A/N: HELLO EVERYONE! I'm so excited to be back, I took an extra week off for my birthday but then went through some family emergencies that postponed me updating :( but all is well now. But, I want to communicate with you all more, so I've decided to make a twitter account so you all can keep up with when I'll be updating! So follow me on twitter: koalachiii (: there are other people with similar usernames, so look for the account that has a koala for the avatar, haha!
Okay, on to the chapter!
Warnings: underage drinking, drug use
"What do you mean you can't hang out?"
Stopping barefoot in the middle of the kitchen with the milk carton halfway to his lips, Boruto Uzumaki was ultimately taken aback. Mitsuki, his absolute ride or die through thick and thin, was bailing on him for Chocho? It was just her birthday. There wasn't anything special about birthdays. This had to be a joke.
"I have to prepare."
"For what?"
"I'm making Chocho dinner."
Boruto halted in his tracks. "Seriously?"
"Serious."
Boruto's expression resembled something akin to disgust, but he tried to conceal it in his tone. He was trying to be a more supportive friend, especially to Mitsuki. He was going through a rough time right now. "Uhh, all right. That's cool of you."
"Thanks. We're throwing a birthday party here after."
Sitting at the kitchen table in front of his bowl of cereal, Boruto made a face and spun the milk carton around."Well you know I'm down for that. Who's going?"
"I don't know, probably everyone."
"Yeah, okay." Boruto scoffed. "Am I not invited?"
Mitsuki laughed. "I'll ask her. I don't see why you wouldn't be, she just hasn't told me who to invite yet."
"Alright, just let me know then." Boruto swung his legs back and forth.
"I'll text you." Mitsuki said, and then hung up.
Dropping his phone onto the table, Boruto let out a sigh. Mitsuki and Chocho were still an anomaly to him. In what way, shape, and form did they even work together?! It was absolutely bizarre. He still didn't get it, but Mitsuki was lonely and wanted constant attention and company, so he supposed Chocho was the perfect person to fill that role. Boruto had been pretty absent lately due to his own… distractions, so it was only fair that his friend found someone too.
It seemed as if almost everyone had coupled up at this point, excluding Shikadai. That guy couldn't care less about dating. He had his insatiable addiction to coffee and napping and was completely content with that. And Boruto liked that about him. Maybe if he wasn't busy he'd call him up and they could hang out. What else were single friends for when the taken ones were busy with their partner?
Dialing up Shikadai, Boruto shoveled spoonfuls of cereal into his mouth.
It went to voicemail, and Boruto scowled. He looked at the clock. 11:42 AM. Shikadai probably wasn't even awake yet. Goddamnit. What was Boruto supposed to do now, go take Himawari to get a pedicure for the fifth time in three weeks? This last week before school started was so mind numbingly boring, it was horrible.
Well, if he wasn't invited to Chocho's party, and Shikadai was still asleep, it looked like Xbox was the only thing on his radar today. So, he finished his cereal, rinsed the bowl out before setting it in the dishwasher, then headed upstairs.
It seemed as if the next hours flew by with Boruto shuffling between games. Madden, FIFA, NBA 2K, Fallout, Halo; there was only so much he could do and so many bags of chips he could eat before getting restless. Summer was great for doing nothing, but after a while it got boring.
Finally around five PM, he stretched from his position on the floor and let out a yawn. He checked his phone and saw no word from Mitsuki. He wasn't aware his friend could cook, let alone that it would take so many hours to prepare. Maybe Mitsuki had planned a five course meal for Chocho – who knew what that guy was thinking. All Boruto knew is that his friend was definitely on the more distant side of emotions, so for him to be doing something this elaborate meant he actually really liked Chocho. And then to throw a party for her after at his place was also a big deal.
He wanted to play some soccer, and the sun wasn't even setting yet, so he stood up and caroused out of his room across the hall right over to Himawari's door. After knocking twice, he burst into her room and she screamed, ripping the headphones from her ear as she flailed onto her back.
"Boruto! Don't barge in my room!"
"Come be a goalie."
"No! I'm busy!" She exclaimed.
"Doing what? Learning those stupid TikTok dances?" Boruto walked over to her bed and she hid her phone from him. He tried to grab it from her but she only held it away further. "Come be my goalie!"
Himawari huffed. "I said no!"
Boruto gave her puppy dog eyes. "I'll learn a TikTok dance with you if you do."
"Wait, really?!" Himawari's eyes suddenly lit up.
"No," Boruto said curly, then took the pillow from underneath her only to slap her in the face with it. She let out a displeased exclamation and he walked out of her room cackling, leaving the door open on purpose. She kept yelling at him even as he hopped downstairs and went into the backyard.
