Falling For Bug Boy? (Shino Love Story)

Chapter 10. A Ninja's Limited Time

 Even though Kiba gave me some advice, I still had no idea what to do. Despite the fact that part of me did want to talk to Shino and ask him out on a date, every time I saw him I got scared and ran away. It was not something I was proud of, but it was a habit I had gotten into. Part of me wanted Shino to never find out that I was avoiding him. Even when I came home from missions, I would try to avoid him at the Hokage's office. That was how bad of a scaredy-cat I had become. 

As more time passed by, it became more natural for me to avoid him. No matter how many butterflies I felt in my stomach, I would run away. When Kiba had found out that I still ran from Shino every time I saw him, he shook his head in disappointment. He was a bit happy to find out that I did not punch people anytime I saw Shino. Nevertheless, I was a scaredy-cat over love. 

After a few more weeks of my crush deepening and avoiding Shino, he confronted me on that matter. It was a terrifying experience for me. 

"Chika," he said to me in his regular tone of voice, "Why are you avoiding me?" Those words felt like a punch to my heart. My face was red from Shino's presence and my embarrassment of being caught. "Have I done something wrong?" 

"No Shino! You have done nothing wrong." I replied as I waved my arms around. 

"Then why have you been avoiding me? I thought we were friends." 

Those words felt like a stab to my heart. I realized that even if I was trying to help myself, I was not helping Shino. It was as though I was punishing him as I avoided him. He and I were friends. He really valued our friendship because he knew that having friends would be a bit of a difficult task for him. That did not stop him from trying in our friendship. 

"Friends do not avoid each other." 

"I-It's not what you, um, think." I said and wanted to hide. I should have known that Shino would have caught onto what I was doing. He was a ninja who could pick up on the little details in a battle. 

"What is it that I am thinking?" He inquired and I could sense that he was disappointed in me. 

"You are thinking that I no longer want to be friends with you, but I do Shino. I really do." Quickly, I sputtered out. I was a bit worried that he did not catch what I had just said since it came out so fast. "It's just that you see, um," my mind went blank as I tried to come up with a good answer, "I have just been doing this uh, new technique to um, test my speed?" It came out as a question and I wanted to punch myself in the face. My hands began to shake badly. 

Shino sighed and I knew he did not believe it. "You are a horrible liar." I sheepishly smiled at that and scratched the back of my head. "Friends tell each other things. I believe you can tell me the truth." 

This is it; this is the perfect time to confess. I thought to myself in an anxious manner. 

"Ah, well Shino, you see that I, um," my face felt as though it was on fire and I could feel myself beginning to sweat. "I uh, really," I did not finish that sentence. 

My legs began to move on their own. 

Within seconds, I was a full block away from Shino. Mentally, I yelled at myself and cursed at myself for running away from him. As much as I wanted to be strong and confident to confess, I could not. Anger swelled up inside of me as I continued to run. 

I had a perfect opportunity to confess! The sign for me to confess was right there, yet I did what I have been doing for weeks and just run away. How can I be so oblivious? The perfect opportunity and I blew it. 

"Sweetie, is everything alright?" My mother asked me in a worried tone as she heard the door slam behind me. "That was a very stressful door slam you just did. Usually people do those when they are stressed." She then walked out from the living room to look at me. "Yes, you are definitely under stress. I will make us some tea."