibilities and bring the many important documents inside.

She gathered the mail in her arms, barely being able to hold it all. It wasn't a very good plan, so she divided the mail into a halves; making a double trip would be better than struggling to carry all five hundred inside.

Hinata flipped through the materials, feigning interest; really, it was just something to occupy her while she held out on the hope that Sasuke would come waltzing by for unknown reasons. There were several magazines in her arms, some subscribed to her sister and others to her father; it was simple to tell which belonged to whom: whatever was girlish or about sports was for Hanabi (a strange mix), and anything about the world or current events or the business realm belonged to her father. Nothing for her, of course. After all, who would be sending her letters or subscription notifications? She didn't have any interest at all in them.

Speak of the devil - the moment Hinata thought that there was nothing in there with her name on it, her fingers stumbled upon one white envelope addressed to her in the neatest handwriting she had ever seen.

Hinata.

It was almost art, the way this person wrote her name. She almost wanted to frame it in her room, unopened, just so she could preserve its unexpected beauty, but the curiosity of its contents was too great, easily overpowering her awe. Holding the mail to her chest, she slid her forefinger beneath its flap just as Naruto came jogging around the corner.

"Hinata, hey!"

His voice brought her out of her stupor; she looked to him and smiled hesitantly, feeling a bit inferior to his starlit hair and shining smile. She had completely forgotten the existence of the letter, but there was something else tugging at the edges of her mind, something she was supposed to remember, something about a vague dream and Sasuke, something about golden hair and sky-blue eyes.

Naruto slowed to a stop as he approached her, leaning over his knees to catch his breath. Every movement made beneath the sun tickled the healthy sheen of sweat on his skin to glisten like dew, but the smell wasn't exactly pleasant; that placed a smile on her face. It was good to know he smelled when he sweated; she was beginning to think he was some demigod that was perfect in every way.

"G-good morning," Hinata greeted shyly. The nagging feeling was still at the back of her mind, though she couldn't recall why. Eventually, she pushed it aside and gave up trying to force; that usually never worked, anyways.

"Morning? It's three o'clock, Hinata!" The blond laughed at her mistake, and though she blushed, she didn't feel offended. He had a good-natured laugh, one that a person could tell he wasn't exactly laughing at them, and yet, it was odd because he was. "I haven't seen you in a long time – you've been absent since Monday. We're all worried about you!"

Feeling a surge of embarrassment and anxiety, Hinata blinked a few times and took in deep breaths of air discreetly, trying not to crumble under his concerned gaze. She was flattered that he had worried, and that the little amount friends she had at school didn't forget her the moment she disappeared, but she didn't feel comfortable with telling any of them what she had been feeling the last few days. It had been a struggle, one Hinata faced on her own, a personal and private dilemma that was too intimate to be shared through words spoken underneath the light of day in public. Besides, why trouble him further?

"I w-wasn't feeling w-well…"

It wasn't a total lie.

"Drink lots of orange juice!" Naruto suggested. "I have some at my place if you don't! I don't mind giving you a carton. Do you want one?"

"Oh, I f-forgot you lived d-down t-the street."

"Wow. Nice going, Hina."

There was that sweet and boyish laugh again, cracking another smile on her face and even pulling out a few giggles, muffled by her hand.

"Hey, I wanted to ask you about your boyfriend, if you don't mind."

"H-he's not my b-boy…friend." She cleared her throat nervously. That word was still so foreign to her tongue that she had automatically denied being in a relationship with Sasuke, despite the fact that it was the agreed plan to not raise suspicion when he was dragging her by the scarf around town (which she really hoped he wouldn't).

Naruto eyed her skeptically, not believing a word she said about it after seeing the two of them hold hands. It was like being caught with one limb in the cookie jar, and yet the naïve girl still had the audacity to deny.

"Right. Sure, Hinata… Anyways! What's his name? It's been bugging me all week. I was going to ask you on Tuesday, but you weren't there at school, and I heard about the…you know. I'm sorry about what happened."

"Don't w-worry about i-it. No o-one was h-hurt, s-so i-it's okay…"

Not really, but he didn't need to know that tidbit either.

"Why has i-it been bugging you?"

It suddenly dawned on Hinata that he could have some information to Sasuke's identity. Was that what she had dreamt about? Was that what she was trying to remember? She thought back to the time Sasuke had blindly run after him, calling out his name with such desperation; now, Naruto was questioning about him with the most intense face she had ever seen him muster. Was this some kind of sign? Hope fluttered in her heart; she felt it stop and then restart all in a split second.

"Do you k-know h-him?" she asked quickly, eyes growing wide with anticipation, but Naruto merely gave a sheepish smile and shook his head.

