After experience major trauma in the army, Kakashi turns to alcohol to suppress the memories of the griefs he experienced on his last tour. Forced to attend AA meetings, there doesn't seem to be much hope for Kakashi until a companion from his past takes it upon himself to be Kakashi's saviour. (AU, Shounen-ai)

A/N:

So, it's 2013 and I've only just now decided to publish my first ever fan-fic. Timing was never my strong suit. Oh well, better late than never, right?... Looking forward to seeing what you all think though, I love this pair and hope I do them justice.

Disclaimer: Kishi owns... the fact that this is my first fic, 14 years after the first ever manga chapter kinda says it all.
Warnings: Shounen-ai. Nothing explicit... yet.

Anyway, on with the show!

Kakashi sauntered down the brightly coloured corridor, appreciating the fact he only had one eye as the onslaught of oranges, yellows, purples and the rest of the rainbow flooded his one good eye, deepening his hangover. Who the hell thought it was a good idea to change the location of his Alcoholics Anonymous group to a primary school. The old library had been perfectly fine. Trying to remember what had prompted the change, Kakashi realised he had been severely intoxicated last week, remembering nothing of the meeting or the explanation for the move. His only consolation was that at 8pm there were no children in sight.

Finally reaching his destination, he turned the knob quickly forming an excuse in case he was asked why he was twenty minutes late. Although the yellow walls, plastered in posters and projects, looked cheerful enough, the room's aura was dark and heavy. Recognising most of the group, Kakashi sent an apologetic nod to the counselor leading the session. Giving an annoyed glance at the man, the woman continued as Kakashi slid into a seat on the back row. After fifteen minutes he exasperatedly ran a hand through his spiky silver hair, realising he had zoned out and had missed most of what had been said. These meetings were so boring and, from the whiff of sake on his breath, it was obvious they weren't working. But if his friends wanted him to continue to waste his time here, he would go just to get them off his back.

Kakashi let his eyes wander around the classroom, deciding it was better to take in his new surroundings rather than staring mindlessly at nothing. His eye stopped at an A4 sized photo in a wooden frame to the left of the counselor's head. Though he only had one eye, it did have 20/20 vision, so it wasn't hard to make out a group of around sixteen young children standing in front of a tanned man, in his twenties. Kakashi blinked and then blinked again. Leaning forward in his chair to get a better look, he analysed the teacher in the photograph. The man was a brunette whose shoulder length chocolate locks were tied in a simple ponytail that made the protruding strands stand on end. His thin lips were curved in a small polite smile but his brown eyes sparkled with a true happiness that Kakashi did not believe he could pull off even with two eyes. What made the silver-haired man's breath catch however, was the deep but aged scar that rested across the man's nose...

Iruka.

"Kakashi," the silver-haired man snapped out of his daze, tearing his eyes away from the photograph to look at the counselor who was standing in front of him with a concerned look. Scanning the room he realised that the meeting had come to an end while he had been in a nostalgic trance induced by the photograph of the familiar man. "Hey kid, you alright? You seemed pretty out of it today. Well, more out of it than usual. Anything you want to talk about?"

Kakashi looked back to the buxom older woman who was now taking the seat beside him. "No, I'm fine" he said as he made his move to leave. Feeling delicate fingers around his wrist, Kakashi looked back to see a dangerous frown on the woman's face and he slowly slid back into his seat.

"Look Kakashi, this is your sixth week coming to these sessions. You arrive late. You don't participate. You don't listen. Hell, you even come here smelling like alcohol." The woman placed her hand on the man's shoulder and gave a firm squeeze making sure he was listening. "You may not think you have a problem Kakashi, but you're not well. I saw it as soon as your friend Gai dragged you here that first day. I know..." The councillor's eyes wavered for the first time in the conversation, anxious about bringing up the sensitive subject. "I know what happened...while you were in the army..."

Kakashi paled and felt his heart stop. He had been forcing himself to repress the memories of his last mission as the youngest Lieutenant General of the Shinobi Rank of the Konoha Army; the mission where his command had led to the death of his two closest friends, Rin and Obito. "Kakashi listen, I understand what you're going through, believe me I do, but drowning your sorrows down the bottle is only going to make things worse. The friends you lost would be hurt to know their deaths have turned you into this".

"Shut the fuck up!" The silver haired man violently ragged his shoulder away from the counselor, bolting up. "You don't understand at all. You know nothing about what happened. You know nothing about Rin and Obito!" Kakashi panted, trying to catch his breath, feeling as though the air had been knocked out him the second he let his friend's names roll off his tongue for the first time since he last saw them alive.

"I'm sorry...I crossed the line. But you do have a problem," whispered the woman, standing up to place her hand back on the shoulder of the tall, lean man whose chin was now resting on his heaving chest, eye on the ground. "Look, come along next week. I won't make you participate or anything but if you come next week and you decide that you don't have a problem and don't need any help, I'll tell Gai that you no longer need to attend these meetings and you'll be free."

Kakashi gave a curt nod, turned and strode to his car in half the time it had taken him to arrive at the class door. Letting out a deep breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding, he slumped into the driver's seat of his black Land Rover Evoque, his head falling back on the head rest. The man continued to heave in slow laboured breaths, but his constricted lungs didn't seem to be able to take in enough oxygen for his mind to stop spinning. Remembering he had a case of sake at home that he hadn't opened yet, Kakashi sped off home.

An hour later, Kakashi was passed out on the sofa, several bottles of sake surrounding him, all thoughts of that night; the memories of Rin and Obito and the beautiful face from his past, now safely buried under the heavy fog of his alcoholism.

A/N:

So... how'd I do? Really hope someone deems this worthy of reading on! Next chapter: Kakashi and Iruka come face to face and we take a peek at their shared past. See you then :)