Chapter 14

-Hinata's POV-

A week passed. While attending dance lessons, interviews, photoshoots, and the like, I gradually felt the weight of discomfort and fear leave my body. Tenten and Ino, ever the outgoing duo, asked if we could have a sleepover like the last one since things were calming down. Sakura initially yelled at them for pressuring me, but I actually agreed eagerly. Spending time drinking and having fun with my friends was something I'd missed, especially since I was under the impression I'd never be able to do so again.

So, come Friday night, after everyone's busy schedule was handled, we drove to Tenten's mansion. The Akatsuki guys, Konan's band, Naruto, Shikamaru, Temari, Kankuro, Neji, Sai, and Matsuri all showed up, in addition to, of course, Prestige, Tenten, and Ino.

The massive hall that'd served as the dancefloor at Tenten's housewarming party so long ago had morphed into the most comfortable-looking room I'd ever seen. Highend rollup futons were littered about the floor with more than enough fluffy pillows and blankets for everyone present to spend the night. A projector had been set up so the image would be large enough for all attendees to easily see. Then, naturally, a large table full of snacks and alcohol was by the wall.

"Stop right there. To gain entry, you must drink!" The four of us in Prestige froze when Tenten suddenly blocked our way with her arms in an "x" formation and a tall bottle of whiskey in one hand.

"That's dumb. Just move," Sasuke rolled his eyes.

The brunette girl held out the liquor bottle, "I don't make the rules. Take a drink or take your happy ass home, Uchiha."

I grabbed the bottle from her grasp and unscrewed the cap, shooting my boyfriend a teasing grin before tossing back a big mouthful of the bitter liquid. Wincing at the burn, I handed it off to Sakura, who looked about as excited as Sasuke.

Tenten hugged me, and I shyly accepted the embrace, "You do make the rules, though."

Our mentor ruffled my hair before pointing into the room with her thumb, where almost everyone else was mingling with drinks in their pajamas, "Keep it moving. You're holding up the line." A warm feeling met my chest at her mock-drill-sergeant tone.

To my surprise, Kankuro was the first to notice me approaching and held out his arms, "Hinata, hey! Bring it in, family!" Those were almost the exact words he spoke when we first met, and I couldn't stop the large grin that tugged at my lips as I hurried over to accept his hug. Temari and Shikamaru were standing nearby, obviously having been conversing with him.

Though the two of us haven't hung out often, he was there for Sakura and me when we went to that awful party where I saw Hidan commit a terrible act. Oddly enough, the event made me feel closer to him than before.

Thinking about that night, my spine straightened, and I pulled back to meet his eye, "Oh! Is Matsuri here yet?"

He cocked a brow, "Matsuri? Who's that?"

As if on some sort of cue, his chocolate-brown eyes lifted to the entrance before widening. I turned, pulling away from the embrace and stepping closer to Sasuke as he arrived at my side. The woman in question was approaching us with her gaze directed toward the ground as though nervous or uncomfortable.

When I glanced at Kankuro again, it was clear he recognized her. Back then, when he found us in that god-forsaken room, the girl only responded once he arrived. Maybe I'm wrong, but it seemed like she felt safe around him, and the Subaku man was obviously concerned for her well-being. My inner matchmaker came to life, and I waved Matsuri down so she'd come straight up to us.

When she was close enough, she nervously accepted my hug, "Hey. Long time no see. How are you?"

I released her, guiding us toward Kankuro with a smile, "I'm better, thanks. You remember Kankuro, right?"

Finally, she noticed the tall man standing there with the expression of someone who'd just seen a ghost. The woman's face paled as she undoubtedly recalled how he'd taken her home safely, "Uh, yeah, sure. Hello. It's nice to see you again."

Typically, the Subaku man would jump right into overbearingly flirting with a beautiful woman like her, but he didn't. Instead, he nodded, the color slowly returning to his face, "So, you're Matsuri, then."

Though they were still tense, I considered my work done and moved on so the pair could speak without an audience. Sakura had found Ino, and the two were arguing over something random, and Gaara was sitting between Sai and Neji as the trio spoke more calmly about who-knows-what.

Sasuke wordlessly left toward the drink table, and I crouched beside Deidara, whose back had been turned so he didn't notice. Kisame, Yahiko, and Konan's eyes turned onto me, blowing my cover, and the blonde turned his head to see me smiling sheepishly.