"No, I really don't..."

"Oh." She had responded quietly, dropping her gaze.

Hinata thought that she finally had a lead, but it turned out to be a dead end. For a moment there, it felt as if everything was going right again; there had been a spiral downhill into depression due to the fire, but with Naruto's inquiries and her odd and forgotten dream, she had thought it meant that things were looking up again – but I guess not. Having looked forward to having good news to give Sasuke as a sort of apology for taking her frustrations out on him, she sank into a miserable face, knowing that that would not be possible.

"But…" Naruto rubbed at his chin in a mysterious speculation, staring up into a mind that she would never be able to peer inside. "I feel…as though I do. I feel as though I've seen him somewhere, a long time ago, too long to remember now…"

His words, his face, they were all sincere; there was an underlying sadness that he was trying to hide. The way he seemed to gaze deeply into something she couldn't see, the way he let it overtake his heart so easily and so rapidly, she could feel her own heart get caught up in his emotions; but why would he be feeling that way? Naruto and Sasuke didn't know each other – or at least, that was what she had figured. Was it possible that they did know each other back when Sasuke was alive? If that was true, why could neither remember?

It was as though a brick had been thrown at her head, interrupting her thoughts, the moment Hinata saw a tear slide down his face. He quickly wiped it off in shock, laughing it off hesitantly; it looked as though he hadn't even known why it had happened.

"Wow. That was weird." Naruto grinned at her and ruffled her head affectionately; she could tell he was trying to downplay what had just happened. "Man! I don't even know what I'm talking about, Hina. Just forget about it, yeah? I gotta finish my run, but I better see you on Monday at school!"

She looked back into his eyes, searching for a sign of anguish, for a sign that told her he recognized Sasuke, but whatever he was feeling – or must've felt a moment ago – he had smothered it, hiding it away deep inside. She was unable to follow it into his deep heart, and at the end, Hinata could only smile back softly and wave as he ran off. For all she knew, it could've been a side effect of the necklace, or maybe it was just an odd coincidence.

Still...something was telling her, something was scratching at her – it was no coincidence.

There really was no way of knowing, unless Sasuke randomly decided to get his memories back, Naruto figured out why he looked so familiar, or Hinata remembered what she had dreamt about; otherwise, there wasn't much she could do right then. It seemed to be a slow day, as well as a slow mission – and a slow recuperation. She gnawed on her bottom lip, staring down at the bundle of letters and magazines in her arms. Five days was enough moping around, as implied by Naruto and outright stated by the ghost, but it just didn't seem enough for her; yet, she couldn't go back to the guestroom. She didn't want to face what she knew she would have to.

Turning around, Hinata held the bundle closer to her chest and made her way back to the house, though before she could get her hands on the front door, Sasuke stepped through, stopping in surprise at seeing her outside.

"S-Sasuke!" she said, feeling relieved that she didn't have to go wandering about the mansion again. "I-I was just l-looking for you!"

He raised a brow at her, though did not voice his thoughts on why she had been searching for him. Instead, his attention dropped down to the parcels in her arms, clicking his tongue at the sight.

"So, you get your lazy ass out of bed just to get the mail?"

"Um… It's not…" Her eyes flickered to his face for a split second, checking his reaction for any sign of the previous irritation he had showed, though when she saw that his face was but a mask, her gaze took a dive and stared at his dulled feet, unsure of what to say or do or even how to bring up the news. It seemed like he was still mad, though one could never tell when he was always like that. He hadn't even met her eyes.

Her feet shuffled about nervously as he ran a hand through his hair awkwardly. Neither said a word, until finally, both of them had had enough of the silence and stated in unison, "Listen I – uh, you – ah…"

Another uncomfortable silence.

"Y-you first," Hinata said courteously, breaking the atmosphere.

"Al…right…" He looked apprehensive; it was probably a situation he did not normally find himself in. "About what I said before..."

"Oh, um."

"No, I'm trying really hard right now, so just listen for a sec." He took a deep breath and kept his gaze steady on her face, though it seemed difficult for his eyes drifted off to the side every now and again. "I was really mad and annoyed with you. Seeing you in the room for five whole days – it just really pissed me off and… I should've…"

"I g-get it," she said, giving him a half-hearted smile. She had felt as though he had stabbed her with his words; assuming that he was irked with her was different than having him say it openly.

"Seriously, would you just shut up for a minute and let me speak? – I mean – God! Why the hell is this so difficult?"

"Sasuke, what a-are you t-trying t-to say?"

