Ah, Christmas… I always get so work up during this period of time, you know, shopping for new clothes and presents, and visiting family and friends, and such. Celebrating Christ's birth is kind of enjoyable to those who believes in Him, am I right?

The idea for this fic is not actually mine. I kinda borrowed it from afrai, who wrote a Bleach fanfic "What You Wait For" (credit goes to him/her; he/she deserves it). You see, I've been fumbling with some of my original ideas for the ShikaIno Christmas fic and I was half-way in writing it but I don't know why, maybe writer's block got in the way (damn!) I lost for words.

Thank heavens for blessing me with this fic.

Only for Shika-Ino lovers.

Naruto © Masashi Kishimoto.

Original idea borrowed from "What You Wait For" written by afrai.

ANGEL

© ArAshiMitArAshi

For the nth time that day, Shikamaru stole a glance at a certain blond-haired girl who happened to be sitting at a small table near the window, looking outside the busy street. He didn't know what made him took double take after double take at her; maybe she had something in her that acted like a magnet to him.

Okay, he admitted that the girl was pretty.

Scratch that. She was in fact far beyond pretty – she was beautiful.

Outside, the cold December wind was blowing softly like baby's breath. The light breeze swayed the tiny white fragments fell from the sky bit by bit, obviously indicated that that year, his hometown will be celebrating white Christmas. The girl showed up at the coffee shop almost three hours ago, soaked by the fallen snow. Snowflakes caught in her hair and her skin, they melted by the heat radiating from her body. The liquid was cold and frosty, leaving angry marks on her exposed pale skin but he noticed that she didn't give a damn about them.

Customarily, he always was the one who took the wet coat off her body and saw her to a table where she usually sat whenever she stopped by. And it had been his routine; taking her order, which usually and only consisted of a cup of hot chocolate. He always noticed that when the said order was finally served, she only took a sip or two and perhaps a little bit more, and then left the hot, steaming mug to cold just like that. She never finished the whole thing.

He didn't know why but he had been watching her since the very moment he laid his eyes on her. He counted the time frame well, memorized it securely inside his gifted head. It was nearly six months since he began his first watch; at that time, he just started his part time job in the coffee shop when he first saw her walked in. He admitted that he was so enthralled by her beauty, just a gaze from her wide set blue eyes could paralyze his nerve system in one go. She was so beautiful, like an angel from heaven. She got that shiny and sleek and smooth blond locks fallen over her back in a simple ponytail, creamy skin the color of milk and a pair of crystal clear blue eyes that burned right through his skull every time he gazed down at them when taking her order.

She came by every week, same day, same hour, ordered the same thing and did the same thing at the same place. Her actions brought out his curiosity.

Because every time she came, she did nothing but stare out of the window, as if she was waiting for someone. But nobody ever came to her and after several moments had passed, probably she had bored her mind out; she took her leave without a word.

But not without him noticing the sorrow she held in her eyes upon seeing him when he saw her out of the shop, opening the door for her as he always did. Somehow he felt like the look was meant for him.

He wondered why.

Of course he didn't dare to ask her why. Who was he anyway? It was not his place to interrupt her peace, her calm, her serenity. He was a waiter, she was his customer. And, he had other customers to attend to, too. He should not focus his attention on her and her alone.

But he found out that it was hard for him to keep himself away from watching her. Like mentioned before, maybe she had something in her that acted like a magnet to him. Seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks and months flew by so quickly he didn't realized he was drawn to her completely. The attraction was stronger than he ever anticipated, the temptation was just so hard to ignore.

And that day, that very day, it seemed like she made her waiting moment a bit longer. She didn't plan to move from her spot, as if that day was an ordinary day. Of course that day wasn't an ordinary day! That day was December the 24th, the day before Christmas.

Christmas Eve!

What? She didn't celebrate Christmas or something? She didn't have anywhere to go? Family to celebrate with? Friends to visit?

What? Didn't she have someone special to be with? Boyfriend? Fiancée? Husband, perhaps?

Shikamaru glanced at the clock. His shift was nearly over and soon, he'll be on his way to celebrate Christmas Eve with his friends and his family. But he planned to do the latter tomorrow because he just wanted to have fun with his buddies first. Finishing his last chore, he took a glance at her again.

