[Kiba and Hinata][AIM Log][Part 1 of 2][Valentine in the Snow]
[Parts played over AIM by their respective characters; rated G]
It was snowing again as Kiba headed down the street, one hand tucked into his jacket pocket and the other curled across his chest in a ridiculous attempt to keep the Objects under his coat from falling straight out and into the slush at his feet. His nose was freezing, but at least he'd had the sense to pull his hoodie up over his head before he left the building, so the snow that tried to filter down the back of his neck didn't get very far.
He reached the corner grocery fairly quickly, his long legs covering the ground in the awkward stride of a young man still not used to city streets, and shook the snow off his hoodie and his shoes before he pushed his hood back and entered the grocery store. For a moment he was content to lean against the wall, eyes automatically searching out the dark-haired girl closing at the registers, and wait.
Hinata had spent the majority of the night worrying instead of working. She knew it was silly of her, really--there wasn't anything to worry about. But her mind kept wandering anyway, back to the package lying concealed in her closet, safe from prying eyes and kitten claws. Things had been strange these last few days, and something she'd made as a thank you suddenly didn't feel adequate enough. And the simple explanation of "thank you" didn't seem quite right anymore, either.
So when the door rang, signalling the entrance of a customer, she didn't really pay any attention to who it might be and looked up, a smile pasted on to greet whoever needed some last-minute groceries. When she saw who it was the words died, the smile faded in surprise before returning brightly, and she gave a small wave. "I'll be done in a moment..."
Even though he'd said he'd see her today, a part of her hadn't expected him to pick her up. He was busy, probably tired, and he really shouldn't have... But she was glad he had.
"Sure, s'fine." Kiba nodded and leaned his head back against the wall. He was exhausted; practice had run from four to nine in preparation for the first championship game coming up that weekend, and Hana's ragged cough had made for uneasy sleeping the night before. But he felt bad enough about making her walk home with Neji every day after school, and he sure wasn't going to let her walk home alone tonight.
Besides, after his frantic rush this morning when he'd realized What Day It Was, he had something to give her.
She nodded and went back to her tasks, actually focused. Talking quickly to her coworker, she emptied the cash register, taking the money to the back and to the safe. A few extra things to finish in the back, and she came back out and around the counter, going over towards Kiba and smiling at him before turning off the Open sign and backlocking the door.
That finished, she grabbed her coat from behind the counter, said a quick "good night" to her coworker, and went to stand by Kiba again. "Alright, I'm finished now." She smiled at him, genuinely happy. Waited for him to open the door, because the last time she'd done that for him he'd nearly had a fit.
Kiba did, indeed, open the door and stand aside, waiting for her to exit. If she'd been watching him she might have seen the slightly strained, slightly puzzled look on his face as he watched her walk past him; but by the time he'd released the door and caught up to her again, he was grinning again into the teeth of the snowy wind.
"Almost like Christmas, isn't it?"
"Almost," she said lightly, glancing over at him. The wind whipped her hair around her face, bangs brushed to the sides and exposing her forehead. She hugged herself slightly, coat pulled tight around her to ward off the chill. The walk to 311 wasn't far, but it didn't have to be to chill her.
"...Was practice difficult?"
He shrugged, lifting his free hand to gingerly prod at the bruise rising on one cheekbone. "No worse'n usual. Coach was kinda pissed about me missing all weekend, but I had two tries so he got happy again." He grinned faintly. "The worst part was when the other forward's fanclub stormed the field. Had to call off play for ten minutes 'fore we could get things sorted out and get Jeff's shorts back--uh, I mean..."
Hinata felt her cheeks burn at that, although the smile tugging at her lips was putting up a good fight with her embarrassment. "Oh. I'm, um...glad he got them back..." She almost asked about if Kiba had a fanclub but stopped, face flaming at the thought of him and shorts and getting them back and she needed to get away from that train of thought.
"You should put some ice on that," she said quickly, looking over at him and eyeing the bruise on his cheek. Almost lifted a hand to touch his face before she stopped. "...And you shouldn't poke it."
