30 Day Project (Kiba Inuzuka)

Day 2: The First 24 Hours

Maki's POV

I feel myself start to wake up. I stretch my limbs then sigh. I feel something really close to me. It's really warm. I snuggle closer to it. My eyes shoot open when my pillow moves.

I see a white t-shirt out of the corner of my eye. I quickly move away, almost falling off the bed in the process. I catch myself and sit on the edge. I'm in Kiba's bed. I must have fell asleep on him last night.

I slept with him, I slept with Kiba. I SLEPT WITH KIBA! That thought kept running through my mind over and over. Kiba begins to stir. He opens his eyes and looks at me funny.

A sleepy eyed Kiba cocked his head to the side. "You're not a pillow!" I shout, panting. He chuckles when realization hits him. "No, but I can be." Kiba smiles sleepily. I look away from him, flustered. "W-what happened last night?" I asked, trying to stay calm. He bursts out laughing. What's so funny? I couldn't think. I probably don't want to think about it.

I groaned. "Nothing bad if that's what you're thinking." He paused for a second to see my reaction. I was probably as red as his markings. "You fell asleep on my shoulder, and I tucked you in. You were on the pillow when I went to bed. I guess you thought I was someone else in your sleep." He explained. I mentally slapped myself. I guess I did think he was Neji in my sleep. "I, I guess so. I, I'm sorry about that." I laugh nervously.

"It's okay. Maybe now's a good time to talk about sleeping arrangements." Kiba points out. "Heh, right." I commented. "Since you obviously don't feel comfortable sleeping in my room, the only place I can think of for you to sleep is on the couch." He said with a finger on his chin. I take a deep breath. "Fine by me I guess." I said, unsure. "Okay then, so I guess you'll be sleeping on the couch tonight." Kiba said with a nod of his head. I nod back in agreement. I sigh and start to relax more. With that settled, Kiba and I start the day.

That's strange. I barely know him and yet I was able to sleep so close to him. Why? Is it because I miss Neji? Or could it be that he was so warm that my body curled up to him for extra warmth? No matter the reason, I don't have to worry about it tonight.

I want to get to know Kiba, I really do. But why do I feel like I'm doing something wrong? On a brighter note, I get to see Neji this weekend. Surely that'll make everything better. At least I hope so. Only four more days to go.

Kiba and I sat on the front porch talking. I wasn't saying much though. I'm too shy to tell him what's going on in my head. I'm not as open and energetic as a few of my friends. I guess you could say I'm more like my friend Sasuke. Yeah, I know. It's an interesting friendship. Since he came back to the village, he's been more open about friends and such. It's nice. I like him better this way.

Speaking of Sasuke, I wonder how he's coping with his two partners. They're probably sitting in the living room doing nothing not knowing what to say. Now that I think about it, Iruka sensei didn't say much about the project to begin with. Only that we have to live with another teammate for a month and that we would be checked on at the end of each week. Most likely on a Friday. Didn't say at what time either. I guess that's for our assigned sensei to decide.

What's the purpose of this project? This project is a lot harder to figure out than I thought. I just hope we pass. Kiba noticed my absence from our conversation. He was waving his hand in front of my face. "Hello, earth to Maki? You okay?" I snap out of my thoughts. "Yeah, I'm fine. I was uh, thinking about this project we have to go through." I answer quietly. Kiba's expression changed from concerned to perplexed.