Chiaroscuro

Jealousy

genin! sasuhina. canon-divergence au. romance. humor. 

They were eight years old the first time Sasuke saw Hinata being introduced to the class. She was small and chubby with pink cheeks, short midnight blue hair, and a pair of opalescent eyes that seem to swallow her round face.

He heard other boys say grimly that they rather be hit by a shuriken rather than attempt a conversation with her. Waiting for her to finish her sentence was rather tedious. Naturally, Sasuke had done his utmost to avoid her whenever possible and it wasn't a difficult task seeing as the timid Hyuuga heiress tend to blend in the background and prefer solitude than attempt a conversation with one of their classmates.

But it wasn't until he heard her desperate cheer for Naruto amidst the loud crowd of their classmates during a practice match that he took notice of her. The way her eyes danced with hope, pride, and admiration as the dobe tried to stand up and fight back proved to be Sasuke's undoing.

He never imagined he'd be envious of Naruto until that day.

For Sasuke who was used to the respect and admiration of boys and girls alike, not being acknowledged by her was annoying. Girls threw themselves at him but Hinata did none of those things.

Because Uchiha Sasuke didn't exist in her world. There was only Naruto.

For months, Sasuke grew frustrated as Hinata ignored all his efforts to get her attention. He didn't know why he even bothered but deep down he wanted her to look at him the same way she looked at Naruto.

Hinata infuriated him, confused him, and exasperated him. His opinion didn't change until the day he saw her practicing shuriken and missing every target. But as she tried again, with a look of stubborn determination on her face, Sasuke walked away, smirking and thinking to himself, "I won't give up until you notice me."