"Instead of secretly watching her," he heard his colleague, a blonde named Naruto was speaking to him with a hint of amusement in his voice, "Why don't you go to her and introduce yourself?"

"What are you talking about?" He pretended he didn't get the obvious message.

"Oh, I knew you've been admiring her since you first seen her, Shikamaru." Naruto leaned in. "You want to know her, ne?"

"Never thought of that." He muttered a reply but actually his heart was screaming eagerly, wanting to know why she was there, what made her wait, how she could sit there for such a long time doing nothing but waiting, who was she waiting for, etcetera, etcetera, and etcetera. "Troublesome…"

"I wonder for how long she will stay there," Naruto was running his last errand, too. They will end their shifts together and go crash their friend's party afterwards. "She had been sitting there for so long. It's like forever."

"Why bother?" He replied, taking off his apron and changed into his casual clothes.

"Nah, just curious." Naruto did the same thing, too. "Are you done?"

"Yeah, I am." He took another sneak peek at her. Naruto grinned.

"Why don't you wish her Merry Christmas?"

"Why should I wish her Merry Christmas?"

"Oh, come on. If you're looking for some crack to begin a conversation with her, a Christmas greeting is a perfect start."

"Why should I want to have a conversation with her?"

"Just admit it, Shikamaru. You have a crush on her. A huge, big one."

"I did not."

"Yes, you do." He growled in protest but his body language told Naruto that he in fact was wrong. Once again, his damned, stupid chocolate gaze took a swift look at her, like reflex.

Naruto pointed at him. "Hah! Gotcha!"

"You're so troublesome. Geez…" Red glints colored his cheeks slightly.

"You know what?" Naruto put on his winter coat. "You don't have to drive me tonight. I'm meeting Sakura at someplace first. So, see you at Kiba's later!"

Without waiting for any reply, Naruto left him just like that. He knew that his friend was doing it on purpose.

He thought of just walk out of the shop, get into his car and drive swiftly to his destination, according to plan but his feet brought him into doing something else, as if having a mind of its own. Instead of walking toward the exit, he went off to the opposite direction.

"Hey," he spoke as he stood by her table. She glanced up at him and his heart skipped a beat, seeing her up close. "Merry Christmas."

He mentally kicked himself after saying those words. Merry Christmas? That was all?

She didn't reply his greeting for a moment. She just kept her blue gaze on his brown ones. He began to panic. Troublesome…she must've think that this is the lamest pick-up line ever in history…

"Merry Christmas to you, too," at last she spoke, her mouth curved a little, "Nara Shikamaru."

Okay, now he had his jaw dropped. He looked at her curiously. "Do I know you?"

She looked amused. Then, she chuckled to herself. "I don't know. Do you?"

"How'd you know my name?" He obviously forgotten about the name tag he wore during work. It was not impossible for her to notice; since he was always the one who served her.

"I'm a psychic." She threw her gaze out of the window once again.

Feeling his presence was not needed, he decided to back off and leave her alone. Muttering a simple goodbye, he left her just like that. Noticing the time, he quickened his pace. He supposed to be on his way to Kiba's; the party will start any time. Besides, the snow was getting heavier each second and he knew that he will be stuck in the road if he didn't get his car out of the parking lot as soon as possible.

But as he drew closer to the front door, passing the various colorful hanging coats, his attention was drawn to a certain coat. It was the color of grape, deep purple with furs attached at the edges. He recognized the coat immediately. He knew that the coat was hers.

He halted in his steps and turned around.

Soon, he was by her side again.

"Hey," he drew her attention back. She looked up at him. Suddenly feeling very nervous, he didn't realize the words escaped from his mouth. "Um…Do you have any plans for tonight?"

She shot him a look of question and his heart hammered.

"Why?"

He rubbed his neck uneasily. "Well, um… I'm going to a party at my friend's house after this and I was wondering…um…if you- Would you like to go with me?"

"What?"

"It's okay if you're not interested. I'm just asking. It'll be really nice if you go, though… I mean, you're all alone here and…um, yeah…that."

He stood by her awkwardly, afraid that he was actually making a fool out of himself. "If you don't want to go to the party, I…um…I could drive you home if you want to. I mean, look at the snow…" He added, pointing outside.

