It was hard enough to play this role in front of Ino, who was the entire reason this situation was created in the first place. Now with Sakura’s confirmation, he had to imagine looking someone like Choji in the eye and telling him about this. Being thrust into romance was something he was prepared to do. Being outgoing about his new status as a boyfriend, on the other hand, was one of the last hurdles he needed to get over. 

Ino was by far the most outgoing of the two girls, yet even with that knowledge in mind it didn’t make what he had to do with Sakura any easier. She was playing pretend for his sake, with little for her to gain in return, and with that in mind he realized that this was just as new and discomforting for her as it was him. Excluding the last attack on the village, they didn’t speak a word to each other before. Now they had to convince everyone – her best friend included – that they were dating and madly affectionate for one another. 

So, when Sakura winked at him, he winked back. No ‘drag’ to be muttered. No longing to be a cloud as he glanced enviously up at the sky. He had to become far bolder to leave a good impression with Ino, to show that he could express himself just as she could. That meant doing things just like that no matter how many cringes he had to suppress beneath his skin as he strained to keep his smile together. 

When asked if he had met Sakura’s parents, he only shook his head in response. He had seen them a couple times at the Academy back in the day, but not since, and he wasn’t eager to check out Sakura’s baby pictures, even if she was a cute kid once. He similarly had little to say about shopping. Ino boldly claimed to know his taste and was willing to bestow that knowledge to Sakura the first chance she had. At first, he wanted to question just what Ino thought, but then he saw it; an opportunity to see what Ino thought of him taste-wise. Having Sakura go along with her to try on clothes she thought might appeal to him could work in their favor.

Sakura had steered the conversation to food and spoke of barbecue as their place of choice. He bit his tongue and felt the scolding of Ino’s words before they had even left her mouth. The Yamanaka was right, of course; barbecue was a casual place to eat, and wasn’t fine enough for taking someone you really liked out to eat. Sakura crashed them into a hurdle, but he didn’t blame her for not thinking about it. She wasn’t his girlfriend – wasn’t anyone’s girlfriend – and with her likely holding out for Sasuke, she probably wouldn’t have been anyone’s girl unless Naruto stepped up to the plate. This was just as new to her as it was to him.

[color=f7976a][b]“Yeah, I got it,”[/b][/color] he replied. [color=f7976a][b]“Too used to going with Choji.”[/b][/color] 

His ‘girlfriend’ recovered by asking for a suggestion while he recovered from the poor choice mentioned prior. The place she mentioned was vaguely familiar; dishes taken from the Hidden Sand, Cloud, Mist, and Stone made the place a popular choice for those wanting to try new things but lacked the time and energy to travel and do it themselves. But most of the high-end dishes were expensive, with only the Sand’s trade deal with the Leaf making their dishes the most affordable of the bunch. If he had the choice, only special occasions would prompt him to spend the kind of money they asked for.

[color=f7976a][b]“I’ll keep it in mind,”[/b][/color] Shikamaru managed to say before Sakura had tugged his hand and got them moving. He fought the urge to glance back at Ino who he could sense still watching them. Sakura leaned in closely to him only to tell him that he owed her a meal. [color=f7976a][b]“Fair enough,”[/b][/color] he whispered back. [color=f7976a][b]“And barbecue? Seriously? I hope she doesn’t think I’m that unimaginative. Taking a girl out isn’t like taking Choji out.”[/b][/color] He smiled despite Sakura’s choice of location earlier and began to consider dining options. Impromptu dating made him hungry.

[color=f7976a][b]“That place she’s talking about is expensive, but only if you order the meals from other nations. Trade is nearly impossible except with the Sand because everyone is too busy thinking the other is trying to stab them in the back,”[/b][/color] he said. [color=f7976a][b]“That said, I’ve got the money for it. I won’t say anything no matter what you order. You stuck your neck out for me, and I appreciate it. And besides, it’ll look good if I take her advice, won’t it?” [/b][/color]

A look of contentedness given to her, Shikamaru had begun leading her to the restaurant in question. Unsurprisingly, it wasn’t packed. The drapes were a quality crimson and portraits of faraway landmarks and landscapes were sorted along the open spaces on the walls. Booths along the edges of the interior, along with finer, larger tables near the center had given the place flexibility. The air was thick with powerful scents ranging from grilled fish, to noodles, to sweetly-stewed meat. Beginning to salivate, they were thankfully served mere moments after entering and were seated in an empty corner of the room beside one of the windows leading to the street. The waitress left them with menus and promised to return shortly. 

[color=f7976a][b]“So, you’re my girlfriend. This is a date,”[/b][/color] Shikamaru started with a slight squirm in his seat. [color=f7976a][b]“I’d like some pointers. I can make conversation when I want to, but my charm isn’t exactly up to Sasuke’s level.”[/b][/color] When Ino spoke she often had much to say. Sakura, he suspected, was very much different. She wasn’t going to be anything like Ino, but she was the closest thing to her right now. Any bit of information could help. [color=f7976a][b]“Just pretend for a second that I'm Sasuke, your ideal guy. What would you want me to be doing right now? Be as specific as you can. Anything helps at this stage.”[/b][/color]

Sakura must have thought about dates before, whereas he had never thought he’d be sitting here going on a fake one. Daydreaming didn’t consist of special someone’s until just recently. But everyone knew about her affection for Sasuke – she practically wore it on her sleeve and would tell anyone who would ask. 

How did people get through this?