Chapter 2
“So, I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before, Neji. Is this your first time here at the uni’s café?” (Y/N) asked as she placed her cup back down on the counter. The man before her copied her with his own cup, his brows furrowed in confusion. He tilted his head slightly to the side, his silky dark brown locks cascading down his shoulder from gravity.
“I thought this place was called Konoha Kafé.” Neji thought aloud, albeit with mild disdain. He was rightful to assume that the owners only spelled café that way for marketing purposes, but the perfectionist in him never failed to point out dumb things like that.
Things that shouldn’t bother him, but kind of does.
“Well, this is a notorious stomping ground for students and faculty at the university nearby.”
Neji paused.
“You don’t mean Hiruzen University…do you?” He questioned, knowing his answer the very moment her (e/c) eyes seemed to brighten under the artificial light overhead.
“That’s the one! I’m nearing my last year there.” (Y/N) explained, and Neji felt certain that as she said those words, her chirpy voice dimmed.
Though, only for a moment.
“That…that is very interesting because I also attend Hiruzen,” Neji remarked.
If he assumed her face couldn’t get any brighter, he’d actually be wrong.
The man masked a soft chuckle with a delighted expression as (Y/N) seemed to vibrate from pure excitement out of her seat. He wouldn’t say this type of behavior, especially from a young woman, was something he was particularly used to, but he also wouldn’t say that he disliked her for her vibrancy.
“Are you serious?! How long have you been going there?”
“Well, I suppose I’ve been there as long as you have since I also have a year left of my studies,” Neji said thoughtfully, still finding silent amusement at (Y/N’s) excitement. He had friends and acquaintances that had personalities like (Y/N).
Energetic, bubbly, and friendly. Opposite of him.
Take another classmate of his, Uzumaki Naruto, who Neji now begrudgingly admits to being a close and important friend.
The two, once upon a time, could not stand each other.
Neji hated how optimistic Naruto was, and how hard he pushed people’s buttons to break their shells. Naruto’s personality was once something that brought on instant irritation and anger to Neji. Naruto hated how pessimistic Neji was, and how he was certain that there were some people in this world not meant for success. People who were born to fail. The two were once as far apart as enemies could be.
In fact, some of their squabbles would turn into full-on shoving and fistfights, as boys do.
That was all history, however, and while Naruto still was the kind of guy to be taken in doses, a part of Neji had to give his friend some credit.
He passed a fond gaze at the woman before him.
If Naruto hadn’t been there to open Neji up to new things, new ideas, and new people, he probably wouldn’t be talking to (Y/N) right now.
Even past ego, he had to thank Naruto for that.
“How come I’ve never seen you on campus before?” The woman asked, releasing Neji from his personal thoughts. He blinked rapidly, taking a moment to digest her question.
With a sly smile, he gave her a nod.
“I can ask you the same thing, (Y/N). Why have I not seen you on campus before?” He questioned in a teasing voice.
When she pursed her lips to think, gazing down at her cup, Neji felt him suck in a breath. From the moment he saw her, he was aware of her beauty. Whether she would acknowledge that herself or not, her soft features, warm smile, and eyes were attributes of hers that he admired. In this simple conversation, he could see her attentiveness, kindness, and compassion; things Neji himself tended to lack. When she looked back up to meet his pale eyes, he felt his whole body tense as if he’d been caught doing something he wasn't supposed to. The look on her face was considerate.
“Well, if you’re anything like me, you must’ve been absorbed and focused on your own studies to notice other people. Besides, I think I’m pretty ordinary. I probably just blended into the crowds at school,” She giggled, and while Neji had only just met (Y/N), he loathed the way she talked about herself. It reminded him of how bad a critic he once was to himself.
“You're wrong,” he thought. “You would have definitely caught my eye, and my attention.”
He wanted to say that, as many of his more, outward and courageous friends would have said. But he stayed silent, tapping his index finger on his clothed knee.
“I…have been pretty focused on school,” Neji replied quietly.
(Y/N) smiled widely.
“Stressed?”
“Better believe it,” Neji smiled.
When the woman stood he automatically stood with her.
“So Mr. StudyStud, do you have any plans for the rest of today?” (Y/N) asked as she grabbed both Neji’s and her cup. She handed his drink to him as he opened his mouth to speak.
“Besides studying?” She grinned when his lips closed into a very thin line.
“...I guess nothing,” He muttered, defeated. Neji chose to ignore the nickname.
“Then,” The woman drawled. “If you’d like, you should hang out with me for a little bit longer. Get to know a fellow uni-kid.” (Y/N) suggested.
Despite her front showing confidence and casualness to her question, he could tell it made her nervous and he didn’t blame her. While she had been innocent in her suggestion, what she had asked left her vulnerable to him. Neji could say no, flatly and bid her goodbye, returning home to drown in his studies. He could opt in to say yes to her, and take his own chance in vulnerability.
When Neji followed (Y/N) to the bookstore, continuing their conversation from the cafe, he was satisfied that he chose to say yes to her.
The bookstore next door, from (Y/N’s) description, was another hotspot for university students to converse and study. The entire room was filled with the wafting scents of old paper, leather book covers, and a faint coffee smell from readers who stopped by the cafe first before entering the store. The two continued to talk about school, classes, food, and other mundane topics that wouldn’t really pass the mind on a regular basis. It felt nice for Neji to have someone to talk to whom he can easily converse as if they’d already known each other for much longer than a day. Even the moments of silence were nice, as they sat side-by-side, reading books from the shelves.
