Chapter 10

-Hinata's POV-

A slow, steady beeping met my ears as I awoke. It sped up when I opened my eyes and looked around to see a dark hospital room. I expected my entire body to hurt like it had when I passed out last, but I couldn't feel a thing. They must be numbing it with some type of medicine. My suspicion was confirmed when I saw the I.V.

The door to the room opened, and a doctor came inside, followed by a nurse. "You're awake! Don't try to move or speak yet. Just let me explain the situation, okay?"

I nodded, anxiously grasping at the thin white blanket covering my body.

The older man came to my bedside and appeared to check my vitals while speaking, "You were hurt pretty badly, but luckily, your friends wouldn't stop until they found you."

My friends? The heart monitor's beeping sped up further. Does he mean Sasuke and the others? I tried to ask, only to wince when a sharp pain shot through my throat. Not even a whimper of sound came out.

"You won't be able to speak for a few days, but I believe you'll fully recover within a few weeks with proper treatment."

A knock came at the door, and the nurse silently went to answer it.

The doctor continued, "You've been here for about eighteen hours. The man who did this to you is in custody, so please focus only on resting. You're no longer in danger."

The nurse returned, whispering something to the man. He nodded, smiling calmly down at me, "Your next of kin has arrived. Do you want me to let them in? It's completely up to you."

I froze. Next of kin? Is it Father? As I thought about it, I nodded. Even now, I bet Hiashi Hyuuga won't visit. It's likely Neji.

Moments later, familiar faces entered the room, and the nurse left.

"Hinata, oh, God!"

I was torn from my deep thoughts when Tenten, Ino, and Neji came through the door, the former bursting into sobs and barely restraining herself from climbing onto the bed to hug me. Ino was crying, too, but Neji just looked sad. His silver eyes were dull and worried.

Shakily, I reached out with my uninjured hand, and Tenten grasped it between hers, "You must've been so scared!"

The doctor politely bowed in greeting to the new arrivals, "All I ask is that you let her rest. Otherwise, I'll be forced to ask you to leave."

When he and the nurse were gone, Ino shut the door.

Tenten whispered through sobs, "Everyone else was arrested for hurting Toneri. Sai's at the jail now, bailing them out."

I tried to ask precisely who she was referring to but couldn't. I'm almost entirely sure Sasuke's one of them, but who else was involved?

Ino appeared at my other side, gently laying a calming hand on my leg as she sat, "Sasuke, Sakura, Gaara, Kakashi, and Itachi. They should be here in a few hours."

They went on to explain all they knew about what happened so far. Apparently, Toneri was beaten pretty severely, a fact I'm almost happy to learn. I only wish I'd gotten the chance to get a few hits in as retribution for all he's done to me.

I tried so hard to stay awake to wait for the others to arrive, but I simply couldn't. When I next awoke, familiar voices were speaking in hushed tones around me. The medication left me incredibly groggy, so it wasn't hard to remain still. Someone was holding my hand between both of theirs. Their fingers were calloused but warm. It's Sasuke; I just know it.

"Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Naruto are taking care of that while we're away. Things are going well so far. They managed to arrest everyone before they could release everything," Kakashi whispered.

Sakura sighed, "At least there's some good news."

There was a silent pause about the room.

"Shouldn't she have woken up by now? You said it's been twelve hours already, right?" Sakura asked, her tone more anxious this time.

Ino murmured comfortingly, "She's alright, Forehead. If she wasn't, the doctor would've told us by now."

"No, he wouldn't. He won't even tell Neji her exact condition."

Gaara spoke softly, obviously trying to soothe his upset girlfriend, "That's because she was awake. He likely asked her if she wanted him to disclose anything. Knowing Hinata, she told him no."

The hands holding mine tightened slightly, and I chose to stop pretending to be asleep. Silence blanketed the room.

Slowly, I opened my eyes.

The room was full of friendly faces, but I could only focus on one: Sasuke's. Those familiar, gorgeous dark eyes were watery and full of tears as he stared at me like he was seeing a ghost. For a moment, it felt like time stood still. I've never been happier to see him in my life. I thought the awful fight we had at the motel when I finally told him things were completely over was the last time I'd lay eyes on him.

My disbelieving trance broke when he suddenly sniffled, tears overflowing as he came forward to hold my hand to his forehead. The bittersweet sight made me cry, too, but I squeezed his hands tighter. It's all I can do to express my angst.

Eight days passed before I was officially released from the hospital. My voice returned, although it still hurt a bit to speak. I don't know why I was surprised that all of us from Prestige were bombarded by paparazzi the moment we stepped out of the hospital, but I was. The best I could do to keep it together was hold my gaze low behind my sunglasses and hold onto Sakura's hand for dear life while Evolution's bodyguards kept the people at bay.

Gaara took his girlfriend home in his Jeep, leaving me in Sasuke's care. It was silent almost the entire long ride home to Konoha.

I was informed of what my friends had done, using my phone to incriminate the men responsible for blackmailing me into a marriage contract. My heart's stuck somewhere between touched that they'd go through so much trouble for my sake and unbearably angry because I specifically requested for them not to do something like that because the risk was too significant.

Regardless of how I'll end up processing it, the men were arrested, including my father, Fugaku, and Itachi. Though I was contacted by the prosecutor in charge of the case about the charges I wanted to file, and I chose not to involve Itachi in our lawsuit, Konoha's judicial system wouldn't let him go completely free because there was too much proof of his involvement in such a high-level crime. If he's lucky, he won't be sentenced to prison or jail time, at least.

