CHAPTER 9

U. Naruto: GUYSSS

U. Naruto: Anyone wants to hit up a club with me tomorrow night?

U. Naruto: It's gonna be lit!

H. Sakura: BAKA *fist emojis*

H. Sakura: Are you trying to get us into trouble?

U. Naruto: Hey hey I received permission from Tsunade-baachan! Go ask her yourself if you don't believe me ;)

H. Sakura: Why the sudden invite?

U. Naruto: Killer B is back in town and ready to partayyyy!

H. Sakura: He invited you?

U. Naruto: Of course! I'll have you know that he invited me personally :D

U. Naruto: Because he's gonna be DJ!

U. Naruto: And I want to support him because we're friends!

U. Sasuke: I'll go.

U. Naruto: Hell yeah!

H. Sakura: SASUKE-KUN?!

H. Sakura: You were supposed to be on my side!

U. Sasuke: I'm on nobody's side. I just feel like going.

Sasuke tossed his phone aside, ignoring the series of vibrations that emanated from it after he sent his last message. Deep down, he knew his own motivations: primarily, it was to experience the nightlife and forget, even if for just a moment, that he was an idol who owed various cumbersome obligations to society; secondarily, however, it was to find pretty girls to look at so that he could finally stop thinking about Hinata.

It had been a draining few months for him, but at the end of it all he came down to the conclusion that perhaps he just needed a breath of fresh air to gain new perspectives. Perhaps Hinata wasn't really the prettiest person in the world – he just thought so because she was his only female friend.

Now when he laid it all out like that, he found himself quite pathetic. Hinata couldn't be the only normal female around in his age group that did not worship the ground he walked on, could she? He just had to look around a bit more, and Naruto had presented him with the perfect opportunity to do so.

With that, Sasuke went to his wardrobe to hunt for a suitable outfit. Would a designer tee and chain necklace work, or was a dress shirt more appropriate for the occasion? What was the occasion anyway? Sasuke reminded himself that he was just going there to have a good time with his group members and maybe make some new friends, so there was no need to dress to the nines. With that last thought in mind, he slid under the covers of his bed and willed himself to sleep.

In the end, Sasuke did not wear his planned outfit. In the last moment he decided to put on a navy silk shirt that was rolled up by the sleeves to show off the assemble of accessories on his wrists and fingers. The top was paired with a tailored pair of velvet black pants to match the dark aesthetic. Sasuke was not one to dress flamboyantly with bright colours or outrageous cuts, so he preferred to compensate with accessories – and boy he had an impressive collection to boast. If there was one thing that Sasuke liked more than ripped jeans, it was a good set of accessories dangling from his ears, neck and hands.

Feeling pleased with his choice of attire for the evening, he walked out of his room – and straight into Sakura. She sported a form-fitting red silk dress, although he noticed that her arms were carrying a classy leather jacket. Her eyes scanned him quickly from head to toe before she scurried away with a blush on her cheeks. He rolled his eyes at her in return.

Since when did Sakura decide to join them?

Well, it was no matter. Sasuke was proud of his looks but he secretly nodded in approval at her choice of attire as well. It seemed that at least two out of three of them from Team 7 were going to look hot tonight, which would always help with their group's reputation in the event any of them were photographed at the location, outside or otherwise.

When Sasuke reached the living room, he saw that Naruto was dressed in what he had initially thought of wearing: an oversized designer jersey tee with silk drawstring trousers that were tapered at the ankles. Well, he would never admit that Naruto ever looked hot, but at least he looked presentable. He had to give props to the guy for looking above average when he put in effort.

Naruto looked up from his phone when he heard footsteps and gasped at his two group members dramatically.

"What?" Sakura asked.

"Sakura-chan, your visuals tonight are off the charts!" To emphasise his point, he threw his phone to the side and gave her a starry-eyed look.

The pinkette flipped a lock of hair behind her shoulder and grinned at the praise. "Thank you," she chirped and walked to the doorway to put on her favourite black gladiator heels.

Sasuke could not help but roll his eyes again when he saw how ardently Naruto tried to gain Sakura's favour. He was still so hopelessly smitten over her after all these years, and yet Sakura had done nothing but shower him with ruthless rejections. It was rather sad – and it most certainly did not remind him of his own predicament.

No, Uchiha Sasuke was not about to continue with his streak of rejections for the night. He was going to charm some people and talk to some girls – maybe even ask someone out on a date when he was still sober! Nobody in their right mind – except Hyuuga Hinata – would reject him after all.