She looked at him long like she was considering his offer. After a few moments that seemed like eternity, finally she reached for her bag and signaled the waiter.

"Check, please."

She paid and after that, she stood and spoke to him, "A Christmas Eve's party sounds like a good plan."

He smiled joyfully. He never thought that finally she received his invitation. He thought she was going to leave him. "So, are you going?"

"Count me in." Together they left the shop.

The ride was full with uncomfortable silence. He glanced at her a few times but she seemed so lost in her own thoughts. Her face held no emotions as if she was regretting her decision to come with him.

"Um…" He cleared his throat, breaking the silence. "May I know your name? Since you already knew mine-"

"Ino." She answered quickly. "My name's Yamanaka Ino."

He didn't know where the hell the thing called "brave" came from. He wasn't sure whether it was right or wrong about his next words, he didn't care what kind of impact it will get on her or him or both of them, so he spoke.

"He didn't come." He stated quietly.

She flinched and agony washed over her face like flood. For a moment, her eyes turned gloom with much greater sorrow and her lips pursed into a thin line, like she was holding her tears. Shikamaru cursed himself, knowing that he already hit some sore spot.

"I'm sorry." He apologized quickly. "I know it's not my place to-"

"It's okay." She cut in. Her voice sounded harsh and cold and sad. "You're right. He didn't come." She bowed her head down and whispered. "He will never…come."

"Is it alright if I ask?"

"What about?"

"The waiting and everything." He was too lazy to lay out the details he wanted to know; why she was there, what made her wait, how she could sit there for such a long time doing nothing but waiting, who was she waiting for, etcetera, etcetera, and etcetera.

She fell into a deep thought but later, she began telling him everything. Well, maybe not everything but at least, everything he wanted to know, things that he always asked himself.

What she did at the coffee shop every week was not waiting, but it was more like something called reminiscing.

She was reminiscing the past, digging up the remnants of her dead boyfriend.

"He died in a car accident exactly a year ago," she told him. "On this very same day. December the 24th. The day I received the news of his death, I was waiting for him at the coffee shop."

She cracked a smile. "It was a long wait and in the end, it's just painful. I came by every week, same day, same hour, same spot, but still…he never came."

Well, that answered his curiosity why she waited longer than usual that day.

Dead silence fell between them again, only the sound of the car engine echoed in their ears. He glanced at her a few times but she never bothered looking at his way.

Kiba's house was already jammed with people the moment they arrived. Shikamaru kept her close with him as they walked through the crowd to find his friends. He then introduced Ino to them. Sakura and Ino clicked immediately and soon, the girls went off to sit at far across the room, talking with each other, leaving him alone with his male buddies.

Naruto and Kiba dragged him to drink. Though he refused, complaining that he didn't want to suffer from the awful hangover once he wake up the next day, he couldn't help himself from having a few glasses. A few more people came to their group and joined and soon, he totally forgotten all about her.

It was Sakura that brought his thoughts back to her. It seemed like their girl talks had ended because the jade-eyed beauty came to their group to lecture her boyfriend about the drinking. Looking around the room, he realized that Ino was nowhere in sight. Panicked, he went out searching for her. He bumped into a few blondes but never one of them was Ino. He silently hoped she hadn't left yet. She must've thought that he was abandoning her, which in fact, he was not.

At last, he found her standing at the dark corner of the room, leaning against the wall, observing the party silently.

He approached her. "Hey…"

"Hey…" She smiled. "Have a good drink?"

He blushed embarrassedly at the teasing. "Sorry about that. Sometimes I got carried away with just a glass."

"It's okay. I understand."

He leaned beside her. "So, have a good time?"

"Not bad." She replied. "You got nice friends." He smiled.

Not long since the moment passed, he noticed that they were both standing under the mistletoe. Remembering the tradition to kiss people under a piece of mistletoe at Christmas, he wondered how it would be like kissing her.

"We might as well find out," suddenly he heard her saying and found her lips crashed his in a chaste kiss. It was not a doubt that she actually thought of the same thing as him.

He was dazed for a full minute after she broke the kiss, unable to produce any words. The kiss wasn't to be expected; much less coming from her. He stared at her and she stared at him back.

