Iruka poked mindlessly at the ice cubes in his drink. He hardly ever drank and especially not in a bar, but tonight, sitting home alone over half-graded papers, he felt the urge for the passive socialisation that is sitting at a bar stool watching strangers mill around and converse amongst themselves. The ice clinked loudly against the glass as he agitated it with his stirring straw, the sound sharper than the dull roar of drunken revelry at his back. Whatever he had ordered was now mostly water so he thought it time to go. He didn't like to hang out at places like this too often or too long. Running into his students' parents in a place like this was always a game of chance. Either they yelled at him for doing the same thing they themselves had come to do or took the opportunity to hold an impromptu PTA meeting. Both options led to nothing but headaches and apologies. His brows furrowed at the thought as he stood up.
"Not thinking of leaving so soon, are you?"
Iruka braced himself mentally. It was either a father or someone looking for a fuck. He hoped with every last fibre of his being that it wasn't both. He slowly turned to his right to see a well-bundled man in civilian clothing. He had blonde hair peeking out of a sock cap and dark eyes, black, almost as if he was an Uchiha.
"Two hot chocolates, please." The bartender gave him an odd look as he dusted off an ancient tin of dodgy-looking cocoa mix.
Iruka lowered himself back onto his seat and briefly looked the man over as he ordered. He wasn't particularly handsome, but he wasn't ugly either. Actually, he'd be downright invisible if it wasn't for his striking hair and eye colour. The bartender finished pouring lukewarm water into highball glasses and pushed the lumpy sludge towards the two men.
The man lifted his cocoa slurry in salute towards Iruka. "If you must go, here's to keeping warm tonight." Iruka lifted his glass politely and then set it back down. He had no intention of drinking whatever the hell it contained. The stranger was a little more adventurous, sniffing his drink before setting it down untouched.
"Well, that didn't turn out too well..." he said with a laugh. Iruka stiffened a little at the sound. Something about it made him feel uncomfortable. "How about we try a different approach? Two whiskies, please."
The bartender seemed much more at ease with this order and quickly produced two glasses of caramel-coloured liquid. "Shall we give it another go?" he asked, drink raised.
Iruka clinked his glass with the man's and took a small, thoughtful sip before setting it down on it's napkin. It burned at first, but then quickly dissipated into warmth and smoky sweetness. It was good. He took another sip.
The man looked at Iruka with a satisfied grin. It wasn't really the kind of look one could expect to get at a bar. It was a little too interested, maybe even kind. Iruka shifted uncomfortably in his chair before deciding he should leave. He thanked the blonde stranger and ducked out of the bar quietly, suppressing a grimace as he was buffeted by a gust of cold air. Swearing under his breath, he wrapped his coat around himself tighter and took a step.
"I'm going that way, too. I could... um... walk you home part-way... or the whole way."
Iruka stared at him for a second. Everything was really and completely out-of-place with this guy. Of all the (albeit very few) times he'd been propositioned in a bar, by man or by woman, it had always been a line, well-practiced to the point where it sounded more like a reflex. It was just another reason he tended to stay away from such establishments, but this random stranger he had never seen before, not even in passing at the grocery store, seemed unnaturally and yet genuinely attentive. Iruka thought back. He hadn't been the most attractive person in the room and he really wasn't the most well-informed shinobi, either. There was no reason for this man to pay him so much attention except that maybe he was really interested.
"I promise not to be mad if you say 'no'."
"Ah, sorry. If you're going this way anyway, you're welcome to join me as far as you can." It couldn't hurt to just walk alongside someone, after all. "By the way, I'm Iruka." He extended a gloved hand, which the other man shook firmly.
"Nice to meet you."
Iruka's head tilted a little, trying to process the complete bizarreness of it all. Wasn't the normal response to give your own name after someone introduced themselves to you? It seemed a little rude to come out and ask, though. He wasn't dressed like a shinobi, nor did he have the chakra presence of one, though something like that could be easily masked. If this man was some kind of threat to the village, it was probably in everyone's best interest if he kept an eye on him.
"This is where I live," the man pointed out, gesturing towards a small apartment building. Judging from the neighbourhood, this guy had to make decent money, at least jounin-level pay. Iruka would have to keep walking for a little while before he got to his apartment in the schoolteacher-level pay area. "I have some good hot chocolate at home, if you'd like to come in."
"W-well, you see..." Iruka shifted awkwardly. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm kinda interested in someone at the moment. I don't think it would be fair to..."
"You still have a little ways to walk, right? Think of it as a pit-stop for a warm drink with a new friend."
Iruka had to admit the offer was tempting. Not to mention he still had a nagging feeling that he should keep an eye on this guy. "Come in and tell me all about this 'someone' you're interested in." He gave Iruka a warm smile and somehow he lost the will to resist. He figured if Kakashi saw him coming and going from this guy's house, he could always claim it was for the security of Konoha. A little jealousy might not hurt, either...
The apartment was clean and wonderfully toasty, but unusually sterile. There were no pictures on the walls, or anywhere for that matter. It was devoid of personal touches that would be seen in any normal space that had been lived in for more than a few days, yet the floor and the furniture showed signs of wear, as if it had seen consistent use. Nothing added up.
