And another Shino one, welp, hope you enjoy.

     You were going to dig yourself a hole with the number of steps you took back and forth as you waited for Shino to meet you. To say, you were nervous was an understatement. How could you be nervous? You were just going to meet your long-time boyfriend's parents. What was the big deal? It couldn't be that bad, but no matter how much you tried to reason with yourself that you were overreacting, your nerves wouldn't settle.

     "You seem anxious," a soft voice mentioned out of the shadows as he entered from a blind corner. You jumped, but your heartbeat soon calmed, seeing it was your boyfriend. "Oh! Shino, you scared me," you mentioned as you laughed quietly with a hand over your heart.

     Shino took in your appearance, noting the hand over your heart. "My apologies. It was not my intention. Why? Because I would never want to scare you," Shino remarked as he approached you, his eyes hidden behind his sunglasses.

     "I know you didn't mean to scare me. I guess I'm a bit frazzled," you admitted bashfully, looking down at the basket in your hands that you had been carrying.

     "Why?"

     "No reason," you spoke rather quickly as you switched the basket between your hands.

     "Are you sure? If I had to guess, it would be because I have invited you over the Aburame compound today," Shino reasoned, eyeing you. He could tell you were on edge, knowing you couldn't stand still when you were anxious.

     "Okay, okay." You resigned, knowing you couldn't hide anything from Shino. He was too perceptive. "I guess I am a bit nervous."

     "There's nothing to be nervous about," Shino stated factually, his tone mellow.

     "Easy for you to say, you live there! I'm an outsider. What if your family doesn't like me?" You anxiously spoke, biting your lip, a slight whine in your voice.

     You soon felt a soft hand engulf your own, as you looked down to spy Shino's hand encasing yours. Your eyes trailed back up to Shino's sunglasses where you could barely make out the faint traces of his sincere eyes.

     "They will like you. Why? Because I like you and I'm an excellent judge of character," Shino assured, calmly.

     Your heart swelled at that as you smiled faintly at him. Your nerves quickly disappearing as you felt Shino's reassurance fell over you. You nodded your head briefly up towards Shino in appreciation as the corner of his mouth tipped upward. His thumb rubbed against the backside of your knuckles before letting go as he wasn't big on showing public displays of affection. You inhaled deeply, knowing Shino was waiting on you to tell him when you were ready. You could do this, you chanted to yourself before telling Shino let's go.

     You were confident up until the point Shino had shown you his house. Each step within the confines of his parent's property set your nerves ablaze again as self-conscious thoughts wreaked havoc in your mind. You were so afraid of making the wrong first impression or them not liking you. You shifted the basket in-between your hands again, hoping that you appeared casual and not awfully nervous.

     Shino escorted you around his house to the backyard where a pristine pathway led up to a greenhouse. Shino took the lead, expressing that his father was most likely observing some bugs among their garden.

     You quickly followed Shino inside the brightly lit greenhouse and soon found your breath taken away by all the wonderful sights and sounds. The sounds of bugs chirping and buzzing were distinct in the air as a butterfly passed by your face. You suddenly felt relaxed and at peace amongst the sounds and the earthly smells of the greenhouse.

     "Father," Shino addressed, bringing your attention back to your boyfriend. He had stepped to the side, revealing you to his father as he continued. "I would like you to meet, (Y/n)."

     The man that was before you was kneeled down, but he stood straight to greet you after Shino's introduction. His eyes were also hidden by sunglasses, which you noticed was a trait among the Aburame clan. Shino's father was a fairly tall figure with his face half sheathed away from you, making it hard for you to judge his mood.

     "(Y/n), this is my father, Shibi-san" Shino finished, leaving room for the two of you to speak.

     "It's a pleasure to meet you, Aburame-san," you greeted politely as you gave a bow in respect.

     Shibi returned your bow with a shallow one. "It is nice to meet the one my son has mentioned frequently."

     You blushed steadily at that, having looked down to avoid direct eye contact realizing you still had the basket in your hands. "Oh! I... uh... had made you and the Miss's something," You rambled out as you tried to present your gift accordingly to him by unraveling the towel that covered it. "It's banana walnut bread. It's my family's recipe. I hope you will enjoy it," you stammered out, smiling nervously. You mentally hit yourself for sounding so chaotic as you held out the basket of bread for him to view.

     Shibi's stare seemed to hold yours for a long time as he barely peered at the bread. He lightly smiled at the gesture but it was hidden behind his high collar.

     "Thank you, (Y/n). Both me and my wife appreciate your thoughtfulness," Shibi spoke more receptive, having recognized the nervous air you carried.

     You smiled at him a little warmer as Shibi looked to his son.

     "Shino why don't you take the bread inside to the kitchen," Shibi advised, monotone.

     Shino nodded as he took the breadbasket from your hands before passing you on the way out to his house. You stood there for only a few seconds slightly panic with Shino gone before Shibi called your attention. He quizzed you on some of your knowledge of the type of plants that were in the garden. The plants you weren't sure of Shibi began to inform you on.

     Soon you two were conversing on more than the topic of plants as he began to identify certain insects around you two. You were intrigued and marveled at each different insect you were made aware of. Even when Shino had returned, the conversation you were having with Shibi did not falter as Shino added in his knowledge.

     You were delighted to learn and soon found your fears melting away. Shibi was rather pleasant and easy to talk to, much like Shino was as he held up insects for you to inspect.

     "Would you like to hold it?" Shibi probed, assessing your reaction.

     Your eyes widened before you nodded your head excitedly, looking towards Shino. Shino was right there beside you as you held out your hand. Shibi let the beetle crawl into your hand and you immediately got goosebumps, but you did not convulse as you watched with fascination at the beetle in your hand. The corners of Shibi's mouth tipped up in a smile at that as he watched you pass the beetle onto his son. The edges of Shino's glasses revealing just enough for him to see that his son was truly happy which was all that mattered to him.

1222 words

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