Episode 4

The void had been filled, they could stay in the same room with each other and it wasn't filled with tension. On her phone, Hinata showed him what she had planned to get, a small bedside crib that would work until the child was old enough to not roll over and suffocate on a futon. He had her order it with his card, one less thing for her to worry about.

Her cooking was good. It felt like the home he and Naruto never had as orphans. It gave him a pit in his stomach when he realized that he hadn't had home-cooked food like this in… years since foster care, and it hasn't been good cooking since his mother.

Since the day Hinata started cooking, she had it on the table at the same time every day. If she came home late, she would look panicked until she was sure it would be on time. He hadn't thought much of it until the day she broke down crying when she was 15 minutes late to the table because she set the oven too low. He hadn't even noticed until she started crying.

"I'm sorry…." She whimpered. He stared at her misery, unsure what to do or what brought it on. He didn't even notice the time. "It's late..." She explained.

Sasuke looked at her, wondering if this was just stress or if she was genuinely worried about the time. "Hinata. Honestly, I don't care when you feed me. You don't even have to feed me."

It didn't seem to calm her. She buried her face in her hands to sob. Sasuke took a deep breath. Maybe this was the time for a hug. He crossed the room to reach for her, and she flinched when she noticed he got close.

The fear hit him like a train. He slammed his hand on the counter, seeing red. "He HIT you!?" Sasuke demanded.

"No!" Hinata shrieked. Looking horrified, she hugged herself, and it was clear that wasn't the whole story. No, Naruto wouldn't have hit her, but he knew Naruto when he wanted something. Was his best friend above yelling at his wife when she didn't have dinner on the table or was she so afraid of disappointing him that even the thought would make her this afraid? Was this why she wasn't mad? Did she feel like she deserved it?

He felt sick.

Sasuke reached back out. This time she let him set hands on her shoulders. Hinata tried to wipe the blubbering tears, but they kept coming. "I. Don't. Care." He pronounced. "Your cooking is a favor. You can stop tomorrow and only feed yourself. You bought all the groceries. You put all the work in. It's your food. You are choosing to share it." He made sure not to break eye contact as he tried to gently but firmly get his point across.

Hinata nodded, still sobbing. What the hell had he done to her? Naruto had said she was the perfect wife but had he made her that way, or did she rise to his image of perfection?

He got her to sit down and eat. She picked at her food, but he stayed there until she was done.

"What happened if dinner wasn't on time?" Sasuke asked.

Hinata picked at her napkin, keeping her eyes down. "He had this image of how the perfect marriage would be and would be upset if the routine was broken. If I was late enough, sometimes he would say… that I wasn't trying hard enough to make the marriage work. I didn't love him enough… He never said cruelly, and he didn't mean it."

"Don't make excuses for him. If the story paints him bad, maybe it's correct." Sasuke growled. "Once you start making excuses, it turns from bad behavior to abuse."

Sasuke was putting the pieces together now. His apartment was clean as could be, cleaner than when he moved in. She was attentive to him when he talked but only gave words of encouragement, even if he was just ranting about bullshit or was the bad guy. She was particular about making his morning easier. Coffee was made for him and ready to his liking. His lunch was always something he would eat. Dinner, well, they had just covered that. If he didn't like something, she would apologize and fix it to his liking, even if it was at her expense. How had he not seen all this before? She was so eager to please, and his lack of negative response was starving her need to constantly improve to not disappoint.

"I'm not a hard man to please," Sasuke added. "You could serve me a mountain of sweets, and the worst you get out of me is a sarcastic remark, and I won't eat it. I didn't buy the food, you pay rent, you aren't a burden." He tapped his hand on the table so he would look up at her. "Alright?"

Hinata wearily nodded. He wondered if Naruto had thought she was so wonderful because she was ready to serve him. Why was he the one to leave? Where the hell was he anyway?

———

"How did your appointment go?" Sasuke wondered as she took off her coat.

"I'm healthy, the fetus is healthy, but my blood pressure is high from the stress," Hinata told him honestly.

"Well, since you were getting home late, I decided we'll order take out." She turned white. "I knew you would rush to make dinner. I don't want you doing that anymore." He clarified. He felt the need to tell her she wasn't in trouble.

She nodded, looking unsure but accepting. It would take baby steps to recover.

"What do you want, ramen, pizza, subs, soup, tacos...?" Sasuke pulled out his takeout menus. He hadn't touched them since she moved in, and it felt weird.

"I hate ramen," Hinata mumbled.

He nodded, tossing the ramen menu in the trash, so did he. He assumed for the same reason, it was Naruto's favorite food, and you could only eat so much of something before you got sick of it.

"Pizza?" He wondered.

"Do they have those little cinnamon breadsticks?" Hinata leaned on the table.

He grinned. "Pizza it is."

———