The door to the bathroom and the bedroom were closed and Iruka contemplated checking them out while his host was still busy in the kitchen. He stood up slowly and took a few steps towards the bedroom when the stranger walked in holding a tray of steaming mugs.
"Here we go..." he mumbled as he put a cup on the adjacent side of the table and the other in front of himself. Iruka quickly sat down. A bottle of whipped cream was brandished and offered to Iruka, who helped himself to a little. As he sat the bottle down, he noticed there was a cup with what looked like sugar in it.
"Oh, that? I don't care much for sweets, so I don't add any in mine. I made yours the same way, so just in case you wanted it sweet..."
"Thanks." Iruka took a spoonful of sugar and stirred it into his drink. This guy was considerate, too. Iruka had officially stumbled into the stupor of mild shock. Who was he? Why had he never seen him before? If anything, he would have remembered those eyes or the hair.
"So, Iruka-san, what do you do for a living?"
"I teach at the academy." No harm in telling him that. "Pre-teens, mostly. Twelve, thirteen..."
"Must be rough."
"Some days."
"How about this person you're in love with? What do they do?"
"He works for..." he paused as he realised he had inadvertently admitted gender, "Konoha." It didn't escape his notice that the man's eyebrow twitched a little at the slip.
"So he's a shinobi." Iruka nodded. There were hundreds of male shinobi in the village. There was no way this could be traced to one person. "Does he work at the academy with you?"Iruka looked at the stranger directly in the eyes. "At the risk of seeming rude, may I ask why you care to know?" His voice had came out a little more clipped and icy than he had intended, but he concluded that it might not be for the worse.
"Umm... Friendly curiosity?"
Iruka stood up. "Not good enough. Thank you for the hot chocolate, but it's late and it's still a good walk back to my place."
"So stay here tonight."
"I'm flattered by your offer, but I respectfully decline."
Iruka turned to leave, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. It turned him around, face to face and mouth to mouth with the other man. He was a good kisser, but that's not what kept Iruka from pushing him away and decking him before leaving in a huff. What kept him there was the slight furrow in the blonde's brow as he kissed him as if this was something he had ached for, the way one of his hands moved along his cheek and jaw as if memorising the angles and the skin. The other hand was wrapped around his waist as if to desperately hold him there. Every gesture had such longing and care and Iruka couldn't help but get caught up in remember his own longings. As his body took over, his mind sought out a familiar place, bleaching the stranger's hair colour until it was light grey and brightening his eyes to the colour of charcoal. The stranger was only an inch or two taller than him, so it was oh so easy to slip into the familiar fantasy. The hand on his cheek cradled his neck before moving lower, across his chest and Iruka felt a sigh slip past his parted lips.
"Kakash...shit."
This hadn't been the first time, either.
"I'm so sorry," Iruka apologised. Beyond that, he realised that he had revealed more than he should to someone he didn't even know. "I should go."
"No, don't." A hand grabbed his wrist and that's when he felt it. A tiny falter of chakra gave it all away.
Henge.
Iruka quickly pulled the man closer and pressed the palm of his hand into his stomach, releasing a burst of disruptive chakra into the stranger's system. There was a high-pitched puff and then...
Kakashi.
Iruka's whole being went in a million different directions. His face went white, his mind went blank, his pride went to hell and his temper went through the roof. He just stood there shaking while he tried to discern which one of those he needed to deal with first.
"Why?" Iruka figured that question would yield the most information, so it seemed a good start.
"Maa, we've all used henge at the bars. Protects the iden-"
"Don't get cocky!"
Kakashi straightened up.
"Why did you... you..." he trailed off as he touched his own lips in disbelief.
"That's easy!" he replied with a grin, the slouch returning to his shoulders. "Because I wanted to."
Iruka was still trembling as he grabbed his coat and gloves and stormed out of the apartment. Kakashi ran out after him, but bumped into him at the door.
Iruka stared at him for a moment before grabbing the shock of white hair that fell over his eye and pulling their faces close together. For a second, they breathed each other in, both men confused for their own reasons. Then, Iruka's hand slowly lowered down, past Kakashi's forehead, across the scar over his eye and down his cheek. Kakashi leaned forward slightly, his eyes locked on Iruka's lips, as if the temptation was just too great to hide anymore. Iruka stilled, his trembling subsided. Kakashi hesitated and it was ultimately Iruka who closed the distance between them. It wasn't anything like before. The desperate fumbling of anonymity had been replaced by something slower, more reverent, and entirely different. It was as if they were greeting each other for the first time, meeting each other all over again through their senses. It was also Iruka that pulled away first, searching Kakashi's face until their eyes met. Kakashi smiled down at him in a mix of awe and happiness, completely unaware that Iruka's fist was on an intercept course with his jaw.
There was a cracking sound.
There was pain.
And there was Iruka, calmly walking away.
It was then, splayed out on the ground and staring up at his porchlight, that Kakashi realised they would be together always.
A/N: Normally, I avoid henges like the plague, but I hope this one wasn't too painful. I had a lot of fun writing this and I hope you fun reading it as well!