"I'm trying to – !" He threw his hands up in exasperation, turning around for a bit and muttering something incoherent to himself before whipping back around and glaring at her, though for what reason, she wasn't really sure. Hinata had never seen him like this before; it was bizarre, and yet it was sweet. She knew what he was trying to do; she just wanted to give him a hard time for all those times he had teased her.

"I'm trying to apologize," he groaned, hand sliding against his face in disbelief at the difficulty of asking for forgiveness. "I should've – I should've been more sensitive and understanding toward your situation. I know you're having a hard time right now, and I should've…"

"I know." Hinata stopped him with a smile. "It's o-okay. I s-said some pretty m-mean things back t-there, t-too."

"I'll…uh. Try not to be so rough, next time."

"Thanks," she said quietly. "That m-means a lot t-to me… And I-I'm sorry for what I s-said, too."

Sasuke cleared his throat and looked away from her, finding that it was more appropriate to stare off at the grass with faked curiosity than respond; she could've guessed that his reaction would be like that.

The two stood there awkwardly once more, but this time, she had her eyes on him, noticing that he was very handsome when there wasn't a permanent frown glued to his face. Not only that, but ever since they had made their partnership, it seemed that she was learning more and more about him, about the sides he had hidden away.

Hinata held onto the bundle of mail, unsure if now was the right time to go inside and leave it on the counter – however, Sasuke had another idea in mind.

"Hey," he said abruptly. "Let's go somewhere. Since you're out of that goddammned room, we might as well take this chance to celebrate or something."

Reaching inside his pocket, Sasuke pulled out a rather familiar item and chunked it gently at her; because her hands were occupied, she instinctively dropped everything to catch it: the necklace! Then, her eyes fell to the scattered mail plopped on the ground, each of them glaring hatefully up at her for dropping them.

"Just leave it. Your many butlers and maids will take care of it, right?"

He had guessed correctly that she was worried about the materials she had dropped, but there was a more pressing matter that had pushed its way to the top of her mind. How had he managed to conceal the pendant inside his soul when, last she checked, he could barely push a measly pencil?

"I d-don't understand. How did you…?"

Sasuke smirked and solidified before her as she draped the necklace over herself; there was an air of triumph that swirled around him like a prideful hurricane.

"I was busy these past few days, too, you know," he bragged.

Hinata sat across from Sasuke at a table inside Starbucks, sipping her iced coffee slowly to enjoy and savor the way it drifted down her throat lazily and sweetly. Before they had left, he had forced her to take a shower and changed into a fresh pair of clothes (the maids had went out and bought her something nicely casual, and had set it outside her door); she was glad he did, too, because now that she was newly clean, Hinata found herself to be in a better mood and less depressed.

There was a credit card in her pocket, calling to her to do some shopping, but she highly doubted that he had the patience to wait around for her – besides, this right here was nice: just sitting around having idle and pointless conversations. There was no desperate ghost wanting to leave a message, no pendant that needed deciphering, no grades that were dropping; it was only Hinata and Sasuke in a little café with people they didn't know and didn't care for, talking about things that didn't matter and yet had so much importance.

"You don't w-want anything to d-drink?" she asked, raising her cup. "It's very g-good."

"Hmm." Sasuke leaned over and grabbed her drink away from her before taking a sip himself; he slid it back seconds later. Smacking his lips, he analyzed the taste, and when satisfied with his conclusion, said, "I honestly can't taste anything. It's probably cause of my 'condition' and all."

"Oh… T-that sucks."

He scoffed. "Tell me about it… Pass it back over here."

Despite not being able to taste its saccharine flavor, that didn't stop him from occasionally stealing her drink and downing a portion of it like a greedy tax collector.

When he gave the mug back to her, her thin fingers wrapped around it instinctively, giving her hands something to do as she sat across from him, wondering what to say.

"Nice weather," Sasuke commented, and she only nodded her head in response. "You don't have anything to say?"

"I-I'm at a l-loss for words…" Hinata confessed, staring at the ice cubs floating in her cup. "I want t-to know m-more a-about you, but y-you don't have your m-memories t-to b-be able to tell me anything."

There was a roll of the eyes on his part at her words.

"Doesn't mean you have to sit there like a statue."

"O-oh, r-right." She racked her brain for any topic to bring up, trying to find something, anything he would find interesting. There wasn't much – there wasn't anything at all, except maybe the information about the dreams she had figured out…which she was supposed to bring up a while back.

"I-I wanted to tell you about some o-of m-my dreams. I think s-some of them are y-your memories."

"What do you mean?" he asked with a brow raise.

"It's the pendant. It connects t-the both of us, and s-sometimes when I-I'm asleep, I guess I t-tap into your l-lost memories."

