starbucks girl.

wherein the lazy ass becomes a matchmaker of sorts.
wherein neji experiences his first open mouth, insert foot moment.

"Sasuke got his Starbucks girl a long time ago. Shouldn't it be time that you gather the nerve to ask out yours, too?"

Hyuuga Neji blinked. That was probably the longest sentence he had heard from his lazy ass coworker who was just pretending to be a barista. He turned to glare.

"Hey," Shikamaru said, not even having the decency to look sheepish. "You may think it's not obvious to other people, but to me it is, Hyuuga."

Right. Neji forgot the other guy was sharper than most people.

"You've been watching her for what, three months now? You need guts, man. Guts."

"Shut up. And how would you even know about Sasuke's business? You're new here, and last time I heard, he hates you."

The other guy just waved his hand in the air, "Details take too long to explain." He looked at him intently, "You need to get up your nerve. Aren't you often haughty?"

Neji sent a scathing look his way.

Shikamaru sighed. "Fine, man. Whatever. Watch while she gets snapped up by others, then."

Neji kept quiet, and looked on with Shikamaru as two college boys walked up to her and spoke to her. He couldn't help but stare at the girl whose eyes matched her hair. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday she would be there with her laptop, sitting at the same table, her back to the wall, so that he'd never get a chance to see what she was working on. But it didn't stop him from guessing what she was working on—while looking at her facial expressions. At times she'd look blank, her eyebrows raised up, sometimes she'd look frustrated and ready to tear her hair out in front of the screen, and there were rare times when she'd look tired, as if she was ready to call it a day. Often, though, she'd be pursing her lips and moving it in every other direction. His eyes were always glued to them every so often, too, and that was when he realized that he was doomed—he was a guy who had fallen in love with a complete stranger, and he had fallen bad.

"Man, you're going to burn those two kids if you don't stop glaring at them." Shikamaru chuckled.

"Shut up. Again."

The girl had taken off her earphones and was smiling at the two college boys, but he could see the bemusement in her eyes. One boy was scratching his head and looking sheepish, and Neji grit his teeth as he saw her smile grow wider at him. She gave a little wave, and he was almost about to stalk then and there, and tell the kids to get lost when they bowed at her and left. He saw her lips quirk in obvious amusement before her eyes—

BAM

—met his.

She blinked at him and inclined her head, then gave a little chuckle, her expression seemingly saying, what's up with him? before lowering her eyes back to her laptop screen.

Neji froze. In a quiet voice he asked Shikamaru, while his eyes never strayed, "Did that actually happen?"

"Yep," the voice that answered him was uncharacteristically chipper.

He was turning to glare for the nth time that day, when another long drawn sigh was heard from his companion.

"See, that's why you can't get her, or any other girl either—you look too angry. You wonder why that was her expression? You were glaring at her, man, glaring."

Neji frowned at him.

"You need to stop that."

"Fine." he bit out begrudgingly, "What has gotten into you today? You're being very talkative."

"Well, you recall the loud blonde who's always with Sasuke's Starbucks' girl?"

Neji nodded.

"Apparently she's my new girlfriend."

He turned shocked eyes to Shikamaru.

The other shrugged.

"And you're happy because of that?" Neji asked in a strangled voice.

Shikamaru snorted, "Sure. I like her, she likes me. Simple. Though she may be troublesome at times." The last sentence was muttered under his breath. "Well, man, good luck with your own Starbucks girl."

Neji snorted. Then he frowned again. Was everyone paired up already?

It had become a…habit. And a challenge for him, to always try to look at what she was doing in her laptop. She seldom typed, so she couldn't be writing something. And to draw, one has to have a tablet…Needless to say, Neji mused about that girl's occupation a lot.

He was cleaning up the table beside her, and was every so often sneaking looks up at her, and at her laptop screen. And he was being…less than subtle today. All the talk Shikamaru had given him had left him a bit disheartened at the least. He was wiping the table even if it was already clean, and was repositioning the tables a third time when he heard a snort. He looked up. It was the girl, and her chocolate brown eyes were looking directly at him.

"You know, the chairs are already fine." The right corner of her mouth crooked up at him, and Neji had to drown out the pounding of his heart, and to stifle the urge to kiss that offending corner.

Then he realized he still had to respond to her, "Hn."

She chuckled at him, "Not much of a talker, are you?"

"Hn." Damn his tongue!

"Alright, then, I won't bother you at your work." She smiled at him, and picked up her earphones.

"No! Ahem. I meant, I'm not that much of a talker, you?"

She had looked up at him again, and judging by the way she was grinning at him, her eyes dancing with mirth, he knew he had screwed up. Big time.

"I'm too much of a talker, I guess, if you call yourself not that much of a talker." She was chuckling at him again.

He sighed, "Sorry about that, I'm nervous."

She inclined her head again, "Why would that be?"

And he managed to muster the confidence that he was supposed to exude always, which had the tendency to go running out the glass doors whenever it came to this girl, and said, "Because I like you."

She was still for a moment, then her face softened into a beautiful smile that had him teetering on the edge of not breathing for a moment.

"I know."

He blinked, "You know?"

She nodded, the smile still there.

He continued, "Will you go out with me?" Wow, he was owning his confidence again!

She gave a little chuckle and said, " Quite fast, aren't we? But sure."

Neji blinked. "Really?"

She laughed at him, "Yes. Why don't you come sit down with me? I'm sure Shika-kun would take over your shift for a little while, Hyuuga-san." She gestured at the empty seat beside her.

He sat down, and realized that she knew—"You know who I am? And how come you know I like you—?"

"Yes, I know who you are." Her eyes were dancing with merriment, as if she was privy to the world's best joke, "Hyuuga Neji-san, sophomore law student, working at Starbucks to pay for your school expenses, which you won't let your uncle pay, despite the fact that your family is one of the biggest names in business."

He grunted, how did she know him? Who would—?

Then it dawned on him, "Nara!"

The girl was openly laughing at him now, grabbing his forearm with her right hand, "Don't take it out on him, it's my fault, it's my fault."

He looked disgruntled.

"Now that's more like your usual expression."

He grunted again, and she laughed, "Shika-kun's my brother. Or stepbrother? Don't really bother. Anyway, I visited him in his workplace once, and I noticed you," she was blushing now, "and I asked about you. You could say I was a bit obsessed." There was a little self-deprecating laugh, before she turned to him and said, "I like you, too."

They smiled at each other.

(And Neji didn't even care that he was wearing that hideous green apron.)

"Hey, what are you doing in your laptop anyway?"

"Oh. Is that the reason why you're always trying to sneak a peak at my laptop screen?"

Grunt.

Laugh.

"Gun model designs. I love weapons so much that I've made them my living."

"…"

"I think I ought to be scared of you."

Laugh.