This was strange, being shy around him. Almost as bad as when they'd first met and he'd embarrassed her so badly she almost walked into her door when it hadn't opened for her. ...Perhaps it was just the nature of the day?
"Well it was kinda funny," Kiba admitted. "Woulda been funnier if the rest of us hadn't been worried about our shorts too..." He'd had one or two close calls before Coach had burst in shouting and waving his arms in fury, which had been even funnier; the old man got bright red when he was mad, and Jeff had been even brighter red from embarrassment and pride.
Except that really wasn't the kind of story you told a girl (unless it was Hana, who would find it uproariously funny) so he shrugged and stuck his hand back into his pocket again. "I'll be okay," he assured her. "It's cold out here anyway."
"Alright..." she conceded, glancing away. She wouldn't press the issue, although she was worried more often than not. As much as she loved hearing about how much fun he had, and the funny little anecdotes he would always have after practice, the fact was it was dangerous and he came back hurt nearly every day. It had always bothered her because she couldn't understand why he would willingly let himself be hurt like that and call it "fun."
That it bothered her now for more reasons than that confused her.
And then she realised she had yet to greet him properly. A nod and a quick "I'm almost done" weren't true greetings. "Ah, um... Happy Valentine's Day, Kiba-kun. ...I forgot to say it earlier, I'm sorry."
"Hey, it's fine!" He protested. "I didn't say it either... Uh. Happy Valentine's Day, Hinata!"
He glanced around. They were still about three blocks from the building; there was a sheltered bus-stop only a few feet away. He snatched his hand out of his pocket, grabbed her elbow, and hurried her into it and out of the snow. Then, before he could feel any more ridiculous, he pulled his gifts quicky out of his coat and stuffed both the plushie and the chocolates into her hands.
Maybe he was lucky his cheekbone was bruised; at least it couldn't blush. Not that he was blushing anyway. Cold air improved blood circulation, didn't it?
Hinata meeped when he suddenly latched onto her arm, startled. She didn't have time to say anything either before he'd suddenly stuffed two things into her arms and she looked down, shifting so she was holding them in her hands and could look closely at them. A stuffed husky plush and a heart-shaped box of chocolates.
Her cheeks flamed and her stomach fluttered and she looked up at him, eyes wide. Her throat felt tight, and her heart beat so wildly she wondered if he could hear it.
"Kiba-kun...these... Th-thank you..."
She was blushing now. Kiba stared for a moment in pure fascination before he realized that she'd said something and shook his head quickly, a dog coming out of water. "Sorry, I--oh, right. Yeah."
He shoved his hands back into his pockets, lifting his shoulders in a hesitant shrug. "Sorry...the dog's kinda beat up. I couldn't find a new one that was right. So, uh, I hope you don't mind."
"I love it." The words were out of her mouth before she really stopped to think of what she'd said, and her blush only darkened when she realised. But she meant it. Most definitely. "...Was the dog yours? Does he have a name?"
"Y'do?" Dammit, there was no way the heat in his cheeks could be mistaken for anything else by now. Weren't guys supposed to grow out of this sort of thing around the time their voices stopped breaking? At least the streetlight was behind him, leaving his face in darkness and casting his shadow on hers; maybe she couldn't tell. Maybe she'd think he was cool and suave and all the things even Shikamaru managed better than Kiba; how could he be cool when he was fumbling in the dark with no real idea of what he was doing?
At least her questions had easy answers. "Yeah, he was mine. Name's Fang the Ravening Terror of the North."
He glanced away, scuffing one foot on the concrete. "Hana called 'im Mr. Woofwoof."
Hinata couldn't help it and started giggling, hugging the plush to her, mindful not to crush the chocolates. "Mr. Woofwoof is lovely." She tried to get a good look at his face in the dark, but could only make out bits and pieces in the shadows. "Thank you so much. I'm sorry I don't have your gift with me; it's back home..."
Her smile dimmed some at that. He'd given her something so nice, something that was his, and chocolates too, but all she'd done was make him a snack...
"Is that alright...? I'm sorry to make you wait..."