"I see."

Hinata waited for something more substantial, though that was all he allowed her to see; his reaction was somewhat of a disappointment. She had expected a lot more than what he had given; she thought he'd be excited and grateful, but his face retained a stoic and emotionless quality that only served to dampen her mood.

"Y-you're not h-happy? W-we've finally got a c-clue!"

He shrugged his shoulders, hand smoothing over the pale surface of the glass table.

"I've figured that it's better not to keep my hopes up," he answered, "just to prepare for any possibilities."

With nothing else to say to his comment, she repeated his earlier phrase, "I see," and took a long sip from her drink. The cool condensation wetted her hands in a soothing manner, enhancing the effects of the air conditioner that chilled the shop.

"What about you?" he questioned, hiding curiosity. "Do you think we'll succeed?"

"Of—of course!" There was a hesitance in her voice that wasn't missed, and she could only hope that he hadn't noticed it or thought it was just part of her speech impediment. There was much she wasn't sure about, and there were many things in the world she was, but this was not one of them. Still, despite her fears and anxieties, how could she ever voice them aloud to Sasuke? Of the two of them, she had to keep her optimism up, especially if his was dropping like a hot potato.

"W-we'll get through this," Hinata said reassuringly, and, knowing no other way to comfort him, she reached across the table to place her hand upon his. "H-have some f-faith in me, okay?"

"Sure." He didn't sound convinced, but as Sasuke slid his hand out from her grasp and stared at the cash register coolly, there was a soft murmur that escaped his lips, barely above a whisper, "okay."

Hinata grinned to herself and finished the rest of her drink as a reward, inwardly humming at her good deed for the day.

"Do you mind if I ask you a personal question?" Sasuke asked suddenly.

"I g-guess I don't mind."

He paused to stare at her, as though afraid the question he was asking made him trespass on lands that were too sacred.

"What was so important about your room?"

She hadn't expected him to ask, though she should've. It made sense for him to wonder about it, considering she did spend five whole days moping about and crying in her new room, and even if he wasn't around to watch her, it was obvious that she wasn't in there searching for dust bunnies.

"A-a lot of things," Hinata responded. "M-my mother… She died when I-I was e-eight. Everything s-she e-ever gave me w-was in there."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to – "

"No, it's alright…" She took in a deep breath and exhaled. "I…haven't s-spoken a-about it to anyone. E-ever. N-not even H-Hanabi."

"How come?"

"I d-don't know. M-maybe it's because if I d-don't talk a-about it, I can still p-pretend s-she's n-not – " Hinata pressed her hands into her face, trying to muffle the incoming sobs and tears, hiccupping often. She hadn't meant to bawl like that right in front of him; her control on her emotions wasn't as strong as she had thought.

It had been years since Hikaru Hyuuga had died, and yet Hinata could still feel the pain, fresh, as if she had passed just yesterday.

"I-it's really s-stupid, I-I k-know." She sniffled and laughed, trying to blow off the fact that she was a mess.

"Not really." Sasuke nudged her leg with his foot. "I don't like referring to myself as...dead. If I don't, then maybe this pendant thing could be permanent. That's what I think about sometimes. Maybe I won't ever find my grave, but then I can just stay alive and restart my life. It's hopeless, of course…but – "

"But y-you c-can't help it. You hope anyways."

"Yeah."

Hinata hadn't even thought of the possibility he could have such thoughts, just because Sasuke always seemed so sure, so certain that he wanted to move on, that he needed those memories and that gravestone. She always saw him as strong and confident, and because of it, had forgotten he was once human, too. Like the rest of them, he had his worries and nightmares, his dreams and secrets.

She stared at the empty cup in her hands; the ice cubes were melting.

"Let's go h-home."

"Only if you don't hole yourself away in that room for another five days."

Sasuke followed closely as she threw the cup in the trashcan and exited the shop, the warm evening air hitting them smack in the face, as if congratulating for a job well done in bonding.

"How do we get back again?" he muttered, looking around the streets and shops and trying to figure out which way it was they took, until his eyes landed on a looming figure growing closer by the second.

"D-Dosu?"

"Well, hello there, fresh-meat." The smile was anything but friendly.

The fading bruises on Hinata's neck pulsed with agony at his presence; she could still feel his rough hands, strangling the life out of her mercilessly. Her eyes glanced to the figures beside him; it seemed to be his posse, and they didn't look too happy, either.

Sasuke glared finely carved daggers at the junior, stepping in front of Hinata.

