Chapter 2

When Sasuke stepped foot into the convenience store that afternoon to quit, he was met with quite a bit of resistance. "Resistance" being a bawling Iruka.

"But you can't quit!" the man had wailed on his knees in front of Sasuke, who was beyond uncomfortable. "You've only been here a month and no one else wants to apply for a job here because of its location!"

The 21-year-old had tried to get the man on his knees, but he simply clutched onto his pant legs. "That's why I don't want to work here," he nearly screeched. "Do you know how many weirdos come in here on a daily basis? It's not worth the crazy."

"I'll increase your pay by twenty-five percent and each time you do the night shift I'll pay you based on overtime pay!" Iruka cried. "Please stay!"

Sasuke sighed and rubbed his temple. He could use the extra money for rent and tuition, not to mention he was running low on the essentials. And it would save him from having to look for another job so far into the semester. Goddammit.

"Fine," he said. "Please give me my schedule for this week."

Iruka shot up from the ground with a big grin and hopped behind the counter, rummaging through the shelf. Finally, he pulled out a highlighted sheet of paper with Sasuke's name on it and handed it to the student.

"Please don't be mad," he said quickly as soon as Sasuke's eyes roamed over the schedule.

An irk mark appeared on the boy's temple. "This says I work the night shift for the whole weekend."

Iruka laughed sheepishly. "I'll see you tomorrow night."

Sasuke walked out the door without a backwards glance. Sigh. The things he did for money.

When he got home, Sasuke flopped down onto his bed in exhaustion. If college was supposed to be the best time in everyone's life, why did he feel like he was ready to lay himself down into an early grave instead?

Good Lord.

At the same moment he considered blowing off some steam, his phone beeped beside him.

Kyuubi: Let's go on a date. ;)

Sasuke rolled his eyes. What kind of bull honky was he spouting now? His fingers flew over his keyboard while his heart spasmed in his chest. If only the man knew how he felt, maybe he would tease him so often and say such ridiculous things.

Sasuke: Not in this lifetime.

Kyuubi: Oh, boo. How about dinner then?

Sasuke: Where at?

That's how Sasuke found himself at a bar and grill on a Friday night with an upbeat Kyuubi sitting across from him. It was actually one of the nicer establishments, and they chose a booth in the back corner to slide into.

"So what? You're going to keep working the night shifts then?" Kyuubi asked, brows drawn together.

"Most of them should be day shifts with some exceptions." Sasuke shrugged. "I could use the money, and I've finally gotten the hang of things."

The blonde shot him a look asking if he was stupid. "So you're going to stay because you don't like change," he deadpanned.

Yeaaah, that was it. Change was especially hard for him, and he had spent all that time getting to know the ins and outs of the convenience store's policies. It would be rough starting over again at a different job.

Halfway into their meal when things got goofier and the ravenette finally got the opportunity to relax from an uneventful week, he excused himself to use the restroom. He didn't know it at the time, but, the moment he stood up from his seat and made his way to the front of the restaurant, he began a chain reaction of tiny events that would eventually lead to his fate.

The bathroom was surprisingly tidy and clean. It was one of the single occupancy ones that required him to lock the door upon entering. Sasuke caught a glimpse of his face in the mirror as he bent down to wash his hands. His cheeks were dusted with a pale pink from laughing so hard and his hair was in its typical unruly state.

He checked his phone as he unlocked the door and made his way out, but as soon as he stepped out, his foot caught the hinge and his body jerked forward.

Shit, he thought, squeezing his eyes shut to embrace for impact as his palms flattened and flailed in front of him in an attempt to ease his fall.

Instead of scraped elbows and knees, his hand smacked against something hard and sturdy, and he felt the odd sensation of arms coiling around his waist whilst his body hit against that aforementioned hard, yet warm surface.

"Woah, careful there, Princess," he heard a saccharine, yet low baritone utter carefreely.

One of his eyelids opened, followed by his other, until both eyeballs were blinking at the man who was cradling his body very close to his. Sasuke looked down at his hands, which were pressed flat against the stranger's oddly defined chest.

Immediately following his embarrassment, he scrambled out of the man's hold, pushing against the chest to get his body away and nearly tripping again in the process. But this time he had regained his footing albeit clumsily. And then he didn't something even more idiotic. He outright stared at the man who, just seconds before, cradled him like a baby.