"Hina! When'd you get here?" He pulled me into his side with a strong arm, grinning ear-to-ear.

I lost my balance and fell on my butt atop the futon next to him, "I-I just arrived a few minutes ago."

Kisame tilted his head with a mischievous smile, "Careful, bro. Someone's watching."

Everyone followed his gaze to see Sasuke leaning against the wall with a red cup in his hand beside Naruto, who was talking excitedly as though he wasn't being completely ignored. The dark-haired man glared at the blonde with his arm around me.

"If he's anything like Itachi, you might wanna chill out," the blue-haired man snickered.

Deidara just rolled his eyes, squeezing me more tightly with the arm around my waist, "Here's hoping he gets angry. We need some excitement tonight!"

I elbowed his ribs with a shy smile, shaking my head but not saying anything because it was obvious he was only trying to annoy Sasuke and not actually making a move on me.

"Tenten better not expect us to paint each other's nails and gossip," Kakuzu grumbled, already looking exhausted with a beer in his hand.

Though the couple didn't say anything, Yahiko wordlessly lifted Konan's hand to inspect her nails in response to Kakuzu's statement. In return, the blue-haired woman spread her fingers so he could see more clearly, the tiniest hint of a smile tugging at her lips when he mirrored the act to show that they both had their nails painted black.

A weight shifted the futon at my side, and I saw Sasuke offering me a cup. I accepted with a warm look, snickering when he used his now-free arm to peel Deidara's off of me and pull me closer to him instead. The blonde man laughed, instead tossing his arm around my shoulders as he leaned forward to grin mischievously, "Let's get drunk and dance together like we did last time, Hina."

I rolled my eyes, leaning absently into Sasuke's side while sipping on the drink he'd brought. Sasuke waited until the others began speaking about something else before turning to whisper in my ear, "We should dance like last time, too."

Heat met my cheeks as I recalled the very comfortable way we'd interacted that night. I all but attacked the poor man.

"Ugh, I thought you two, of all people, wouldn't be into PDA but look at you. Disgusting," Sakura mused as she and Ino arrived to sit on Sasuke's other side. Everyone else was slowly making their way over to join the giant, loose circle that was forming.

Tenten cackled as she dropped down to sit beside Deidara, Neji on her other side, "I just ask that no babies are conceived in front of me tonight, folks," she narrowed her eyes at Gaara, who was in the process of sitting beside his girlfriend, "I'm talking to you two, in particular."

Everyone looked at the couple, causing their faces to turn bright red. Sakura immediately slapped Ino's arm, "Pig! I told you not to tell her!" Obviously, the pinkette had confided in her best friend about how she'd hooked up with Gaara at the last party here, and the blond, in turn, told Tenten.

Ino shrugged, waggling her eyebrows at the host of the night while reassuring her best friend, "She and Neji fuck in your guys' guest bedroom every time they come over. You were just trying to get even."

Rather than get embarrassed, Tenten beamed, glancing at Neji's annoyed face, "Ha, hell yeah, we do! That's our room. They just haven't made it official yet."

Temari piped in for the first time of the night, "Shika and I may or may not have used your room, then. Oops!"

Sounds of surprise and laughter filled the air. Kankuro and Gaara offered disgusted groans.

The elder Subaku brother spoke over the noise, "Nara, I thought you were supposed to be smart! Why'd you go for someone so bossy?"

The room quieted down as we awaited Shikamaru's response. He rolled his eyes lazily, leaning back to hold himself up with a hand to the ground, "If I answer that, she'll kill me. No thanks."

His apparent girlfriend, Temari, cheesed at her brother as though saying she'd trained her man well.

As the night carried along, the alcohol flowed.

The massive group played truth or dare and watched some performances on the projector while drunkenly singing and dancing along until the point in the night came when everyone was too drunk to do anything in an organized fashion. So, music was turned on just loudly enough that it wouldn't drown out people's conversations if they were close to one another and the large group broke into smaller ones.

As they were becoming notorious, Tenten and Neji disappeared before anyone else, likely to go upstairs to her bedroom for the night. I shook my head, trying not to imagine what they were doing up there. That's definitely not something I want to picture.

