Chapter 26

Hidan woke Hinata in the very early hours of the morning to say goodbye, sneaking out the window so he could descend the side of the house.

When she woke later, a mild blush warmed her cheeks, and her lips tugged into a tiny smile, 'Last night, I feel like Hidan finally relaxed around me a little more. I'm so happy!' He was not only the first to say that four-letter word, but they also slept together in an especially intimate atmosphere.

The bashful girl was surrounded by a content aura as she got ready for school and left the house, something that hadn't happened since the Akatsuki boys worked at the estate. All she could think about as she took off her coat and hung it in her locker was how warm and comfortable it made her feel to be close to her boyfriend.

"I don't get how women complain about being cold all the time when your clothes are so damn thin," the man in question's voice sounded from closely behind her, making her jump and turn to see a familiar smirk and warm, magenta eyes, "You're seriously gonna get sick if you're not careful, and I'm not sitting through another chick-flick marathon."

Hinata shook her head amusedly, turning to face her locker again so she could find the correct books for her first class, "When have I ever complained to you that I'm cold?"

Hidan's smirk morphed into a grin, but he changed the subject, "See ya later, Princess."

She looked over her shoulder to see him lift a hand over his shoulder in a lazy wave as he walked away.

'Why'd he even come over here? What a weirdo,' That's what the Hyuuga girl thought, but a giddy little sensation fluttered about her stomach. 'I don't know what he's talking about.' The jeans she wore were thick enough, and though her shirt was on the thinner side, it had long sleeves.

"You're in a good mood," Itachi mused when he sat beside her in the Science room, "I take it you two made up after I left?"

Hinata blushed but nodded, "Sorry again for making everyone worry."

"You're not the one who should be apologizing. Hidan's lucky everyone was asleep by the time he got home, or else they would've beaten him for making you cry."

A warm hum left the girl as she shook her head dismissively. The pair fell into a comfortable silence as more and more students entered the room.

When Sakura and Ino came in with Sasuke and Sai, she overheard the blonde girl warning her boyfriend, "You'd better get me a real good present for Christmas, or I'm gonna be mad."

Hinata nearly gasped out loud, 'Oh, crap, that's right! It's only three days away!' She made a mental note to do all her last-minute shopping online tonight before bed. There'll be no choice but to pay extra for the packages to be expedited since the holiday's so close.

On the way to the lunch room, the timid girl inwardly cursed Hidan. It was like he'd jinxed her because all day long, she's felt chilly. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were walking at her side.

Crossing her arms so her hands were warmer, she pouted, deep in thought. So much so that the girl jumped in shock when the loud blonde boy suddenly tossed an arm around her shoulders, "Are you cold, Hina? Wanna borrow my jacket?"

'Oh, God. I have to somehow get him off of me without hurting his feelings before Hidan sees. It's a fight waiting to happen.' With a sheepish grin, Hinata lifted her hands toward Naruto, inching away to politely emote that she wanted space, "N-No, that's alright. Thank you, though."

"Are you sure? It's no big deal. Sakura borrows my jacket all the time, right, Saku?"

The pinkette slapped the back of Naruto's head, though not hard enough to hurt him, "Idiot, she said no. You're making her uncomfortable."

Naruto's arm tightened around her shoulder in a half-hug as he smiled apologetically, "Right. Sorry."

While in the lunch line, Sakura pulled Hinata away from the two boys with a look that said to be discreet. Leaning toward her friend, the Hyuuga girl listened carefully as words were whispered into her ear, "Naruto has a crush on you."

Rather than blush like she would've in the past, Hinata's face paled. Sure, she likes Naruto fine enough, but any romantic feelings she might've had were squandered by the realization that he liked Sakura more, and she has a boyfriend that she very much respects.

"N-No way. You must be mistaken!"

The pinkette shook her head, whispering again with green eyes trained on Naruto and Sasuke nearby, "He told Sasuke and me after the game where you filled in for Karin."

Hinata frowned, recalling the uncharacteristic way the blonde had stared at her in the gymnasium after their team claimed a victory.

Answering a question she hadn't even been asked yet, Sakura added, "I know I shouldn't tell his secret, but I don't want to see him get hurt. I also don't want you two to stop being friends. Do you think you can try and deter him somehow?"

The exact moment she asked, Hinata's eyes locked onto Hidan, Deidara, and Sasori entering the lunch room, the silver-haired man having an arm tossed lazily over the blonde's shoulder, who appeared irritated. The Hyuuga girl nodded, coming up with a plan, 'If we act like a couple where Naruto can see, he'll eventually get discouraged. I hope it works quickly.'