Lush skin that looked like fluffy pillows. Long, chocolate brown hair. Milky white eyes. Signature black suit and expensive loafers. Coat hanging off his shoulders. An unlit cigarette dangling precariously between upwards tilted lips.

"Hmm?" The man cocked his head, the gesture reminding him of a toddler staring with rounded eyes, as he held Sasuke's bashful gaze.

"T-Thanks," Sasuke forced himself to utter, before he hightailed it back to his spot. It was only after he sat down and took a big gulp of water that he realized the long haired man had called him a princess.

Man, how embarrassing.

H.J.

Sasuke was staring blankly into space a couple hours later at work when he realized that he had absolutely no idea where his phone was. The fact that immediate panic didn't ensue when the thought occurred to him and it took him so long to realize it nearly made him laugh. It wasn't like he texted anyone other than Kyuubi, and it wasn't like he had any family to talk to. Occasionally, it would come in handy when he had to call into work or school, but aside from that, it was just plain tedious to lose it.

He attempted to retrace his steps to figure out when it left his being, but drew a blank. He should probably use the store phone to call Kyuubi so the man wouldn't fuss, but it was a little over one in the morning and he doubted Kyuubi was awake.

A sudden gust of wind flitted by alerting him of a customer. "Welcome," he said as he looked to his right. As soon as his gaze settled on the customer, his body jolted in place and then froze.

This time, the long-haired man wore a long beige coat over a tailored dark navy suit. Sasuke had to admit he had fan-fucking-tastic style and all the suits he wore complimented everything about his frame. But man, he was scary. Someone could tell Sasuke that the man wore a neon sign on his back that read, 'Gun for hire', and he would immediately nod his head in acquiescence.

'Look but don't touch' was also a feasible choice, but he didn't have the balls to let that thought linger.

Again, the man settled his nonchalant gaze on Sasuke for approximately two seconds, sweeping up and down the length of his body once as if searching for something, before he walked to the refrigerated aisle in the back. Again, the footsteps were inaudible. Again, Sasuke felt his shoulders tighten and his palms sweat. How was he sweating when the temperature felt like it dropped another ten degrees?

This guy was bad news.

Another gust of wind and jingle resonated inside the quiet convenience store, and Sasuke felt an odd sense of deja vu before it was interrupted by a playful voice.

"So this is where you've been sneaking off to, Itachi-sama," the teasing lilt exclaimed. By the time Sasuke looked over, another man had already sauntered into the store and disappeared into the back aisle.

Sasuke caught a glimpse of brown hair, yet paid no heed to the customer since the man didn't acknowledge him. In fact, it almost appeared as though the new customer wasn't even attuned to his existence behind the counter, and he was very okay with that. Honestly, that was the way he liked it, so he remained silent and blended into the background.

However, one thing did strike a cord.

Itachi-sama?

There was only one other individual in the store, and unless the newcomer misidentified someone, the man who had been coming nightly into the store was named Itachi.

Surprisingly, Sasuke felt rather satisfied about

finally matching a name to a face.

"That's what you're going to get?" Sasuke heard from the back. "At least get something a little more interesting if you're going out of your way to come here. How about a tuna sandwich? You don't want to lose those gains. Oooh, or a pack of condoms. Yo, Itachi-sama, you need any condoms?"

This man spoke as if he didn't care for his environment. It would have been embarrassing for the typical individual to talk about such private matters so openly, but there was an air of nonchalance in the customer's upbeat tone that could have convinced anyone he was talking about the weather.

However, for some reason, the most blatant thing at the forefront of the boy's mind was that he couldn't see Itachi ever buying condoms… or using any. The mere thought was so prevalent that he felt his cheeks turn hot.

The voice increasingly grew louder as they perused the aisle before Itachi was standing in front of Sasuke with what he assumed to be an irritated expression etched across his pristinely nonchalant features.

The man set down a bottle of water, and Sasuke noticed that his dark orbs flickered to the red packet of Marlboro that was in the palm of Sasuke's hand.

"Ah, I figured, since you didn't buy a pack the last time, you might be running low." He forced a smile, but silently berated himself for taking initiative to make his job easier. Maybe now he'd get killed and stuffed into the portable freezer in the back for displaying thoughtful qualities.

He was met with silence, something that he gradually became desensitized to the more times he encountered the man who rarely spoke.

He wasn't sure if Itachi was eyeing the box clasped in his hand because he wanted to chop off his hand, or if that was an indication to include it in his checkout.

