Promises ease fears.

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Written for NaruHina week 2019 - Day 4

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Just by hearing Hinata's footsteps in the stairs Naruto could tell she was mad.

Hinata had always been a timid girl, but now that she was more confident in herself, Naruto feared her silences more than before; one, because he wasn't blind anymore, he knew the feelings his wife had for him, and two, because they would never predict the outcome of something good.

"Tou-chan!" Boruto shouted as he hit his father's nose with his hand to bring his attention back on him.

"Ouch! Boruto, careful please."

Naruto had just finished reading Boruto's bedside story and his son was making him understand that he was now ready to play.

With his belly full, his new nappy and wearing his pink pyjamas, the Uzumaki boy ready to go to bed, was sitting on his father's abdomen and was playing with his whiskered cheeks, trying to see how extensible they were when he pulled on them.

Half-lying in his bed, Naruto was at his mercy and he could only hold back his tears drawn by pain.

He had come back from an S-ranking mission with broken ribs and a sprained ankle that had looked three times bigger because he had kept walking on it. Thanks to Kurama's chakra, he knew he wouldn't stay long in bed. Despite that, he could feel his wife bore a grudge against him.

"Is everything alright, Naruto-kun?" She asked before stepping in the bedroom.

"Of course!" Naruto said, trying to smile despite his son's tight paws.

His funny face provoked Boruto's laugh, unaware of the certain tension filling the bedroom.

Coming from downstairs to bring her husband's dinner, Hinata put the trail of food on the bedside table before smiling, "It's time to say goodnight, my love."

She took Boruto under his armpits, but he was pouting, unhappy to be taken away from his dad while he could've kept torturing him. Plus, he barely just came back home. Not wanting to leave, he held onto Naruto's neck, blowing his breath away because of the pain.

By dint of screaming, Boruto's face dangerously became red. Hinata then decided to let him go and sat next to them before caresseing his blonde hair. "You know, Boruto. Tou-chan got a really bad boo-boo today. That's why he can't come with you." She softly said.

"Yeah, sorry Bolt. But I swear tomorrow I'll be ready to play with you." quickly added Naruto.

He didn't know if he was saying that to calm Boruto, or to calm Hinata.

Nevertheless, his son still looked at him, observing the smile his father gave him. But, it wasn't the smile he used to see.

Boruto was aware of it. He had seen the bandages on his body when his mother had helped him lie down earlier. He too, it happened she placed a nice plaster where his skin was scratched, and if he was a good boy while she was healing him, he was allowed to have a kiss afterwards. So yes, he knew it meant his dad was hurting.

Still clenched on his shoulders too broad for his hands, he gave his cheek a kiss then buried his face in his neck while Naruto wrapped his arms around his tiny body.

Boruto was still too young to understand, but his behaviour clearly showed he had missed his dad.

It was the first long mission that had been given to Naruto since his son's birth and his family hadn't really liked it. Especially since he came back hurt. It's true, more fear than pain, but thinking that it could've been worse, Hinata's heart clenched.

After this adorable hug filled with love, Boruto sat up and Hinata could take him in her arms. While she walked to the door, her son was folding and unfolding his fingers as a goodbye sign towards his father who answered it in the same way.

On the way to the bed, Hinata adjusted and pressed play on the music player for it to play the last two songs of the playlist which should give enough time for her son to fall asleep.

Making noises with his mouth and thumb, Boruto didn't complain when she laid him down. If he had to sleep to then play, well the deal seemed pretty fair to him.

Hinata kissed his forehead, then his nose and finally his chin. As expected, it made him laugh and he put his small cold hands on her cheeks to keep her face close to him.

However, he didn't resist when she stood up. He just let his tiny fingers slide in Hinata's violet hair while she put the blanket on top of his body. "Goodnight my love." she whispered.

"'Night, kaa-chan."

She turned on the dim light of his small bedside lamp and left the room before closing the door.

In the almost darkness of the room, Naruto was finishing his soup in one last spoon while his back sank more and more into the pile of pillows behind him.

When he saw Hinata back in the room, he put down the empty bowl on the trail as slowly as possible before looking at his wife in the corner of his eye. But, she was doing everything to avoid him and he noticed it rapidly.

He then waited for her to come in the bed, but Hinata unexpectedly gave him her back and even took her book on her bedside table.

Why was she acting like that?

She knew the dangers of being a ninja and Naruto had already told her that it was the Daimyo himself who had asked to have him on this mission. Being the Hokage, Kakashi couldn't refuse.

As the silence was getting heavier and heavier, he pulled on his shirt collar. Despite years of marriage, he still had trouble handling that kind of moment. He had been used to women like Sakura and Tsunade to scream at him, even give him a couple of hits to shake him up.

She turned another page of her book.

"Hinata," he called.

But with Hinata, it was her selflessness that was terrifying.

"Is something wrong, Naruto-kun?"

"Listen, I don't know what I did, but I'm sorry."