After getting their food and returning to their tables, Hinata sat down in her usual spot beside her boyfriend's chair. He hadn't returned yet, but his jacket was on the back of his seat, coincidentally being the one she bought him after ruining his old one.

Itachi and Konan watched her with amused eyes as she blushed, grabbed the piece of clothing, and put it on, 'I'll kill two birds with one stone. I'll show Naruto that I'll wear Hidan's jacket when I wouldn't wear his, and I won't be cold in my afternoon classes.'

"How bold and unexpected," Konan's teasing tone intentionally tried to embarrass Hinata further.

She shook her head, lowering her gaze to her hands in her lap and feeling a flutter in her stomach when she realized the sleeves were long enough to completely cover them, '...It's warm, and it smells like him….'

Soon, the remaining trio of Akatsuki arrived at the table. To Hinata's surprise, Hidan didn't say anything about her stealing his jacket and simply smirked with a wink when he caught her sneaking glances.

"You should take that off and borrow one of ours instead. He doesn't deserve to see you in his clothes after what he did," Deidara suddenly offered a few minutes later, beginning to unzip his jacket to show he meant it.

The timid girl put her hands up defensively, "N-No, it's okay," she paused, realizing she might've been rude, and nervously met her boyfriend's eye, "Unless you want it back. I didn't really ask, did I? Sorry."

Hidan scoffed, rolling his eyes, "Keep it on." Though he was nonchalant, Hinata suddenly recalled how he confessed his feelings for her last night and smiled bashfully with the tips of her fingers absently touching her lips, leaning over into his side for a moment as a silent thanks.

"You two make me wanna be sick," Sasori mumbled half-heartedly.

Rather than intending to be genuinely insulting, he and the other three at the table shared knowing looks, Konan sighing wistfully, "If only Yahiko were here to lend me his jacket. What will I ever do?"

Deidara, who seemed in a foul mood today, pointed his fork at her and spoke through a mouthful of rice, "Hasn't he bought you a new wardrobe at this point?"

It surprised Hinata when she found out that Yahiko showers his girlfriend with gifts despite being incredibly reserved when it comes to PDA. Apparently, he's also quite doting behind closed doors. Until she saw it with her own eyes, the Hyuuga girl wasn't sure if she believed it.

The blue-haired girl smirked with a shrug, waggling her brows at a still-blushing Hinata and changing the subject, "He must've done something pretty amazing for you to forgive him so quickly." When the Hyuuga girl averted her gaze to the table, anxiously poking at her rice with her fork, Konan mused, "I wonder what it was."

Deidara, again very grumpy, said, "You know what he did! I'm disappointed in you, Hina. How can you let him win you over like that?"

Suddenly, it felt like their neighbor table was paying attention. Hinata used the opportunity before it was lost. She looked at Hidan and uncharacteristically responded, "H-He's just so handsome that I can't bring myself to stay mad."

The silver-haired young man lifted a curious brow but otherwise didn't acknowledge that public compliments were unusual for them. Instead, much to the girl's relief, he played along, "The woman just can't help herself. What can I say?"

She nodded, turning her cherry-red face downward toward her tray so he couldn't study it anymore. The feeling of eyes on the back of her head didn't disappear. With trembling hands, Hinata gritted her teeth and slid a hand under the table to rest atop her boyfriend's thigh. He tossed his arm around her and pulled their seats closer together, making her squeak in surprise.

"Ugh, it's like Beauty and The Beast. I can't watch," Deidara pretended to gag.

Hidan lowered his head to whisper where only she could hear, a teasing tone to his voice that could also come off as threatening in the right setting, "Is there a reason you're flirting so damn hard with me right now?"

Hinata could only nod, too afraid to turn her head and meet his gaze.

After lunch, the timid girl lost her curious boyfriend in the crowd and rushed upstairs to get the correct books for her next class, 'I forgot to factor in how Hidan would react! He's going to tease me for the rest of the day; I just know it.'

When the Hyuuga woman walked into her final class of the day, the silver-haired boy leaned against her desk with his arms crossed. Many other students were present, including Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. Hidan's gaze burnt into hers as she approached until she finally stood before him. With a demeanor mirroring that of the cliche bad boy type in romance movies, he tilted his head as he stood, looking over her appearance.

Hinata's arms tightened further around her books. Her eyes darted anxiously from his face and back down. In the corner of her eye, she saw Konan shake her head with a knowing smirk as she walked around the couple to sit at her desk, taking a drink from her water bottle.

"What'd I tell you this morning, Baby? Your clothes are too damn thin for winter."

The blue-haired girl choked on her water, spitting it out and coughing.

'He called me Baby in public! He's only ever done that when we're…. Why, all of a sudden?'