Naruto stood with Sasuke and me, talking about some new producing software I couldn't comprehend in my inebriated state, when an arm fell heavily over my shoulders, making me stumble to catch my balance. Looking over, I saw Deidara's pretty blue eyes. He whispered where only I could hear, his gaze on my glaring boyfriend, "Let's make him jealous, Hina. It'll be fun."

Sober me would've said no because I'd feel too guilty, but I wasn't sober. I didn't exactly say yes, but I didn't stop him when he suddenly asked loudly, "Remember that skirt you wore on our date? Do you still have that? You looked so good in it."

Naruto didn't pick up on the fact that Deidara was purposefully inappropriate and sheepishly ran a hand through his hair while glancing anxiously between him and the Uchiha, "Uh, do you not know that they're dating?"

The amused feeling in my being turned into surprise when the tall blond with longer hair suddenly stood behind me with his arms around my waist and his chin resting on my head, "So? It's not like they're married. I can still convince her to leave him."

"Very funny. Knock it off," Sasuke warned in a failed attempt at a joking tone. It was apparent he was irritated and trying not to overreact.

My face warmed when Deidara suddenly released me to stand at my side, grabbing my shoulders so I'd fully face him, "Who do you think's a better kisser, me or him?"

Blushing, I waved a dismissive hand and nearly slurred drunkenly, "W-We've never kissed, Dei!"

Shooting a glance at Sasuke, the blonde's grin widened, "Let's find out, then."

Naruto and I made simultaneous sounds of argument, me being the one to continue with my free hand up in defense, "No, don't do that! I don't wanna do it with anyone but Sasuke!"

The Akatsuki singer sighed dramatically, releasing his hold on my shoulders, "Alright, geez. You guys are no fun."

My boyfriend continued to glare at him, but I could only admire the strong line of his flexed jaw. His dark eyes were hot with poorly-masked ire. He looked sexy, especially in my intoxicated state.

We haven't done anything at all since the incident. We talked about it and decided to hold off until I'm entirely sure that I'm ready to return to that sort of act. That said, I discovered early on that drinking puts me in the mood, so all I wanted to do was pull the Uchiha man into one of these rooms so we could be alone.

The trance I was in broke when Deidara swiftly kissed my cheek before laughing loudly and stepping back with his hands raised defensively because Sasuke'd stepped forward threateningly.

"Haha, don't! It was a bet, man! You know that already."

Sakura, Ino, Sai, and Gaara suddenly appeared, the pink-haired woman dawning a thick air of satisfaction as she tutted at Sasuke, "And here you said I was doomed for failure. Time to pay up, Uchiha."

I looked between the two in confusion before realizing Gaara's face was bright red and becoming even more lost, "Um…?"

Deidara looked ecstatic, "She bet him that if she could make him jealous tonight, he'd have to kiss Gaara."

My eyes widened, and I looked at Sasuke, who was all but pouting and angry. This was obviously a continuation of his and Sakura's argument from the last time we were here, where he tricked her into kissing me and then got out of kissing our redheaded friend with ease.

"But how'd you get Gaara to agree to this?" I asked, tossing back the rest of my drink.

Ino cackled, leaning drunkenly into Sai's side as he held an arm around her waist, "She said she'd let him-" "Shut the hell up, you big-mouthed pig!" Sakura, with a bright red face, cut her off before shaking her head at me, "I promised to do a favor. Let's leave it at that."

"Enough with the chatter; let's get the show on the road, you two. Kiss!" Deidara cheered.

Sasuke and Gaara looked at one another with utter discomfort. The closer their faces got to one another's, the quicker my pulse raced until they kissed, just a peck, and then jumped apart with sounds of disgust. Gaara looked more bashful than I'd ever seen, frowning as he turned to rest his head on Sakura's shoulder so she'd hug and comfort him. Sasuke, though, turned his glare onto me with a pink dusting his cheekbones.

I tilted my head in confusion as he stepped forward in the circle we'd all loosely made, only to grasp onto his shirt with my free hand when he suddenly pulled me into a deep kiss. The others let out a variety of responses, some excited, some disgusted, and some simply surprised.

When he finally pulled away enough that we could both catch our breath, I snickered despite being completely embarrassed and overwhelmed that so many people were watching, "There. Now you're all mine again, remember?" After Sakura kissed me, Sasuke kissed me like he had just now before saying those exact words. I recall intensely swooning at the out-of-character remark.

A smirk tugged at his lips, and he kissed me again, more briefly this time, "All mine." His voice was low and seductive.