Picking up the soccer ball, he brought it over to the net. Himawari opened her window from above and shouted at him.
"You didn't close my door!"
"Shut up!" He snapped back, dropping the ball in front of his feet. He dribbled it around for a few moments before making a shot towards the net. It hit perfectly in the center. In the window sill, Himawari laughed mockingly.
"You suck!"
Boruto glared at her. "But I made it!"
She shrugged. "Still suck!"
She closed her window, and Boruto rolled her eyes. God, having a sibling was the best and worst thing ever. She was his very best friend, but at any given moment he also wanted to strangle her. But no matter what, he would always protect her with his life.
After practicing a few trick shots, Himawari appeared in the back door with a bowl of fruit. Pineapple, watermelon, apples, and grapes. She went and sat at their patio table with her legs curled up to her chest, absentmindedly watching Boruto while scrolling through her phone. After some more time of Boruto playing by himself, he came over and sat on the opposite side of the table and scooted the fruit bowl closer to him. Why Himawari was obsessed with fruit was beyond him, but he always benefited from not having to cut it himself.
"Chocho's birthday is today?" Himawari asked. Boruto looked over at her.
"Yeah, why?"
"She posted this." Himawari said, then handed Boruto her phone, and he clicked on Chocho's story. It was of the dinner Mitsuki made her with the caption "when bae makes you dinner for your birthday" with lots of emojis, but no username tag or glimpse of Mitsuki in the picture. He raised a questionable brow.
"Yeah, Mitsuki made her dinner."
Himawari's eyes lit up. "That's so romantic!"
Boruto chuckled and handed her phone back. "You think?"
"Duh! Making dinner for someone means you care for them a lot! So Mitsuki must really like her then."
Boruto had no faith in them as a longterm couple, but if Himawari was sitting here romanticizing it, then who was he to say otherwise? Maybe he was just feeling sad because Mitsuki chose Chocho over him sometimes. But that wasn't fair to hold against him because lately all Boruto had been doing was spending time with Sarada. So it equaled out, but still Boruto didn't want to lose his friend completely to a girl, especially when he felt like their relationship was so iffy. But hell – what did he know, he hadn't explicitly talked to Mitsuki about it. Maybe he was being overly judgmental.
"Yeah, he definitely does." Boruto took a cube of watermelon. The sweet flavor melted in his mouth and he let his head fall onto the back of the chair. The sky was just now starting to streak oranges and pinks and the temperature had dropped the slightest bit. A gentle, chilled wind had picked up, signifying summer weather being dusted away by the oncoming autumn.
Himawari continued to click through her phone. "Is she having a birthday party?"
"It's Chocho, of course she is."
"Were you invited?"
Boruto shrugged, trying to swallow the lump in his throat. What was this weird feeling? "Not that I know of, but it could be an all girls party. So who knows."
Himawari pursed her lips. "Do you think it's because you dumped her for Sarada?"
"I didn't dump her for Sarada," Boruto quickly corrected, "and no. We don't hold anything against each other."
Himawari gave him a strange look. "Huh. That's weird then."
"I don't really care either way. It's just a party – we have a million of those throughout the school year. I won't miss out on anything special."
"Yeah, you're right!" Himawari said. "Inojin said he's going to it though, so he couldn't hang out tonight."
So she started inviting people already? Way to rub salt in the wound, Boruto thought grimly. The Akimichi's and Yamanaka's had a very long family history, though, so it would only make sense. Same with the Nara's – Shikadai was more than likely at the party too.
God, this was just making him feel worse. And the moment he realized that, he was able to pinpoint the emotion that kept flaring up – he was feeling left out.
Not that Boruto prided himself on his uncanny ability to be the center of attention at all times, but he usually was the life of the party as well. No event was truly a party without him. And in all honesty, if Himawari's assumptions were true and Chocho didn't want Boruto around because of their past together, then he was going to be very annoyed. It was justified, but from his perspective still useless. But Mitsuki wouldn't leave Boruto hanging tonight, right? They were best friends, of course he would advocate for him.
He was overthinking way too much.
"What's wrong?" Himawari asked.
"Nothing." Boruto dismissed, then stood up. "Thanks for letting me eat all your fruit!"
Himawari's brows furrowed, but then she looked to the bowl. Indeed, it was empty, and she let out a hopeless sigh.
Going back into his room, he shut the door and fell face flat on his bed. Literally everyone was going to be at that party tonight and would be posting about it all over their stories. As much as he was dying to go, his pride refused to let him reach out to Mitsuki first. So if no one invited him, he'd just suffer by himself and pretend like he didn't care. Simple as that.