She waited a few seconds before putting her book down and looking at him, surely understanding that what he wanted to say had nothing to do with his wounds. Her eyebrows were frowned and her eyes stared at him without blinking.

Yeah, he could still read her. He had guessed.

She was mad.

"You're sorry?" she repeated.

Naruto quickly nobbed. He waited for her to continue, but she kept her mouth close.

"Say... Why are you mad, eh? I did nothing wrong."

Hinata slowly got up to facing him better. "You're kidding, right? Have you seen you when you arrived at the hospital?"

Not really since he had been half unconscious.

He wanted to scratch his cheek, but the movement was too taxing on his body. "You're mad just because of that?"

"It is not 'just' because of that, Naruto-kun."

"Then why?"

"I-" She suddenly wrapped her arms around her, like if she wanted to protect herself, or like if she was protecting something. "You have a son now, Naruto-kun, and I refuse to have the task to tell him that his father is dead while fighting when he is barely two years old." Hinata said without hesitation.

"If I'm fighting, it's precisely to protect you, Boruto and the village. For him to grow up in a peaceful place."

"I'm too a ninja, you don't have to tell me that. What I'm trying to make you understand is that you have to be more careful and to stop taking everything so lightly!" Hinata exclaimed before her voice became soft again. "I was so scared."

The tension suddenly went down while Hinata wiped away a first tear at the corner of her eye. She could nearly feel again the terror that had squeezed her guts when Shizune had called her to tell her that Naruto was at the hospital.

"Hinata... I'm sorry..."

He wanted to take her hand. He forgot about his suffering. Hinata needed his comfort for something and oddly, he had a sense of déjà vu.

"I'm pregnant." she finally said.

Eyes wide opened, his hand fell back limply on the mattress as his brain tried to process her words. "Pre... Pregnant?"

"I wanted to surprise you, but you decided that it was perhaps funnier to make me worried sick."

"Of course not... I... I didn't know..."

"I've learnt it right after you left. I wanted to tell Boruto so badly, but I said to myself that we should tell him together, as a family." She cried. "But, when I heard Shizun say those words, making me understand that you were seriously wounded, I thought my world was about to fall into pieces."

Realisation that he would've never met his second child, that he would've left behind him only the bunch of notes he had earned for this mission, that everything would've meant 'this is the end' shook them and Naruto then found himself stupid to have been so reckless.

"I... I am sorry..."

Having found the motion of his body back, he finally could take her hand while his blue eyes were full of tears.

"I know it wasn't your fault," she confessed while trying to stop the tears. "I should be the one apolosiging, I'm overreacting right now. But please Naruto-kun, be more careful."

He pulled her towards him and grabbed his face between his large hands to lead her lips with his.

This powerful meeting made them melt against each other.

Hinata's fingers ran in his blonde hair. Her floral perfume wrapped around them, smoothing the electric atmosphere from earlier. Naruto could also feel the pain his heart made seized him as it was beating furiously against his broken ribs.

But he didn't care.

"I promise to you, Hinata, that no matter what happened to me, I'd always come back to you. To you three," he caressed her belly under her nightdress. "And you know I never go back on my words."

A sob escaped her lips and Hinata lowered her pupilless eyes on her husband's big warm and protective hand. She placed her own on top of his before Naruto caught her chin to make their eyes meet.

Once again, his powerful blue gaze made her heart beat rapidly. "It's a lifetime promise. I swear."

Hinata nodded while her tears kept falling down.

But, she didn't know anymore if it was tears of anger, of sadness or of joy. Naruto's words still reassured her because she knew he always kept his promises.

"And I'm so very sorry I've made you worried." He continued as he wiped his wife's tears.

Hinata nodded again and loomed over him to delicately wrap her arms around Naruto's neck. "Thank you." she whispered. "Thank you Naruto-kun."

She smiled, happy to have her caring and loving husband back and he smiled, happy to have his gentle and kind wife back.

"I love you Hinata. I'd do everything correctly for you and the children."

Hearing his spontaneous words, their hearts jumped a little as Naruto felt being overwhelmed by emotions again.

He was going to be a dad, they were going to be parents for the second time.

Hinata moved back, drew his face contours still a bit swollen at some place and intertwined their fingers together. "I love you too. So much. And I know our children do too."

Tight throat and teary eyes, Naruto nodded. He was so happy he had trouble breathing. Or maybe it was his medicine effect fading.

Of course Hinata noticed it, but he assured her he was just tired. She gave him two pills anyway, and the two spouses settled for the night, much more relaxed.

However, Naruto found that his wife was too far away from him, but Hinata said she didn't want to hurt him while sleeping. He answered with a grunt.

Was it a subtle way of punishing him?

Then, to get rid of his pout Hinata pulled his arm to her and hugged it tight before kissing his shoulder and wishing him a good night because he was going to help her take care of their son for the whole day tomorrow.

With his hand brushing against Hinata's belly, Naruto felt like being over the moon. He couldn't have wished of a better program for his day off tomorrow: take care of his growing family.