"Hey, it's Fang!" he protested. Though with Hinata hugging the plush like that, likely it wouldn't protest anything she wanted to call it--
Kiba tried his best to squish that thought as soon as it started mutating. He wasn't very successful, and he glanced away quickly, focusing on the cigarette advertisement plastered to the wall of the bus shelter behind her head. The heat didn't seem likely to die very soon, and now it wasn't just his face...
"Um, we can head back now if you want," he offered hastily. Much better idea to get out into the cold wind again.
She nodded, still hugging Mr. Woofwoof (or Mr. Fang, if Kiba really didn't like the other name, although she thought it was terribly cute). "We shouldn't stay out here long..."
Not that she had much of a problem with it, though. She wasn't cold (her blushing took care of that), and being here, with him, made her happy. And he'd just given her a present she'd never expected, and her heart was beating rapidly and her stomach was full of butterflies and--
The chocolates were moved over to stay with the plushie, pressed against her body, and her now free hand snaked out to catch one of his.
Kiba went into mild epileptic shock for a fraction of a second, as her small hand snuck into his, and every muscle in his body went rigid with shock. She...she just...
When she felt his muscles stiffen she started to pull her hand away, worried she'd done something wrong or made him angry. "I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean to upset you..."
"No, uh, s'fine, really, s'okay--" His hand had tightened over hers of its own accord, and his mouth seemed to be running on complete autopilot while his brain still reeled in dizzy circles. She just held my hand. Does that mean--?
Kiba had never been more confused in his life. He also didn't think he'd ever been happier.
"Sorry, was just startled for a minute," he added, forcing himself to relax his grip before he crushed her fingers. "Um, you cold or something?"
Unconsciously, he pulled her a little closer.
She wasn't quite sure she believed him--what if she'd upset him and he was pretending for her sake? But this was Kiba, and she was sure he would never lie, not like that, and so she relaxed. Was grateful he did as well, because his hand was a lot larger than hers and his grip had hurt a bit.
"Ah, I didn't mean to startle you..." She was about to tell him she was actually quite warm when he pulled her closer, just a little, and the words died in her throat. Her stomach fluttered again, the feeling quickly becoming familiar, and she glanced up at him quickly before looking out ahead of them. Her arm tightened, hugging Mr. Woofwoof and the chocolates tighter. "...I'm fine. Thank you..."
"Fine before or fine now?" He glanced down at her anxiously. Which might have been a bad idea again, because concentrating on her face meant noticing that she was really the perfect height and that he'd spent the last week wondering what she really would taste like, and now might be a good time to try...
He hesitated, unsure of whether to go, unable to pull away.
She looked up at his question and blushed more when she noticed him looking down at her. This really was strange. She hadn't blushed so much in front of Kiba in a long time.
"...Fine now," she answered softly, studying his face. A small voice told her they really should be going, that it was late and cold and they still had a few more blocks to walk, but she wasn't really paying attention.
"Really fine now?" he prodded. "'Cause..."
Asking a girl if you could kiss her was probably the lamest thing in the world, but kissing her when she didn't want you to was likely to earn you a broken nose and a knee to the groin. Except if the girl was Hinata, and the sweetest, gentlest, kindest person he knew. And she was still looking up at him--and he--
And he really needed to stop thinking. He didn't do much of it the rest of the time; why should his brain suddenly kickstart now?
He bent his head and cautiously, almost tentatively, brushed his lips against hers.
His question confused her, and her eyebrows drew together as she started to ask him what he'd meant. And then his lips were brushing hers and whatever she'd been about to say was gone when her eyes widened in surprise and her breath hitched. He...
Kiba was kissing her. Out in the cold, beneath the shelter of a bus-stop, and she'd never been kissed before, never expected it, and it was Kiba--
She leaned up, onto the balls of her feet, and kissed him back.