Attempting to play a round of Call of Duty, Boruto couldn't take his mind off of the party. His body was getting antsy just thinking about it. Once the round was over, he let his character sit in the lobby while he checked his phone. So far only Chocho, Allison, and Leila had posted that they were at Mitsuki's. They had taken a selfie in his large bedroom mirror. Well, maybe it was a good thing he wasn't there because the last time he'd interacted with Leila had been prom. So it would be awkward. So really, if Boruto was looking on the bright side, Mitsuki was doing him a favor by not inviting him!
But god, he still couldn't get over it no matter how much he forced his brain to try and forget. He needed something to distract him. Video games, more soccer, a drive, something.
Then he got an idea. Sarada probably was available. He wondered vaguely if she was invited to the party too?
Pft. There was no way. Sarada didn't go to parties.
After grabbing his phone and finding her contact, a couple rings later, Sarada answered.
"Hello?"
"Hey, what are you doing right now?" He asked.
"Um, nothing, why?"
"Do you wanna hang out?"
Sarada paused on the other end. "Uh, sure. When?"
"Right now. Like I can be there in ten minutes."
There was an elongated pause on the other end. "Y-Yeah, that's fine. Do you want me to put on some tea?"
Boruto thought about it.
"Sure, chamomile." And he wanted her to spike it with some brandy so he could make it through tonight without going insane. He just had to keep in mind that if he was participating in something equally or more fun as going to Chocho's birthday party, it didn't matter if he went or not. And hanging out with Sarada was always fun, so now he had nothing to worry about.
"O-Okay, I'll see you soon!"
Boruto hung up and grabbed a hoodie from his closet. His adrenaline was pumping intensely through his veins and he had to slow down and take a deep breath. Okay, so he wasn't invited to the party, that was totally fine. There would be a million other parties to go to throughout the year. So instead, he was going to hang out with Sarada and spend quality time with her. All he needed to do was calm down, be in the moment with her, and at all costs not check his phone while he was there. Everything would be just fine.
Once grabbing his keys, he tip-toed down the stairs. Both of his parents were home and he didn't want Himawari to know that he was sneaking out again. The front door was too loud to go through and he wasn't in the mood to jump out his window, so the back door it was. He slid through it quietly into the backyard.
Cutting through his backyard onto the pathway that surrounded the park, the darkness and sound of crickets enveloped his senses as he walked on the trail. Small sticks crunched beneath his shoes and he checked his phone. The brightness made his eyes recoil and he turned it down then went to his social media. Chocho had posted a video of her, Allison, and Leila lip singing to a song, then the next video was of the entire living room that had pink, white, and red balloons, confetti, and streamers scattered everywhere from the floors to the ceiling with enormous happy birthday letting hanging on the wall. No one else was there yet, but then again it was barely past nine PM. Boruto predicted that by ten, that living room would be packed to the brim.
Leila's story was a selfie, the same video Chocho had posted, and then a picture of the living room, whereas Allison had posted something similar. Iwabee and Denki were chugging a bottle on Iwabee's story, and Denki choked afterwards. Those were the only new things that were posted. Boruto snorted and clicked his phone off then shoved his hands in his pockets. He was trying to convince himself that the party was going to be lame so therefore wouldn't want to go to it anyway. Lame parties were a waste of time.
Avoiding the cameras on the Uchiha's back patio, Boruto climbed up the vines of the garage seamlessly then sat on the roof by Sarada's window after knocking softly. The moon shone down and reflected off the tips of his hair as he waited. A few moments later, she drew back her curtains and then opened the window to let him in. He smiled and crawled through the window and she shut it behind him.
"Hi," She said, "I didn't expect you to want to hang out so late."
Boruto shrugged, offering a forced smile. "Eh, y'know, got tired of video games, and then I missed your face."
Sarada's cheeks went red but she brushed it off. "Your tea is right there."
"Oh, thanks." Boruto sat on her bed and took a sip. He exclaimed in pain when it was too hot, and blew on the hot beverage. Sarada chuckled.
"You do that every time."
Boruto narrowed his eyes. "I know. I'm cursed or something."
Sarada sat next to him and swung her legs back and forth. She seemed anxious for some reason, and Boruto's sporadic energy probably wasn't helping. He had ulterior motives which made him feel bad, but he wasn't doing anything malicious. He just needed a distraction, and he was sure Sarada didn't mind the late night company.
"How was your day?" Boruto asked, encasing the warm glass in his hands to calm his jittery nerves.
