This story is for Angel-Hime15. The credit for the plot goes to her!

Hope you like!

Chapter 1- Confidence

"Go on, Hinata. You can do this!" Tenten said.

"Yeah! Go on!" Ino chimed, placing her hands on the timid girl's shoulders.

Hinata was almost visibly shaking.

It was February the fourteenth.

Valentine's Day.

Tenten and Ino dedicated this day to helping Hinata conquer her nervousness and confess her love to Naruto.

Hinata clutched her homemade chocolates to her chest, her face a bright scarlet. "A-A-Are you s-sure I can do it?" the sixteen year old asked.

The other girls smiled and nodded to their friend.

'Here goes nothing...'

Hinata calmly took in a breath and raised her hand to the door, ready to knock. She stopped when she realized her whole arm was shaking and sighed. "G-G-Guys, I d-don't thing I can do it..."

When she turned, her friends had vanished, leaving Hinata abandoned on Naruto's doorstep. Her face turned a violent red when the door opened behind her.

"Hinata-chan?"

She nearly jumped out of her skin. "H-H-Hi, N-Naruto-kun." she sputtered. Quickly she bowed and thrust the heart shaped box out to the boy standing in the doorway, her fringe covering her tomato red face. "H-Happy Valentine's Day!" she squeaked.

When she didn't get a response of any sort, she peeked up at him. His cheeks were tinted red and he swayed from side to side. His clothes were wrinkled and mussed up. From what Hinata could smell, she figured the worst.

"N-Naruto-kun... Have you been drinking?" she asked.

The blond leaned against the frame of the door and snorted a little. "Nooooo. Well, maybe a little." he said, slightly slumping to the side and chuckling.

Hinata furrowed her brow and stepped forward, bravely taking Naruto's arm. "C-Come on and lay down. We don't need you hurting yourself." she said.

Naruto stubbornly shook his head in response, crossing his arms like a child. "I don't wanna!"

Hinata gave him a concerned look. "A-At least sit down, Naruto-kun." she pleaded as she pulled him into his apartment.

The blond boy grumbled under his breath and did as he was told. He plopped down in a chair next to his little kitchen table. Hinata stared in awe at the six already empty sake bottles that littered the table and floor. Naruto reached for another one, popped it open, and tipped it back, almost draining it.

Hinata began to pick up the bottles and throw them in the garbage and sat next to the drunken boy, setting her little box of chocolates on the table.

Once Naruto had finished the bottle, he tossed it somewhere in the room.

"N-Naruto-kun, that can't be healthy for you..."

The boy tilted his head back and laughed. "What does it matter! I've tried every year to get Sakura-chan to go out with me. I've tried for," he stopped to count on his fingers, "Six years! Six fucking years, Hinata! And do ya' know what she said to me? 'I'm waiting for Sasuke-kun.' It's always Sasuke! Sasuke this! Sasuke that! I wish I had never brought that stupid bastard home!" he shouted. He then leaned forward and buried his face in his hands. He made a sound that was similar to a strained sob. "I brought him back for her. Her! Doesn't she understand how hard that was!" he then looked over to the girl, and indeed he was crying. "Hinata... You don't know what it's like... To know the one you love is in love with someone else. It's awful..."

'Heartbreaking, isn't it, Naruto?' she thought, her hands clenching into fists.

The boy then leaned over onto her, laughing once more. "But that's life isn't it, Hinata-chan! You win none, and you lose them all!" he shouted, laughing until his head was in her lap.

Every word pierced Hinata's heart to the point where she quit listening for fear she would explode into tears. Naruto just laid there, going on and on about how amazing the pinkette was, laughing at his own ironic jokes, and even crying when appropriate. Hinata, the girl who had walked in with red cheeks and a constant stutter, simply glared at the forgotten box on the table.

Oh, how she wished it would burst into flames!

Soon enough, the inebriated boy passed out in the Hyuuga's lap, tears gathering at the corners of his eyes.

Hinata wasn't sure if they were from crying or laughing, and quite frankly she didn't care.

She moved him from the table to his bed, not even bothering to cover him with a blanket. In a mind of malice and hurt, she snatched the box from the table and stormed out of his apartment, slamming the door with all the force she had. She stomped down the stairs with such a manner that Ino and Tenten moved from their hiding spot.

"Hinata, what happened?" Ino asked as she took in the Hyuuga's distraught appearance.

"What did he do?" Tenten demanded.

Hinata looked up, her eyes holding tears the size of golf balls. She angrily threw the chocolates to the ground and screamed at the top of her lungs. "Tell Sakura she can have him! I don't want him anymore!"

Ino and Tenten tried their best to console their friend, but rage had already taken over the usually meek Hinata. She swatted them away and ran off as soon as the girls permitted it.

"Hinata!"

"Hinata, wait!"

Hinata ignored them and let her feet be her guidance. The faster she ran, the more she didn't want to turn back.

Eventually she stopped in the old training grounds. She slid to the ground and leaned up against a post, catching her breath.

"Where's the fire?"

Hinata gasped and looked to her side and up.

Her eyes met with the eyes that belonged to Sasuke Uchiha.

She wiped the tears from her cheeks and sniffled. "S-Sorry... I didn't meant to i-intrude..." she whispered and began to move to her feet.

"Stop." he demanded.

The Hyuuga girl froze in her tracks.

"I'm not going to be nosy and ask what's wrong. But if you need to talk about it, I can keep a secret." he stated cooly.

Hinata nodded but kept her eyes on the ground. "I-I tried to confess to Naruto-kun... That I love him. But all he talked about was Sakura-san... Granted he was d-drunk. But..."

The Uchiha watched the girl. "You need help."

She snapped her head up at him. "P-Pardon?"

"You need to stop being so scared. If you really like the dobe, don't be afraid."

Anger boiled up in her gut. "I never want to see him again!" she shouted. "I want to be stronger. I want to be like Sakura-san... No... Stronger than her. I'm tired of being put down and my confidence failing me." she said.

Sasuke smirked. "You didn't stutter once during that whole spill."

Hinata blushed at that realization.

"Hyuuga, I'm willing to help you. If you'll help me."

That night, Hinata and Sasuke met at the same spot at midnight.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Hyuuga?"

The girl nodded, her light purple eyes blazing in the moonlight.

A smirk spread across Sasuke's face. "Alright then. Let's go."

And then they were gone.

This was the first chapter of a little side fic I'm doing for another friend of mine. Hope you like!

-PA