Alcohol had the Uchiha man flirting more openly than usual. I can't say it bothered me.

Swallowing hard to try and force my urge to jump his bones to hold off since so many people were around to witness it, I whispered where only he could hear, searching his dark eyes as they peered into mine, "Can we go upstairs soon?" His brow raised, eyes slightly widening in surprise before he nodded, kissing me one more time before pulling away.

Over the next half hour, we slowly made our way from small group to small group until we, at least seemingly, successfully snuck upstairs and slipped into Prestige's guest room. The moment the door closed behind us, I tugged Sasuke's shirt off over his head and pulled him down to kiss me. A low moan rumbled through his chest as he picked me up, my legs wrapping around his hips, and carried me to the nearest bed, where he climbed on top of me and worked my shirt off.

It was so hot that both of our skin was dusted with sweat.

While he removed my bra, I slid my jeans down my legs and kicked them away before fumbling between us to unbutton his pants. His tongue left my mouth for the first time in minutes as he dipped to kiss my neck and shoulder, speaking breathlessly against my skin, "Say something if you need me to stop or slow down."

A whine left my lips as he pressed against me, between my legs where I could feel how hard he was, and I greedily felt the muscles of his back. The response seemed to adequately communicate my eagerness to quit talking and move forward because he sat back on his knees just long enough to slip my underwear down my legs and lower his pants on his hips so he could pull himself free of the clothing.

My brow furrowed as my gaze danced between where he was lining up with one hand on his sex and his face, which held a familiar, heated expression that only made me more excited.

Just when I thought he was about to put it in, he paused, a tortured look in his eyes, "Hina…."

Sasuke was drunk.

It was obvious now that he made that kind of face with that tone in his voice.

I sat up, holding my weight with my hands to the mattress slightly behind me, "It's alright. I'm okay."

His dark eyes were watery, which was sweet and cute, but I wasn't able to focus long because he frowned, "We can wait. I swear I won't get angry, not at you."

The frantic mood drifted away into something more emotional as I searched his openly concerned, inebriated face. A smile tugged at my lips as I reached up to grab the back of his neck and pulled him lower so I could reach to kiss him, "I love you. I'm ready. Go ahead."

Sasuke's brow furrowed, but he nodded and returned to lining himself up, mumbling drunkenly, "Say it again." Carefully, he slid inside, and I lay back against the pillows as he came down to hold himself up with one hand to the bed, the other reaching to massage the bundle of nerves between my legs.

Small hints of pleasure immediately began jumping through my insides, my back arching off the bed to appease the sensation, "I-I love you!"

Sasuke pulled back to sit on his knees, glancing down where we were becoming one, "Again."

My brow furrowed when the pace began to increase, as did the pleasure. Though it's been weeks, and he's inebriated, the Uchiha obviously remembered what I liked. Before, he might've drawn it out, but right now, he's pushing me with all his efforts. One of my arms was bent so my hand could grip a handful of the pillow behind my head, and the other grasped the sheets as I tried, and failed, to withhold the soft moans he was causing to leave my lips.

Dark, firm eyes locked onto mine, and he repeated himself, "Again. Say it again. One more time."

Panting for breath and barely able to speak as I approached my endgame, I forced out, "You, too, okay?"

The Uchiha man came down to kiss me, pressing my legs further apart so the angle he was moving wouldn't have to change.

When it was clear to us both that I couldn't hold on any longer, he let me breathe but watched my face with expectant eyes. I ran a hand through his hair, pushing it away from his face so I could see it more clearly, "I love you, Sasu-!" The air in my body disappeared as I was tossed successfully over the edge. My head fell back on the pillow as my insides coiled, convulsed, and flexed uncontrollably.

He kissed my neck, hissing as he continued to move, "I love you, too."

Tears were in my eyes by the time my climax ended, and then I felt him reach his, too. Pressing deeply inside and staying there, Sasuke's fingers were tangled in my hair as he fumbled to hold the opposite side of my neck than where he was pressing his lips. The softest hint of a moan left his mouth, the sound unbearably attractive in his rich voice.

Then we were panting for breath and laying side by side on the large bed. After a few silent minutes, I felt his fingers searching for my hand and reached over so he could intertwine them. "I want you to tell me more often."

I sighed happily, smiling sleepily with my eyes closed, "Then I will."