Feeling so surprised and bashful that she was dizzy, Hinata stepped forward to nervously hook her fingers between his on one hand, the other still holding her books, "I-I-!"

"Alright, now it's getting scary. Was it really good enough to make you two act all lovey-dovey like this? Jesus Christ," the blue-haired girl hissed, looking irritated as she dried water from the desk with a sweater sleeve. The entire classroom went silent because there was no mistaking her question to mean something else.

Disbelief flooded Hinata's entire being while Hidan watched her process the emotion with an amused smirk. He ignored Konan and said, "Did you intentionally ignore me so you could steal my jacket?" His fingers curled further between hers, "You could've just taken it this morning, y'know." Honestly, it seemed like the exaggerated flirting wasn't too much of a chore for him.

Thankfully, the teacher soon arrived, and everyone had to sit at their desks so class could begin.

Near its end, a folded-up piece of paper landed on her desk. Discreetly, to not alert the teacher, she opened it to see Sakura's familiar, bubbly handwriting, 'Why didn't you tell me you two are serious enough to do that kind of stuff? I'm hurt!'

'I'm sorry! I forgot!'

'Ino and I have been rooting for you two since you told us you like him. Don't you think we deserve the juicy details?' Blushing, Hinata shook her head at the pinkette, who pouted.

After class, the Hyuuga girl lowered her head bashfully when Hidan grabbed her hand while they walked upstairs to their lockers, neither saying a word until they reached their destination.

"Alright, Princess. Fess up," his eyes widened in realization, and he lowered his voice with a hand on the locker beside hers so she had nowhere to escape, "Want me to come over again tonight? You're trying to butter me up, is that it?"

Hinata closed her locker after grabbing her coat and bag. Lightly thumping her forehead against it, she turned with a pout and began pulling her arms from Hidan's jacket so she could return it, "That's not it."

"I mean, I'll fuckin' do it, but I expect a show of appreciation or some shit."

Groaning, the girl pressed her forehead to his chest, trying to ignore his amused chuckles, "I-If you want to come over, then please do, but that's really not the reason."

As if fate was playing with her emotions today, Naruto's voice could be heard approaching from down the hall. Hinata pulled back and looked under Hidan's arm to see he was with Sai and Kiba.

'Okay, if he sees this, then I think that'll be the end of the line. He'll have no choice but to move on,' the girl grasped her boyfriend's shirt, searching his face with a blush, 'It's not fun, making Naruto uncomfortable on purpose, but it's for his benefit in the long run. I don't want to ruin our friendship.'

"Kiss me, please," Hinata whispered just loudly enough for Hidan to hear.

He smirked, dipping down to press his lips to hers. The girl's focus on Naruto's position snapped when her boyfriend slid a hand into her hair, angled himself slightly more above her, and slid his tongue into her mouth. A surprised squeak was lost somewhere in the chaos. With trembling fingers, she tightened her handfuls of his shirt and accepted the unexpected level of affection.

The sudden whispers and buzz about the hallway picking up meant that not only had the Uzumaki boy likely seen it, but so did the dozens of students in the hallway with them. Hidan slowly slid his tongue back into his mouth, peering at her through half-lidded eyes as he kissed her once more, just a peck, before grinning mischievously.

Hinata brought a hand to her chest, face alight with blush, "I-I didn't mean that kind of kiss…."

"Well, now that fuckin' Uzumaki idiot knows you're mine."

Pearl-colored eyes widened in surprise, "Y-You-"

"If you wanna pretend he doesn't so you can keep acting all sappy in public, that's fine too," his hand slid out of her hair, and he brushed his thumb over her bottom lip, "Our classmates will wonder what you're doin' with a guy like me, though. I don't give a damn, either way."

The Hyuuga girl's teeth gritted together at his words. True, their peers were doing a poor job of ogling at the couple flirting shamelessly in the hallway, but Hidan does care. He simply doesn't want to admit it.

Hinata glared at him, angry, "Don't say things like that. You know I don't care about that stuff." When her boyfriend's gaze fell into a glare, too, she softly punched his stomach, not hard enough to hurt or even make him budge, "I'm serious. I-I-I love you no matter what anyone thinks."

For the very first time, Hidan appeared genuinely taken off guard. His magenta eyes widened, and the hand cupping her jaw left to hover a few inches from touching.

'Oh, no! Did I make him uncomfortable? Maybe I shouldn't have said it in a place like this. He probably doesn't like it.'

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-" "I love you, too, so shut it before you piss me off," long fingers wrapped around her wrist, and then Hinata was pulled toward the staircase.

Hidan walked slightly ahead, so she couldn't see his face, but a smile began to tug at the girl's lips when she realized the tips of his ears were red.

'I think I just found his weakness.'