"I'm sorry." She blurted out. Her mood changed immediately. "I shouldn't- I gotta go."

She slipped between the crowds and fled from the room in a blink of an eye, leaving him confused.

"Wait!" He followed her trail. She was already dressed in her coat and ready to leave the place. "Where are you going?"

"I should go back." She answered, not meeting his eyes. "I shouldn't even come here in the first place. I'm sorry about the kiss. Goodbye."

"I'll drive you home." He offered.

"No, you don't have to. Go back to the party. I'll take a cab or something."

"What's wrong?" He grabbed her arm when she was about to step into the snow. "Have I done something unpleasant to you?"

She shook her head furiously. "No, you didn't do anything wrong. It was me."

"What do you mean?"

She looked at his hand, which was holding her arm tightly. "I shouldn't kiss you."

"The kiss is fine."

"Still," she gazed up to look at his face. "I shouldn't kiss you."

He shrugged, slightly puzzled. "It's natural to kiss someone under the mistletoe. I mean, it's some kind of tradition-"

"No, it's not natural! I've kissed you! You!" She shut her eyes tight and he saw a fallen tear. "I'm sorry…"

"It's alright. I don't mind." He fought the urge to touch her; looking at her fragile form made his heart ached. "I mean, I wanted to kiss you, too."

She studied his face as if searching for the truth and when she found out that what he said was real, she turned gloomier.

"I shouldn't kiss you but I couldn't help myself. You look…you look so much like…him. That's why I- I'm sorry."

"Him?"

Her gaze dropped on the floor. Pulling her arm back, she headed for the exit. "I should go."

"Don't."

She swallowed hard.

"Please. Just stay a little bit longer."

"No." She shook her head.

"Why?"

"I just…can't." Her eyes held fear. "I'm afraid of…losing myself, get too carried away. You and he…are just so alike. I'm sorry to say but…I see him in you. I could feel his presence whenever I'm around you. That's why I came to the shop, just to be near to you, close to you. And the kiss just now…was not meant for you. I just want to…to taste him again for one last time… Forgive me, Shikamaru. I know it's wrong but I couldn't help myself."

The way she spoke his name was just so sweet, so right in his ears.

She looked at him long. Her gaze was all over his face, his body, full with longing and perhaps…hunger. He could see that she was suffering from those feelings she carried in her heart. Her love was great but she had no one to share with and it was eating her from the inside.

He studied her moist, pink lips and his eyes turned dark in wanting to taste them again. He knew she felt the same way, though the person she actually wanted to kiss wasn't him.

As if reading his thoughts, she licked her lips nervously.

And he couldn't resist the temptation anymore.

Spontaneously, his body reacted with her body language. Their bodies joined like magnets. He hugged her securely in his arms, letting her to feel the feeling of being hugged by her loved one. She stiffened but didn't struggle to be free. He knew she had been waiting for that gesture forever.

Slowly, he lifted her chin up to face him and bent his body down a little to match her height. She closed her eyes as he lowered his head and their lips met. This time, he was the one who kissed her. She responded immediately the moment their lips made contact with each other, savoring his taste. He could feel her hunger and her longing with every gesture she made, craving for more.

It was clearly shown that she hadn't been kissed in such a long time.

He held her close after their kiss ended, not wanting to let her go. He wasn't sure what will happen in the future, he didn't know and couldn't guess what fate held for both of them but one thing for sure, he didn't want that moment to end.

He knew he had fallen for her.

He wanted a Christmas with her.

"Hey, do have any plans for tomorrow?"

"Why?"

"Um…there's a Christmas party at my house and…I was wondering if you- Would you like to come?"

She smiled a smile that he assumed was genuine. "Sounds like a good plan but I didn't know where you lived."

"Meet me at the coffee house tomorrow. I'll pick you up." He replied, tightening his arms securely.

Though it was kind of hurt to know that he showed great resemblance to her dead boyfriend, and that she only came to the shop to feel her loved one's presence through him, but he didn't care.

He didn't know why but he felt determined to make her happy.

He wanted to draw her happy smile into her life back…and perhaps his.

That Christmas, he was going to end her waiting.

(Theme song: "Angel", Westlife)

OWARI

Merry Christmas, minna! XD