"Thank you."

So it was the latter. Thank goodness. Sasuke smiled and scanned it with the bottle of water.

"Huh? Did you just thank someone?" the second customer's muffled voice said with a hint of amusement.

Sasuke couldn't directly pinpoint the owner of the voice until a head popped out from behind one side of the man's shoulders like a gopher out of its hole and a swish of brunette locks swayed in view.

A curious gaze was bestowed upon Sasuke before a look of recognition flitted across the brunette's eyes, and a full grin ignited on his face.

"Ah! You're the princess from before!"

Ah, fucking shit. What a small world.

A flush settled on Sasuke's face as his gaze widened in return. "I'm clearly a guy," he snapped before he realized what he said and horror settled into his features.

The man blinked in return, astonishment clear in his gaze, before it was overwritten with what seemed to be a carefree grin. "I know," he stated. "But you're beautiful like a princess, so that's why I called you princess."

Sasuke bit the inside of his cheek. Just keep your mouth shut. Don't say anything you'll regret. He chanted the mantra in his head as an unaffected Itachi paid for his items.

"I'm Neji by the way."

The college student noticed that the brunette had glanced down at his shirt where his name tag was pinned. Ugh, goddammit.

"Your name's Sasuke. How cute. I'll remember that. By the way," the man rummaged around in his pocket, "I didn't expect to see you so soon, but here, personal delivery!"

He set something black and white down on the counter: his missing phone.

"You dropped it when you bumped into me. I kept it safe till now."

"Oh. Thank you." He was grateful to get his phone back, but he wasn't particularly fond of the conversation at hand.

"Mhmm, so Sasuke, are you gay—"

"Neji, beat it." Itachi's deep voice cut through the brunette's, muddling up Neji's last words.

"Wow. You're just full of surprises today, Itachi-sama," he said with awe, but he began backpedaling toward the exit. "I'll see you around, Sasuke!" he said with a wave.

"Please don't," Sasuke mumbled to himself. He returned the debit card to Itachi, noting the man's stare. "Here's your receipt," he uttered, handing it over with two hands.

Itachi took it without a word, slid the pack of cigarettes in his pocket, and grabbed his bottled water, readying himself to leave.

Sasuke bowed his head as the man turned, but as he was returning the water, a sudden thought occurred to him and he reached out a hand to grab onto the man's sleeve. "Wait!" he yelped. He startled himself with the volume and urgency in his own voice.

Itachi froze, his eyes rooted on the pale hand that held tightly, yet gingerly, onto the sleeve of his coat.

Sasuke must have realized his blunder because he retracted his hand immediately as if he burned himself.

"What?" Itachi asked, his voice as cold as ever.

"That… thing of yours you gave me last time. Please take it back," the boy said.

"Why?"

So blunt, Sasuke thought with a flinch.

"I don't think I'll ever use it."

Sasuke felt like a flower withering in the cold underneath that unwavering stare. He was met with silence, which caused him to spill more words.

"Plus, I don't think it's safe to keep around. Besides, I don't even know how to use it."

"Shall I teach you?"

Sasuke's head shot up fast. "What?"

"Shall. I. Teach. You?"

"Umm… I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why not?"

He did a double take. For real? He was asking Sasuke why not? Why not? Did he need to write the man an essay of the long list of reasons why not. He already had quite a few piling up in his head.

1. No matter how you looked at it, he was a stranger who looked and acted like yakuza. That is to say, he must be affiliated with gangster activities.

2. This man apparently had associates, and his associates looked like trouble. Sasuke did his best to stay away from trouble like a good boy.

3. He reduced Sasuke to a frightened, nervous wreck simply by looking at him. If that didn't spell uncomfortable, then he didn't know what did.

4. It was a fucking gun. And he had told Sasuke to simply whack off the people who bothered him. What kind of psychopathic answer was that?

Honestly, the better question to ask in this scenario was why should he. And no, that wasn't a question. It was a statement. Of course, he shouldn't.

"I- I don't think I'm comfortab—"

"I will pick you up here tomorrow at noon. Bring the gun."

With that, Itachi was gone, leaving a stupified Sasuke in his wake.

D-Did... Did he just secure himself a date with a gangster?

Sasuke screeched and dropped down into a low crouch, stuffing his hands into his spikes. Oh God, oh Buddha, Allah, Jesus, anyone. Save me. What did he get himself into?