Whatever adrenaline had not already been coursing through Kiba's bloodstream was suddenly and unexpectedly dumped when he felt Hinata catch her breath against his lips. For a panicked half a second he was thinking again: Oh god, she didn't like it, she's going to pull away, I was wrong, I've ruined everything--
And then she was kissing back, leaning up to meet him, and his free hand was sliding around her slender waist to pull her in even more, and their joined hands were caught between their bodies, and she tasted of chocolate and cinnamon and sugar and a sweet something that he doubted he would never be able to put a name to. Beyond Hinata.
She didn't notice anything beyond the feel of him pressed against her and the warmth of his lips and the way he held her. Realised she didn't want to, wanted to stay like this forever if she could, the confusion from the past few days wiped away in a torrent of emotion she hadn't known she could feel. This felt right somehow--new, almost frighteningly so, but right. Kiba was warm and safe and she didn't want to let that go.
But the sound of a car passing by jolted her from wherever she'd gone to and she pulled away, still held in his arms, her face bright red and, she was sure, warm to the touch.
"I... Um..."
Reluctantly, he let her pull away, though he didn't drop his arm from around her waist. "We should probably get back," he said, a little huskily. His lips were tingling, and though the blush had died down from his face, it seemed to have centered itself in a bright warmth in his chest.
Kissing Hinata wasn't at all like kissing Nanao. That had been hot and passionate and, well, when he came down to it, almost competitive, as if they were each trying to convince each other of something and not sure how else to get their points across. But Hinata's lips were soft and warm and welcoming, and if he let himself fall into them, it was cool water that would soothe him, not hot fire to burn him.
...And if he was actually getting poetic about this, something was either seriously wrong or very, very right.
"Right," he said, and pulled away a little more, dropping the hand he held--but not the hand around her waist. And when they started down the street again, he was still holding her close to his side.
The air was suddenly cold again when he pulled away, and she frowned slightly, not able to help the faint shiver that passed through her. For one quick second, she had this intense, irrational hatred of cars.
But then they were moving, and his arm was still around her waist, and she sighed. Leaned her head against his shoulder and shifted the gifts in her arms again, glancing down at the stuffed animal's head and smiling. This... This was just right. Could only be better if he would kiss her again.
She spent the rest of the walk back to the apartment building locking the feel of it into her memory, afraid it wouldn't happen again.
It was snowing again as Kiba headed down the street, one hand tucked into his jacket pocket and the other curled across his chest in a ridiculous attempt to keep the Objects under his coat from falling straight out and into the slush at his feet. His nose was freezing, but at least he'd had the sense to pull his hoodie up over his head before he left the building, so the snow that tried to filter down the back of his neck didn't get very far.
He reached the corner grocery fairly quickly, his long legs covering the ground in the awkward stride of a young man still not used to city streets, and shook the snow off his hoodie and his shoes before he pushed his hood back and entered the grocery store. For a moment he was content to lean against the wall, eyes automatically searching out the dark-haired girl closing at the registers, and wait.
Hinata had spent the majority of the night worrying instead of working. She knew it was silly of her, really--there wasn't anything to worry about. But her mind kept wandering anyway, back to the package lying concealed in her closet, safe from prying eyes and kitten claws. Things had been strange these last few days, and something she'd made as a thank you suddenly didn't feel adequate enough. And the simple explanation of "thank you" didn't seem quite right anymore, either.
So when the door rang, signalling the entrance of a customer, she didn't really pay any attention to who it might be and looked up, a smile pasted on to greet whoever needed some last-minute groceries. When she saw who it was the words died, the smile faded in surprise before returning brightly, and she gave a small wave. "I'll be done in a moment..."
Even though he'd said he'd see her today, a part of her hadn't expected him to pick her up. He was busy, probably tired, and he really shouldn't have... But she was glad he had.
"Sure, s'fine." Kiba nodded and leaned his head back against the wall. He was exhausted; practice had run from four to nine in preparation for the first championship game coming up that weekend, and Hana's ragged cough had made for uneasy sleeping the night before. But he felt bad enough about making her walk home with Neji every day after school, and he sure wasn't going to let her walk home alone tonight.
Besides, after his frantic rush this morning when he'd realized What Day It Was, he had something to give her.