None of the blackmail from those awful folders I'd been given made it to the public. Of all the things that relieved me, that was almost at the top, second only to the fact that the doctors assured me after multiple tests that Toneri had not sexually assaulted me while I was unconscious.

To my complete and utter shock, Sakura decided to go public about the situation with Sasori, that she'd been raped. When I asked her why she did it even though she didn't have to, she explained that she realized there are likely young girls out there who may benefit from seeing a public figure like herself admit to being a victim of abuse. They may become inclined to get help and realize life still has things to offer after such an awful experience.

Her bravery is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Especially when I know how hard of a battle it's been for her to deal with her trauma.

So, one of the worst chapters in my life appeared to be coming to a close. The plan is to go home, rest for two more weeks so my voice can fully recover, and then get back to work. Prestige's new album's release was delayed, but Kakashi assured me that the public's reaction to everything has been astoundingly supportive, minus a few internet trolls here and there.

When I'm back on my feet, the first event I'll be attending is the filming of True Talent. The original filming date was the first week of October, which was the week of my hospital stay. It's unheard of for a big-name competition like that to reschedule for just one or two contestants, but they did, sending a massive bouquet of flowers to my room with a get-well-soon card, as well. On the bright side, they offered to allow Sakura and Gaara to compete, again, and this time, they accepted the invitation. So, Prestige will be together for that.

My eyes shot open as I heard the shower turn on in the bathroom. It was Sasuke, obviously, but I wasn't sure what he was doing up so late. We're supposed to start filming tomorrow, and we're to leave the house at eight in the morning. I haven't slept well because nightmares plagued my dreams. The Uchiha man and I haven't said much to one another, and we've slept in our own rooms since I moved back into the house. I appreciate his giving me space to sort out my emotions.

I'm still incredibly upset, just not with him. Even though he never said it out loud, Sasuke obviously doesn't blame me for anything. That should make me happy, but it doesn't. No, because I don't understand how he can be so okay with acting like none of it happened. For lack of better words, I pretty much cheated on him. I slept with another man even if I didn't want it. Even though I wasn't left with much choice, I can't forgive myself for what I put him through.

When we first arrived home, all three of my friends-slash-roommates tried to check on me, but I found it hard to look any of them in the eye. It's not exactly shame that I feel when I see the unease on their faces, but it's something close to it. Rationally, I know there's no reason to be self-conscious around Gaara, Sakura, and Sasuke, but my mind just won't rest. Every time something terrible happens, they're there for me, no questions asked.

They were there when Suigetsu broke in and attacked me, when Hidan tried to kill me, and again now when Toneri kidnapped me.

Now that the men responsible for this are being charged, what's my next life-threatening encounter? With my luck, there's no way things will become smooth sailing from here on out.

I sat up, hugging a pillow to my stomach with bent knees and my phone in hand. One moment I was stewing with extreme anxiety about the future, and the next, I was calling someone I'd been advised to avoid until the preliminary hearing next month: my father. He was bailed out of jail but is on house arrest with an officer constantly watching the home. The blackmail was confiscated by the police, so there was no way for him to release it out of retaliation.

"You dare contact me after what you've done?" Without a doubt, Hiashi Hyuuga's livid. I hesitated, unsure of how to respond because I didn't even know why I called in the first place. "What do you want? Speak, or I'll hang up."

My fingers gripped a handful of the soft pillow between my arms, "Don't! I-I…." I trailed off nervously.

There was a long pause before he replied, "Did you call for an apology? I have none to offer."

Finally, I found my voice, though shaky, "You signed my life away to a man that nearly killed me, Father. Does that bother you at all?"

"My only regret is having sired such a weak daughter. Everything you touch ends in ruin, Hinata. You're a failure at academics, marriage, and I promise your little music career will soon follow." I gritted my teeth, tears slipping down my nose to drip onto the pillow as I stared at the phone's screen.

"The family name has been ruined by this, by you. Thousands of people will be out of work if the company goes bankrupt. Without Hyuuga, you're doomed to fail. At least you'll be-" "Shut up."

That's enough. I refuse to let the cycle repeat itself again.

"Excuse me? Who do you think you're talking to?!"

"I'm done letting your disapproval affect me. In fact, I'm done with you completely. I don't need you, or anyone else, for that matter!"

He tried to cut in again, but I said, "Watch me succeed from your prison cell, Father, or look away. I don't care. Either way, you should pray for forgiveness because you'll rot in hell for all you've done."

And then I hung up, blocked and deleted Hiashi Hyuuga's number from my phone, and immediately felt a shift in the heavy clouds weighing down on my shoulders. Wiping at the last of my tears, I sat the device on the end table and climbed out of bed. That was one of the necessary things to be done to move on from this experience, and I'm about to step toward another.

I opened the bathroom door and wrapped my arms around Sasuke's middle from behind as he stood with a towel around his waist, brushing his teeth. "...Hinata?"

Trembling emotionally, I pressed my cheek to his back, squeezed my eyes shut, and spoke barely above a whisper, the most I could manage in my state, "I-I love you, and I'm sorry for taking so long to snap out of it. You've been waiting for me, I know, and I promise-" "Idiot."

My eyes shot open when I felt him place a hand over one of mine on his chest. He called me an idiot, but his tone was warm, not insulting.

"I'll keep waiting, so don't apologize."

A smile met my lips, and I squeezed him more tightly, battling my heightened emotions to not cry relieved tears.

"Just a little longer, Sasuke."