After a couple of hours of browsing both the upper and lower level of the store, Neji walked slowly down an aisle of books from a section he hadn’t passed yet, historical fiction, carefully scanning each neat row as he passed. At the end of the aisle was his new companion, as she took a book from the bottom of the shelf and read the cover.
“I think it’s kind of unfair Hina never showed me these places before,” Neji grumbled, mostly to himself. The store, just as empty as the coffee shop, echoed his words, making (Y/N) glance up at him with widened eyes.
“Hina? You’re talking about Hinata right?” She asked.
“I don’t think there are a lot of people on campus with our eye color,” His teasing voice caused the woman to scoff. He couldn’t fight his smile, seeing (Y/N) trying to hide her own.
“Alright, Alright, I get it smarty. I’m not always right in the head in the mornings. But yeah, Hinata and I always study sesh around here or in the library at school.” (Y/N) explained, glancing back down at the book in her hands, opening it to a random page.
“Wow,” Neji replied, crossing his arms. “I kind of feel like an outlier to the whole school now since most people know about these places, except me,” He said, catching (Y/N’s) attention once again.
The woman turned to him, with a thoughtful look on her face. Returning the book where she pulled it from, (Y/N) stepped toward him with her hands clasped behind her back. Neji could feel her (e/c) scanning his features like she was looking through a lens. He wasn’t sure how to feel about that. He still couldn’t figure out how he felt about these havens being concealed from his awareness.
“Well, now that I think about it, I have heard about you. I’ve just never seen you. Many of the people Hinata and I hang out with just call you Hinata’s mean older cousin…I only knew that you were Hinata’s cousin,” (Y/N) said, her voice cautious and uncertain.
Neji didn’t expect what she said to hurt, but it did.
He controlled his expression to a neutral look, nodding in response because he really had nothing to say to that. He had to look away from her sympathetic expression, it was nearly too much. He had grown up bitter after his father’s death, only to be raised by his uncle who was much too hard on him.
Neji was proud of himself to have grown from what he was to who he is now. He wasn’t mean from bitterness anymore.
He still wanted to be perfect for his family, even when that bar continued to be raised.
He still was blatantly honest, and a bit shy. He was proud.
He had flaws he wanted to fix, and amendments he desired to make.
If it wasn’t his uncle telling him who to be and how to be, other people were taking his past mistakes and making it his whole identity.
“Does that make you regret wanting to hang out with me, today?” Neji asked her, his voice soft and quiet. She could see the tightness in his arms as they rested crossed over his chest. His frown was deep, and his pale eyes were tired and almost sad-looking.
(Y/N) stepped closer, her own arms hugging over her stomach like she was protecting herself.
She shook her head adamantly.
“Of course not Neji. I just thought you should know what they said about you,” She said. Her own voice was soft but unrelenting. Neji felt a warmth that enveloped his chest that traveled to his cheeks.
They both fell silent, standing beside each other in an empty bookstore with nothing but bookshelves, inked paper, and their racing thoughts.
“...Give me your phone,” (Y/N) suddenly said.
Neji perked up, bemused.
“Wait, what? Why?” He asked her, reaching for his phone in his pocket, holding it between them.
Her nimble fingers quickly plucked the device from his hands.
“Hey!” He snapped over her giggles, watching her poke around on his phone. It’s not like he had anything to hide, but it was still his phone.
After (Y/N) appeared satisfied, she handed Neji his phone back. He snatched it back with a huff, looking at his phone and his new contact.
(L/N) (Y/N).
“I don’t agree with my friends by the way,” The woman mused, leaning forward to see her contact page on his phone. Neji stopped himself from inching away out of instinct, only focusing on her words. He couldn't train his eyes to anywhere but her expression and smile.
When she met his gaze, he felt vulnerable, but in a good way.
“Hinata has always come to your defense by the way, and I trust her judgment,” (Y/N) explained, nudging her elbow against Neji’s. “That means I trust her when she says that you aren’t mean. You’ve just had some rough spots, and like all of us going to university, are a work-in-progress,” (Y/N) explained, making the man before her fall completely silent.
A work-in-progress.
It felt comforting to hear that.
Neji could only look down at his phone, gently running his thumb up and down the device’s side as he read (Y/N’s) name in his, already short, contact list.
“On top of that,” (Y/N) added, bouncing slightly on her toes. “Meeting you in person has given me physical proof that you aren’t mean as everyone says.”
Her smile infected Neji as his lips turned up in a soft expression. He shook his head.
“I still don't get why you couldn’t have just asked to put your number in my phone instead of taking it from me.” He remarked, smirking.
(Y/N) beamed. She could see the ‘thank you’ he wanted to say in his eyes, and that’s all she needed to know. Resting her palm on his shoulder, the woman made a point to look straight into his eyes.
“Don’t be a stranger, Hyuuga Neji. I’ll see you at school.”
After bidding (Y/N) goodbye, Neji took a moment to browse the books some more on his own. His mind was filled with school, his family, and now his new friend, (Y/N). She made him feel so many emotions.
Happy? Of course, along with being excited, nervous, doubtful, and above all, terrified.
Doing something as simple as adding another friend to his tight-knit circle was just as difficult as pulling teeth for Neji. Socializing had never been his forte, and after being bitter at his uncle and his fate for so long, and being so determined to be perfect for his family, any developments in his social life were pretty much stunted.
While Neji had his worries and reservations over (Y/N), he couldn’t help but want to know more about her.
That in itself was exciting enough, and he was thankful that he had chosen the vulnerability of saying yes.