She nodded and went back to her tasks, actually focused. Talking quickly to her coworker, she emptied the cash register, taking the money to the back and to the safe. A few extra things to finish in the back, and she came back out and around the counter, going over towards Kiba and smiling at him before turning off the Open sign and backlocking the door.
That finished, she grabbed her coat from behind the counter, said a quick "good night" to her coworker, and went to stand by Kiba again. "Alright, I'm finished now." She smiled at him, genuinely happy. Waited for him to open the door, because the last time she'd done that for him he'd nearly had a fit.
Kiba did, indeed, open the door and stand aside, waiting for her to exit. If she'd been watching him she might have seen the slightly strained, slightly puzzled look on his face as he watched her walk past him; but by the time he'd released the door and caught up to her again, he was grinning again into the teeth of the snowy wind.
"Almost like Christmas, isn't it?"
"Almost," she said lightly, glancing over at him. The wind whipped her hair around her face, bangs brushed to the sides and exposing her forehead. She hugged herself slightly, coat pulled tight around her to ward off the chill. The walk to 311 wasn't far, but it didn't have to be to chill her.
"...Was practice difficult?"
He shrugged, lifting his free hand to gingerly prod at the bruise rising on one cheekbone. "No worse'n usual. Coach was kinda pissed about me missing all weekend, but I had two tries so he got happy again." He grinned faintly. "The worst part was when the other forward's fanclub stormed the field. Had to call off play for ten minutes 'fore we could get things sorted out and get Jeff's shorts back--uh, I mean..."
Hinata felt her cheeks burn at that, although the smile tugging at her lips was putting up a good fight with her embarrassment. "Oh. I'm, um...glad he got them back..." She almost asked about if Kiba had a fanclub but stopped, face flaming at the thought of him and shorts and getting them back and she needed to get away from that train of thought.
"You should put some ice on that," she said quickly, looking over at him and eyeing the bruise on his cheek. Almost lifted a hand to touch his face before she stopped. "...And you shouldn't poke it."
This was strange, being shy around him. Almost as bad as when they'd first met and he'd embarrassed her so badly she almost walked into her door when it hadn't opened for her. ...Perhaps it was just the nature of the day?
"Well it was kinda funny," Kiba admitted. "Woulda been funnier if the rest of us hadn't been worried about our shorts too..." He'd had one or two close calls before Coach had burst in shouting and waving his arms in fury, which had been even funnier; the old man got bright red when he was mad, and Jeff had been even brighter red from embarrassment and pride.
Except that really wasn't the kind of story you told a girl (unless it was Hana, who would find it uproariously funny) so he shrugged and stuck his hand back into his pocket again. "I'll be okay," he assured her. "It's cold out here anyway."
"Alright..." she conceded, glancing away. She wouldn't press the issue, although she was worried more often than not. As much as she loved hearing about how much fun he had, and the funny little anecdotes he would always have after practice, the fact was it was dangerous and he came back hurt nearly every day. It had always bothered her because she couldn't understand why he would willingly let himself be hurt like that and call it "fun."
That it bothered her now for more reasons than that confused her.
And then she realised she had yet to greet him properly. A nod and a quick "I'm almost done" weren't true greetings. "Ah, um... Happy Valentine's Day, Kiba-kun. ...I forgot to say it earlier, I'm sorry."
"Hey, it's fine!" He protested. "I didn't say it either... Uh. Happy Valentine's Day, Hinata!"
He glanced around. They were still about three blocks from the building; there was a sheltered bus-stop only a few feet away. He snatched his hand out of his pocket, grabbed her elbow, and hurried her into it and out of the snow. Then, before he could feel any more ridiculous, he pulled his gifts quicky out of his coat and stuffed both the plushie and the chocolates into her hands.
Maybe he was lucky his cheekbone was bruised; at least it couldn't blush. Not that he was blushing anyway. Cold air improved blood circulation, didn't it?
Hinata meeped when he suddenly latched onto her arm, startled. She didn't have time to say anything either before he'd suddenly stuffed two things into her arms and she looked down, shifting so she was holding them in her hands and could look closely at them. A stuffed husky plush and a heart-shaped box of chocolates.