Team 7 strutted into a club for the first time since they hit the age of majority, and the one that they were in certainly did not disappoint. LED lights of the highest quality lit up the interior of the club in various shades of blue, purple and pink. Music was already blaring from the speakers although Killer B was still nowhere to be seen. It appeared that Team 7 had arrived earlier than most of the others on the guest list, but there were several socialites and other rich patrons spotted from time to time at the bar counter.

Right before they entered, Kakashi gave his three pupils – the eccentric man had for some reason decided to name the Team 7 members that – a stern lecture, reminding them about decorum and club etiquette. Sasuke rolled his eyes for the umpteenth time that night, but beneath his frown he understood why Kakashi was being so hard-pressed about behaving properly.

At the end of the day, idols were idols – and while there was an increasingly vocal community defending the rights of idols to behave like regular humans, it did not change the fact that obligations to uphold a high standard of conduct were still in place. Sasuke was rebellious at heart, but at least he understood and begrudgingly complied with what was expected of him, and he knew that Naruto and Sakura would be no less committed than him in this regard.

For the next half an hour or so, Kakashi hovered around the trio like an overprotective father, making sure that they consumed their drinks in moderation and were not displaying any intent of misbehaving. Sasuke downed his first cup of gin tonic at the counter and released a quiet sigh. At the rate this was going, he was uncertain that he was going to get much out of this clubbing experience, since he seemed to be stuck making small talk with his own group members, which he could very well do in the comfort of their own home.

However, his unspoken wish was granted the moment he began lamenting his situation – albeit not in the way he desired. A slender arm slung itself around his neck, and he caught a quick whiff of a playful candy-scented perfume before long, silky strands of blonde hair appeared in his vision.

"You look dashing as always, Sasuke-kun!" Ino greeted excitedly.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and forcibly removed her arm from his shoulder. She seemed to pay no attention to his apparent discomfort as he did so. "Hey Ino," he replied curtly.

"Ino-pig! You're finally here!"

Ino turned her attention to Sakura this time and grinned. "Forehead! I'm glad to see you again!" She skipped towards Sakura and gave her a friendly hug. Ino squeezed into the space between Sakura and Sasuke to make conversation with her childhood friend. Sasuke let out a soft 'tch' under his breath and began circling his fingers around the rim of his empty glass. He was so bored.

It did not take him long to figure out that he needed another drink to lift his spirits. He called the bartender over and ordered a long island iced tea. He scanned his surroundings quickly to make sure that Kakashi was not looking before he made his order, as he knew deep down that his silver-haired manager would throttle him if he found out that he ordered something that strong.

He continued to sit there mulling over the things that he had to do over the next few days when he felt another arm around his shoulder. Sasuke looked up to see Naruto. Well, this one was his group member at least, even though he was no less annoying than Ino.

"Sasukeee I'm so bored! When is my man Killer B going to show up?"

Sasuke was about to reply when Naruto's attention was quickly redirected to a third person in their field of vision. Even under the dim lighting, no one could miss that head of red hair which could only belong to one person.

"Gaara! You're here!" Naruto yelled over the music.

The stoic man seamlessly slid his way through the few people around till he was in front of the duo. "Naruto, Uchiha-san," he greeted politely.

"You can dispense with the formalities," Sasuke replied.

Gaara nodded. "Fair enough. I am not a big fan either."

Naruto interrupted their little exchange by bringing the stiff redhead into a hug. To Sasuke's dismay, his embarrassing friend started rubbing his cheek against Gaara's like an affectionate cat rubbing up to its owner. Strangely enough, Gaara did not seem to mind. He simply looked down at their feet and put a hand around Naruto's shoulders.

Sasuke took a moment to assess Gaara. He was the legendary bassist of The Sand Siblings, and also the youngest of the three in his group. He gained immense popularity from the start due to his striking physical appearance and unconventional eyes. His eyes were always lined with black to the extent he almost looked like he was permanently in cat cosplay. His eyebrows were shaved as well, which struck fans as odd, although it somehow became a trend in niche communities after some people realised the appeal of his aesthetic.

Gaara seemed to feel the weight of Sasuke's gaze on him, so he angled his head to return it. Sasuke felt his lips pull up into a smile, which was surprisingly reciprocated by the redhead.

"I liked your most recent mini album," Sasuke began.

Gaara nodded in thanks. "I appreciate that. I heard that you have mentioned me on a few interviews."

"That is true. I respect your musicality and sense of style," Sasuke replied smoothly. Gaara lowered his head once again in gratitude. It was only now that Sasuke realised how short he was. He had such an imposing presence, but in reality this man before him seemed to be a humble – dare he use the term – cinnamon roll. It was not hard to see why Gaara was popular among females beyond the rock music community.