"Oh? And the fresh mean has a little bitch!" Dosu and his gang members laughed, but Sasuke wasn't intimidated by his remarks. He was dead, after all; what did he have to fear from the punches and taunts of the living? Hinata, on the other hand, wasn't as lucky; consdering she could still feel the effects of torture, she was just about ready to break off in the other direction and run. The only thing keeping her feet planted was the five feet rule.

"I was hoping to see you again," Sasuke growled. He was tall, but Dosu was unfortunately several inches taller; even so, the height difference didn't seem to make Sasuke look any less daunting. Actually, he was pretty terrifying in his own right, with his raven hair and onyx eyes and pale skin. Hinata wished to herself that he would grow fangs; that would be the only way they could both get out alive – Bad choice of words…

Dosu tilted his head, peering down at Sasuke with cruel eyes. "I don't seem to recognize you, little bitch," he said. "You looking to pay me back for what I did to your whore of a girlfriend over there?"

"Yeah," Sasuke smirked. "With interest."

None of them had even seen Sasuke raise his fist and punch Dosu square in the jaw; he stumbled backward and toppled to the ground, and the only sounds that could be heard were groans and Hinata's gasp.

"Who's the bitch now, eh?" The ghost shook his hand for effect, though whether or not it was in actual pain wasn't something that could be deciphered by the pleased grin that coated his face.

This was the last thing they needed. Hinata's heart was racing against her chest, and it was weird because she wasn't even deeply involved in the fight, yet her adrenaline had started pumping like mad. Closing the little distance between them, Hinata grabbed onto Saskue's arm, intent on pulling him away from the scene of the crime; he seemed to be more concerned with dealing out more vigilante justice, however.

"We've g-gotta r-run!" she cried, hoping that sense and reason would be knocked into him at the sound of her voice. If Starbucks called the cops on them (they were fighting right outside its café), they'd be in deep sewage waste with a lot of limelight she didn't want.

"Sasuke!"

With a snort at Dosu on the ground, Sasuke finally consented to Hinata's will and allowed himself to be dragged away. They ran down several streets and alleys to be sure they had lost them, but in the distance, the two could still hear Dosu's enraged and shrieking voice calling out for them with colorfully decorated words.

When they finally thought they were safe, Hinata and Sasuke stopped running. She leaned over her legs, trying to catch her breath while the other stood nearby, very delighted with himself, it seemed.

"Did—did you h-have t-to p-punch hi-him?" she asked between gasps of air, shaking her head at his sneer – he was obviously replaying it back in his mind.

"Of course." He had retorted with a roll of his eyes. "My pride was on the line."

She sighed, wondering how boys could be so violent and careless even in death.

"Hey, don't pretend you weren't rooting for me. He tried to kill you last time; let him get a taste of his own medicine."

"He was just m-mad," Hinata reasoned. "D-Dosu's a n-nice guy, d-deep down. I-I'm sure of it. A-and let's n-not make a habit o-of punching people…"

Sasuke scowled at her; it seemed that her words had irritated him, for he turned away with his arms crossed and muttered, "whatever," in a very sour way.

Hinata puffed out her lips, unsure of why he was mad and what she was supposed to do to calm him down. When nothing came to mind, she looked around the unfamiliar street names and stores.

"Where are w-we?"

Many of the shops seemed to deal in black magic and the occult, something she was not too fond of; her father had forbidden her to ever associate with such people, claiming that they were just con artists looking to steal one's money. There was no one on the street except the two of them, though she did notice a couple of frightening eyes gazing at her from several store windows.

"How the hell am I supposed to know?" he grumbled, trailing behind her resentfully.

Hinata glanced back at him; it looked as though he was pouting, his arms folded and his eyes trying to burn holes into the sidewalk, though to no avail. When he caught her staring at him, he narrowed his eyes until she looked away, almost snickering to herself at how childish, how alive, he was.

Secretly, Hinata reached back and grabbed his hand, pretending to be interested in a store that sold peacock feathers of various colors and sizes.

"Thanks for p-punching him for me."

"I didn't do it for you." He jerked his hand away roughly, though no matter how harsh he tried to act, she could tell there was a smile on his face, even if they were looking in opposite directions.

a/n :: Whew! The chapter is finally done! You wouldn't know how much trouble this one created for me; I literally rewrote this thing twice, and then chopped out a giant, important scene that I will shove in the next chapter. Why? Because it's a giant, important scene. However, despite all the nights falling asleep to the frustration of not knowing how to proceed, the chapter is at last completed; now I can concentrate on the next one!

I hope I haven't been progressing their relationship too quickly... But, I didn't want to leave you guys with no sasuhina moments, especially since I've been gone for almost a year, haha.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it more than I enjoyed revising and editing leave a review, darlings, and until next time!