Her cheeks flamed and her stomach fluttered and she looked up at him, eyes wide. Her throat felt tight, and her heart beat so wildly she wondered if he could hear it.
"Kiba-kun...these... Th-thank you..."
She was blushing now. Kiba stared for a moment in pure fascination before he realized that she'd said something and shook his head quickly, a dog coming out of water. "Sorry, I--oh, right. Yeah."
He shoved his hands back into his pockets, lifting his shoulders in a hesitant shrug. "Sorry...the dog's kinda beat up. I couldn't find a new one that was right. So, uh, I hope you don't mind."
"I love it." The words were out of her mouth before she really stopped to think of what she'd said, and her blush only darkened when she realised. But she meant it. Most definitely. "...Was the dog yours? Does he have a name?"
"Y'do?" Dammit, there was no way the heat in his cheeks could be mistaken for anything else by now. Weren't guys supposed to grow out of this sort of thing around the time their voices stopped breaking? At least the streetlight was behind him, leaving his face in darkness and casting his shadow on hers; maybe she couldn't tell. Maybe she'd think he was cool and suave and all the things even Shikamaru managed better than Kiba; how could he be cool when he was fumbling in the dark with no real idea of what he was doing?
At least her questions had easy answers. "Yeah, he was mine. Name's Fang the Ravening Terror of the North."
He glanced away, scuffing one foot on the concrete. "Hana called 'im Mr. Woofwoof."
Hinata couldn't help it and started giggling, hugging the plush to her, mindful not to crush the chocolates. "Mr. Woofwoof is lovely." She tried to get a good look at his face in the dark, but could only make out bits and pieces in the shadows. "Thank you so much. I'm sorry I don't have your gift with me; it's back home..."
Her smile dimmed some at that. He'd given her something so nice, something that was his, and chocolates too, but all she'd done was make him a snack...
"Is that alright...? I'm sorry to make you wait..."
"Hey, it's Fang!" he protested. Though with Hinata hugging the plush like that, likely it wouldn't protest anything she wanted to call it--
Kiba tried his best to squish that thought as soon as it started mutating. He wasn't very successful, and he glanced away quickly, focusing on the cigarette advertisement plastered to the wall of the bus shelter behind her head. The heat didn't seem likely to die very soon, and now it wasn't just his face...
"Um, we can head back now if you want," he offered hastily. Much better idea to get out into the cold wind again.
She nodded, still hugging Mr. Woofwoof (or Mr. Fang, if Kiba really didn't like the other name, although she thought it was terribly cute). "We shouldn't stay out here long..."
Not that she had much of a problem with it, though. She wasn't cold (her blushing took care of that), and being here, with him, made her happy. And he'd just given her a present she'd never expected, and her heart was beating rapidly and her stomach was full of butterflies and--
The chocolates were moved over to stay with the plushie, pressed against her body, and her now free hand snaked out to catch one of his.
Kiba went into mild epileptic shock for a fraction of a second, as her small hand snuck into his, and every muscle in his body went rigid with shock. She...she just...
When she felt his muscles stiffen she started to pull her hand away, worried she'd done something wrong or made him angry. "I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean to upset you..."
"No, uh, s'fine, really, s'okay--" His hand had tightened over hers of its own accord, and his mouth seemed to be running on complete autopilot while his brain still reeled in dizzy circles. She just held my hand. Does that mean--?
Kiba had never been more confused in his life. He also didn't think he'd ever been happier.
"Sorry, was just startled for a minute," he added, forcing himself to relax his grip before he crushed her fingers. "Um, you cold or something?"
Unconsciously, he pulled her a little closer.
She wasn't quite sure she believed him--what if she'd upset him and he was pretending for her sake? But this was Kiba, and she was sure he would never lie, not like that, and so she relaxed. Was grateful he did as well, because his hand was a lot larger than hers and his grip had hurt a bit.