"I have kept up with your individual projects on your YouTube channel," Gaara replied after a moment of thought. "I admire your talent in dancing. It seems that Rock Lee has influenced you over time."

This caused Sasuke to raise a brow in surprise. "You are acquainted with Lee?"

Gaara finally pulled a semi-inebriated Naruto away from him and nodded. Naruto slung an arm around his shoulder anyway and leaned forward to listen in to their conversation. "Before Temari, Kankuro and I debuted in a band, I was considered for an idol group in Suna. Back when I was a trainee, I had the honour of meeting Gai and his talented assistant, Lee. They came over for a workshop or two."

Sasuke was genuinely hooked on this conversation now. He grabbed his long island iced tea from the counter which finally arrived and began to sip from it. "I feel like I should not be surprised, given how small the dance community can be."

Gaara nodded. "I agree. I wish I was part of it."

Sasuke made a confused noise. "Why not join it?"

Gaara's shoulders slumped down by a notch. "I can't dance very well."

It was in this moment Naruto started chuckling, earning him the attention of the other two. "Teme, you should watch some variety shows with Sakura-chan and I sometimes! Everyone knows that Gaara is always asked to dance to songs from girl groups when he appears, because he looks funny doing it. No offence, though!" He patted the Gaara's shoulder to briefly cushion the blow of his words.

However, Gaara seemed accustomed to hearing such things so he simply shrugged it off. "That is true. I have seen GIFs and memes of my dances floating about the Internet. It gave me a headache in the past but I got used to it over time."

Sasuke related to that sentiment painfully well. On hindsight, it was only a matter of time that he became a viral meme in the entertainment industry after all. It seemed that nobody – even his apparent "celebrity crush" Gaara – could escape the ruthless clutches of the online community.

Before Sasuke could say anything, Naruto said, "Speaking of memes, have you seen Sasuke's ones recently?"

If assault was legal, Naruto would have been pummelled to the ground by now. He just had to embarrass him in front of a new friend, did he? To Sasuke's shock, Gaara nodded to confirm that he had seen the memes.

"Your popularity is sky high now," Gaara remarked dryly. Well, that was a very kind way of putting it. Sasuke could acknowledge his effort at least. "I also heard that you will be starring in a drama soon?"

Sasuke nodded, thankful for the conversation pivot. "Yes. It will be premiering at the end of the year."

"Ah. I will look out for it."

Sasuke could not imagine Gaara sitting in front of the television watching a corny romance drama, but he appreciated the sentiment nonetheless. "Thank you," he replied diplomatically.

He took another sip of his drink after he said this, and from the rim of his glass his eagle eyes spotted another familiar person. He gulped down a mouthful and blinked his eyes several times to make sure that he was not hallucinating.

It was her!

The pretty demon that he was trying to avoid!

She had not looked his way yet as she had just entered the club with a man's arm slung casually around her shoulders, but from Sasuke's angle he could see her clearly. There was no mistake as to her identity.

Hyuuga Hinata was in a club wearing a black mini corset dress that exposed her gorgeous shoulders and stopped short halfway up her thighs. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that she had completed her look with smokey eyeshadow, a silver necklace, matching strap-on heels and black lacy gloves that reached the middle of her dainty forearms. She carried with her a black purse that had a thin silver chain slung over her bare shoulder.

She was heart-stoppingly beautiful, but Sasuke knew that this was another trap. There was no reason for a prude like Hyuuga Hinata to show up in a club, so she must have had some ulterior motive today. Hmph, she must have stalked him to find out that he was here, and now the pretty demon was out here to execute some kind of plan to seduce him before taunting him with yet another friendzone remark. That had to be it – and Uchiha Sasuke knew better than to fall for her predatory schemes like this!

He cast a quick glance at the man whose offensive hand had finally withdrawn. He should not have been surprised, but it was Inuzuka Kiba that he found next to Hinata. The brunette had even painted some strange triangles on his face for this evening, as if he was trying to start some new make-up trend. He looked so stupid, Sasuke could gag. For some inexplicable reason he hated the sight of them together, especially today.

Without warning, Sasuke downed the rest of his glass even though it earned him some wide-eyed looks from Gaara and Naruto. He pulled both of them towards the dance floor wordlessly, and was glad to see that they followed his lead. All that Sasuke had to do was to disappear into the crowd so that he did not have to look at the stupid pair that just tainted his virgin eyes.

