Shikamaru x Temari Distance (AU)

1

5 years forward:

"Today is just a normal day," Shiho thought as she did her makeup to keep her heart from pounding. She was at the house her father had intended to buy for her and Shikamaru, but she went ahead and bought it for herself. The bathroom was clean. Too clean. It looked like a hotel's bathroom. Like it's never been used before. But she knows it is.

This was her husband's bathroom. But unless she rummaged through the drawers, she couldn't tell. There were no personal belongings visible, not even a toothbrush. Her husband stayed over at his job or visited his mother a lot, both of which she could understand. What she couldn't understand was how different the bathroom at his mother's house looked. There were not 2 but 4 toothbrushes in the cup, which she guessed was because he always forgets to dispose of the old one after he replaces it, or maybe intentionally, next to an overflown toothpaste, shaving cream, and a razor with blood on it. Even though Shikamaru was the perfect gentleman he promised he would be, even though the majority of the time he did stay at "home" like he said, if from looking at these 2 bathrooms she had to guess which one was actually his "home," she wouldn't even hesitate.

What was going to go down today required a lot of courage. And strength. And resilience. And intelligence.

For the first time in a long time, she was doing her makeup just for herself. It was her armor. For the first time in a long time, she wasn't trying to look pretty for him.

She put on a bold red lip that in contrast to her pale light skin looked crimson. Shikamaru doesn't seem to like it when the models at her agency wear a red lip. Part of the reason why her models are always wearing one whenever he comes around to see her. It was an unspoken rule among her models. A silent whisper. 

She wore a new black dress that she's never worn before. Today, she should be out of character. She didn't bother with a coat even though the chilly fall wind had started to engulf Konoha, and she called the car.

When she got to the police station, the guards immediately opened the doors for her. You would think a police station wouldn't need guards, but ever since a bunch of files went missing out of the blue, Shikamaru doubled the cameras and put the guards by the door. She didn't understand why the files were so important, and when she asked, Shikamaru gave her a look that she absolutely despised and feared. The look he gave to everyone he fired before he fired them. The look he gave whenever he couldn't fathom someone else's stupidity. But her question wasn't stupid. She wanted to know if those missing files had anything to do with him, personally. If it hurt him when they went missing. But she couldn't ask any of that after that look because she knew that whatever else she said afterward wouldn't reach him. He had already thrown her out of the conversation. If she said anything, he would only try to end the conversation immediately. Politely, of course. That's one thing she could be grateful for if she really wanted to feel that way. Whenever Shikamaru ran into someone he deemed stupid or unworthy, he tried to make them feel that way about themselves in his own mean, calculated way. But for her, it was always different. He never, not once, tried to make her feel pathetic. Just because he didn't try doesn't mean he didn't do it anyway, but he never did try. She knows that. She knows, deep in her heart, that he could hurt her much worse than she is hurt by him. She knows that he chooses not to do that. She knows that he understands whenever she feels hurt and that he wishes things were different. That's why she kept going this long.

She knocked on the door and waited for an answer. A balding guy who has to be only in his thirties opened the door. "No wonder no one wants to be a detective here," she thought.

She could practically feel the heat of the blushing cheeks of what seemed to be about a dozen guys. Shikamaru never had this many people in his office, and it's evident by the expression on his face. When his eyes found her, they looked surprised for a split second which made her heart go into a spiral. She cursed herself silently as she looked into his eyes for any sign of jealousy. Maybe today doesn't have to happen after all.