"Ah, I didn't mean to startle you..." She was about to tell him she was actually quite warm when he pulled her closer, just a little, and the words died in her throat. Her stomach fluttered again, the feeling quickly becoming familiar, and she glanced up at him quickly before looking out ahead of them. Her arm tightened, hugging Mr. Woofwoof and the chocolates tighter. "...I'm fine. Thank you..."
"Fine before or fine now?" He glanced down at her anxiously. Which might have been a bad idea again, because concentrating on her face meant noticing that she was really the perfect height and that he'd spent the last week wondering what she really would taste like, and now might be a good time to try...
He hesitated, unsure of whether to go, unable to pull away.
She looked up at his question and blushed more when she noticed him looking down at her. This really was strange. She hadn't blushed so much in front of Kiba in a long time.
"...Fine now," she answered softly, studying his face. A small voice told her they really should be going, that it was late and cold and they still had a few more blocks to walk, but she wasn't really paying attention.
"Really fine now?" he prodded. "'Cause..."
Asking a girl if you could kiss her was probably the lamest thing in the world, but kissing her when she didn't want you to was likely to earn you a broken nose and a knee to the groin. Except if the girl was Hinata, and the sweetest, gentlest, kindest person he knew. And she was still looking up at him--and he--
And he really needed to stop thinking. He didn't do much of it the rest of the time; why should his brain suddenly kickstart now?
He bent his head and cautiously, almost tentatively, brushed his lips against hers.
His question confused her, and her eyebrows drew together as she started to ask him what he'd meant. And then his lips were brushing hers and whatever she'd been about to say was gone when her eyes widened in surprise and her breath hitched. He...
Kiba was kissing her. Out in the cold, beneath the shelter of a bus-stop, and she'd never been kissed before, never expected it, and it was Kiba--
She leaned up, onto the balls of her feet, and kissed him back.
Whatever adrenaline had not already been coursing through Kiba's bloodstream was suddenly and unexpectedly dumped when he felt Hinata catch her breath against his lips. For a panicked half a second he was thinking again: Oh god, she didn't like it, she's going to pull away, I was wrong, I've ruined everything--
And then she was kissing back, leaning up to meet him, and his free hand was sliding around her slender waist to pull her in even more, and their joined hands were caught between their bodies, and she tasted of chocolate and cinnamon and sugar and a sweet something that he doubted he would never be able to put a name to. Beyond Hinata.
She didn't notice anything beyond the feel of him pressed against her and the warmth of his lips and the way he held her. Realised she didn't want to, wanted to stay like this forever if she could, the confusion from the past few days wiped away in a torrent of emotion she hadn't known she could feel. This felt right somehow--new, almost frighteningly so, but right. Kiba was warm and safe and she didn't want to let that go.
But the sound of a car passing by jolted her from wherever she'd gone to and she pulled away, still held in his arms, her face bright red and, she was sure, warm to the touch.
"I... Um..."
Reluctantly, he let her pull away, though he didn't drop his arm from around her waist. "We should probably get back," he said, a little huskily. His lips were tingling, and though the blush had died down from his face, it seemed to have centered itself in a bright warmth in his chest.
Kissing Hinata wasn't at all like kissing Nanao. That had been hot and passionate and, well, when he came down to it, almost competitive, as if they were each trying to convince each other of something and not sure how else to get their points across. But Hinata's lips were soft and warm and welcoming, and if he let himself fall into them, it was cool water that would soothe him, not hot fire to burn him.
...And if he was actually getting poetic about this, something was either seriously wrong or very, very right.
"Right," he said, and pulled away a little more, dropping the hand he held--but not the hand around her waist. And when they started down the street again, he was still holding her close to his side.
The air was suddenly cold again when he pulled away, and she frowned slightly, not able to help the faint shiver that passed through her. For one quick second, she had this intense, irrational hatred of cars.
But then they were moving, and his arm was still around her waist, and she sighed. Leaned her head against his shoulder and shifted the gifts in her arms again, glancing down at the stuffed animal's head and smiling. This... This was just right. Could only be better if he would kiss her again.
She spent the rest of the walk back to the apartment building locking the feel of it into her memory, afraid it wouldn't happen again.