In no time, the effects of the long island iced tea began to hit Sasuke. His limbs were more relaxed than usual, and he found himself losing his usual sharp senses. The lights were blurring together as were the people, but he found that it was an addictive high. Maybe he would never get used to this as long as he stayed a celebrity, but it was truly a worthwhile experience. He turned to meet Naruto's cheeky smile with one of his own, and they began to jam out to the music.

The crowd only got more hyped the moment Killer B appeared on stage and loudly began to announce his presence into the microphone. As per his usual custom, he would rap anything he had to say to the audience, and he rejoiced whenever the crowd let out cheers in support of this quirk of his. To Sasuke's delight, Killer B began to remix some of the hip-hop songs that he had in his own playlist. Now this was a vibe.

Naruto started screeching something incomprehensible, and before anyone could see what was coming, he began to dance furiously to the music with one of the hip-hop choreographies that he learned when he was a trainee. Sasuke must have been quite high, as he did not turn away to hide his face in embarrassment, but instead yelled at Naruto in encouragement.

Some of the girls around them seemed to recognise them as they made way for them and began to scream hysterically.

"SASUKE-TEME! Do what you're best at!" Naruto roared, and that was all the warning that he got before he was forcefully dragged into the small circle by his over-enthusiastic group member.

Sasuke grinned and began to do as he was told, earning another set of cheers from the people around him. He was not about to break dance in the middle of a club, but he was quite close to actually doing it. His limbs were moving about dexterously, and he was pleased to find out that even the alcohol could not dampen the precision of his moves – not yet, anyway.

Soon after their little party, the crowd grew bigger, causing everyone to squeeze towards each other to get closer to the front. Before Sasuke could realise what was happening, two arms slid around his shoulders and hooked themselves around his neck. He gazed down into the eyes of a bespectacled woman with flaming red hair. This was a woman that he did not recognise, so he inferred that she was not part of the idol industry.

He was rather uncomfortable about their close proximity, as the woman made use of it to grind up against him. The pupils in her eyes were already dilated, so Sasuke took this as a cue for him to leave. He pulled away from her grasp and made quick work of leaving the dance floor. He heard her call out his name from behind him, but he ignored it. It was dangerous for him to stay in such a woman's presence for a moment longer.

He went to the toilet to wash his hands and pat his cheeks with some droplets of water. He was not about to ruin his make-up entirely, but he felt like he had to sober up just a little bit to make sure that he was capable of guarding against any future advances. It simply would not do for him to ruin his career by jumping on some stranger in a club and getting caught red-handed.

However, his thoughts came to a screeching halt when he walked out of the bathroom and saw an enigmatic long-haired woman. She looked up at him with round, chestnut brown eyes, and Sasuke's own eyes widened when he made eye contact with her. She actually looked a bit like...Hinata…

It was not her though, as she was dressed differently. It was quite amusing to Sasuke when he scanned her outfit and realised that she was dressed exactly like how he thought Hinata would dress in a club: a modest dark-coloured jumpsuit with an oversized jacket, paired with a pair of designer sneakers. The long velvet choker that she had wrapped around her neck was probably not Hinata's style, but it added a hint of sex appeal to this woman's overall fit.

Sasuke had to admit to himself that this person captured his attention, and he allowed his mind to wander about the possibilities for a fleeting moment.

Before he could make up his mind as to what he wanted to achieve with an interaction with this woman, she grabbed his hand to pull him closer to her. Sasuke now stood in her personal space while she was backed up against the wall, staring wordlessly into her eyes. A few people entered and exited the bathroom behind him, but he did not pay those passers-by any mind. It might have been the effect of the alcohol, but Sasuke found himself getting sucked into those brown eyes of hers.

Well, she was not as pretty as Hinata. Hinata's pearlescent eyes were still the nicest to look into, but this woman was objectively good-looking nonetheless. Sasuke opened his mouth to ask her where she was from but she surprised him when she pulled him down by the neck to kiss him.

It started out as a chaste kiss, because Sasuke's brain short-circuited the moment he felt her lips on his, but he closed his eyes and decided to act out on his instincts in the heat of the moment. He gently placed his hands around her waist and began to lose himself to the feeling of kissing someone properly.

(His accidental kiss with Naruto on that one variety show surely did not count. He cursed all the idiots responsible for coming up with a paper-passing game using mouths. In retrospect, something as cursed as kissing Naruto was simply bound to happen when two competitive males like them were put together to play such a stupid game.)

However, it did not feel like a lot of time had passed before someone pulled Sasuke away forcefully by the arm. He turned to glare at the intruder, only for his jaw to turn slack when he realised that it was none other than Hyuuga Hinata herself. She looped her arm around his and huddled closer to him.

"Hyuuga-san?" the mysterious person greeted with a hint of reverence in her voice.

Wait. Sasuke's brain must have short-circuited again. Why did the woman sound like a pre-pubescent boy?

"Y-You know me?" Hinata gasped.

"Yes! I was a fan of you even before the drama posters were released. I am very excited to watch it, Hyuuga-san!"

Sasuke stared at the two people with him who apparently stopped his make-out session to exchange pleasantries. He knew an awkward situation when he saw one, and to his disbelief this particular incident could easily rival the one time Naruto caught him in a predicament with his bolster.

He wanted nothing more than to leave and pretend nothing ever happened, but Hinata had a tight hold over his arm, which she began to squeeze against the side of her ample bosom. A small blush made its way onto his face at this realisation, so he consciously brought his attention back to the mysterious person to prevent his thoughts from warping into something perverted. Hinata was supposed to be his friend, for heaven's sake.

"Are both of you dating in real life?" the person asked daringly.

Sasuke opened his mouth to answer in the negative, but Hinata beat him to it. "N-No, but Sasuke-kun is with me for tonight."

What was that supposed to mean? Sasuke gave her a questioning look, but Hinata refused to turn to meet his gaze.

"I see. I will be on my way then." The person began to squeeze past them, but she stopped right in front of Sasuke and smiled once more. "I am a huge fanboy of you too, Sasuke-san! This humble one's name is Haku."

Sasuke's face immediately paled after he processed those words.

What. The. Actual. Fuck?

Uchiha Sasuke knew deep down in his heart that he did not gravitate towards men, so the events of the night sent his mind spinning at a hundred miles per minute. More than two hours had passed since the kiss in the club, but he was still reeling in shock from the fact that he had his first and second kiss stolen from two different males.

But Uchiha Sasuke was not gay! How could something this unfortunate happen to him?! The universe was actually a bigger cockblock than his own agency!

To stop himself from spiraling into a state of pure existential dread, he sat at the edge of his bed and watched Hinata admire the furniture and posters in his room. She paused in front of the desk where his laptop had been set up, and a knowing smile made its way onto her pink lips. He figured that she must have realised this was where he filmed the Instagram live that landed both of them in the public spotlight.

"Sasuke-kun, are you going to wash up soon?"

He let out a sigh and looked at his companion tiredly. "Yeah. Did you drag me back early from the club just so you could nag at me to shower and sleep?"

Hinata let out a small giggle and made her way back to his side of the room. She began to twiddle her thumbs nervously. "M-Maybe…"

"What were you even doing there just now?"

"Oh, Kiba-kun invited me to go with him and a few others."

"I see. Did you enjoy yourself?"

"It was alright..."

Hm. I guess dog boy doesn't have much game. Sasuke let out a nonchalant shrug, although inwardly he could not help the smug satisfaction that began to fill his being upon hearing her words.

He began to unbutton his dress shirt, paying no mind to the fact that Hinata was still in the room. She averted her gaze when she saw what he was doing, but to his surprise she did not start running out of his room squealing like the prude that he assumed her to be. He smirked when he saw that her cheeks were starting to bloom with a pretty shade of pink even though she was doing her best to avoid looking at him.

Well, maybe Hyuuga Hinata was not completely immune to his charms after all. And Uchiha Sasuke was not one to turn down an opportunity when he saw it.

The moment his shirt was fully unbuttoned, Sasuke took one, two steps towards her till she was properly backed up against the wall. He placed his hand next to her head and caged her in, similar to the first time. However, she did not flinch or push him away. She simply looked down at their feet as her blush intensified.

This time, he did not say a word to her. He simply watched the myriad of micro-expressions that flitted across her face with amusement. Hinata was really cute without even trying, but perhaps it was just the alcohol speaking and nothing more.

Finally, Hinata looked up to meet his intense gaze, and to Sasuke's utmost surprise, she placed her hands on his shoulders and tiptoed to give him a quick peck on the cheek. He looked down at her in confusion, trying to comprehend the intent behind her actions.

However, Hinata chose this moment to escape from him. She slid out smoothly from under his arm and dashed out of his room. He followed her out into the living room only to see the door of their apartment slam shut.

This woman greatly confused him.

Sasuke put a hand to his cheek, softly caressing the spot that she had kissed. He felt his cheeks heat up at the memory of what just happened.

Who knew that Hyuuga Hinata would turn out to be more enigmatic than her dark-haired lookalike?