"It was fine. I honestly didn't do much." Sarada said, grabbing her own tea. "My mom left at noon to work an overnight shift and my dad has just been gone, so I just hung out by myself."
Boruto raised a brow. "Damn. That must've been nice."
She shrugged. "Kind of. It can get boring being the only child sometimes."
Boruto pursed his lips and took another sip of his tea. Their conversation felt a little stale tonight, but it's probably because Boruto wasn't in the right mindset. His brain was focused on other things, and he was just itching not to check his phone.
"You wanna watch a movie or something?" He asked, hoping that would quell the awkwardness between them.
She nodded and stood up to grab the remote for her TV. They scrolled through Netflix until they chose something, and they settled into her bed. She was sitting about a foot away from him and he didn't even notice until the opening credits were through. He scowled and reached over.
"Closer." He said, and she laughed before scooching closer to him.
Now, with his arm wrapped around her shoulder, her head laying on his chest, he felt a little more at ease. His body was relaxing into the fact that he was here watching a movie with Sarada, and he was going to destress and not worry about anything else. They sipped on their tea blissfully and became engrossed in the movie.
That is, until about thirty minutes into the movie, his phone started ringing. He flinched, and his hands started trembling as he pulled it out of his pocket. Mitsuki was calling him. His heart raced as he sat up from his and Sarada's position.
"Hello?" He said, and turned the volume down a couple clicks. Sarada looked at him.
"Heyy," Mitsuki already sounded fucked up, "I was starting to wonder why you weren't here yet, but I got too high and thought I texted you but I forgot to press send. So come over."
Boruto chuckled. "Alright, bet." He said and hung up, adjusting his hoodie as he was ready to spring to his feet and head back out the window, but then hesitated. Wait.
Like a complete idiot, he'd overlooked this part. Or rather, thought he'd have more willpower to decide that he was just going to stay in with Sarada. Well, now that he was faced with the two options, he wanted to go to the party. But how was he supposed to tell Sarada he was leaving her to go to it? Could he finish the rest of the movie and then go? Well, no, there was still an hour left of the movie – he didn't want to miss any more of the party. Could he tell Sarada it was Chocho's party? Were they even considered friends anymore? This was too complicated. He'd made an impulsive decision and now Sarada was going to get hurt one way or another.
He could invite her, but the offhand chance she said no and he still chose to go, that would cause problems. Should he even bother offering for her to come with, or should he lie and say an emergency came up? Well, no, she wasn't stupid. And she'd see all the pictures and videos too. Best case scenario would be for him to convince her to come, and everyone would be happy.
"What happened?" Sarada asked. Boruto felt his hands sweating as he slipped his phone back in his pocket. Well, he had no other choice.
"Chocho's having a birthday party at Mitsuki's house and he wants me to come over. You wanna come too?"
Sarada blinked and took a long moment to respond. "Right now?"
"Yeah," Boruto felt antsy. If she said no, he could convince her that he had to go to be the sober babysitter so no one would get arrested – she'd understand if that was the case. Luckily, her good nature would support Boruto doing a good deed.
Sarada seemed to be flipping back and forth in her mind, and Boruto wanted to urge her faster.
"Um… sure I guess, but I just want to put nicer clothes on."
Boruto blinked, and almost had her repeat that. Was it really that easy? Oh wow, okay, he could stop scrambling for different excuses now and actually sigh in relief.
"No problem. We'll just have to take your car if that's okay?" He asked. He had to leave his car at his place so his parents wouldn't know he snuck out. If Sarada's parents knew she was with him tonight, they would be fine with anything. They were a lot more easy going that way, which was to Boruto's advantage.
Sarada looked unsure, but she nodded nonetheless. Success, Boruto texted Mitsuki and said he was on his way with Sarada while she put on an outfit that consisted of a black top, black shorts, and the pink and white Nike's Boruto had bought her, which he smiled to himself as they went to her car.
Since Sarada didn't know where Mitsuki's house was without directions, Boruto hopped in the driver's side while Sarada in the passengers and they closed the loud, rickety doors beside them. This car was much wider and older than his Mazda. There wasn't a fancy touch screen stereo system nor a backup camera, but all that was fine. A car was a car and Boruto was going to get them to Mitsuki's household either way. It made him appreciate his car that much more. The older car was kind of endearing in a rustic type of way – it had grit to it.
Now that he was physically on his way to the party, he felt more excited than anxious. He was going to hang out with all his friends and actually be social! Ever since he got grounded, the opportunities to see his friends had been slim. But now he got to go see everyone again before school started, and they could kick off their junior year with another great party.
Sarada seemed uncharacteristically quiet, but Boruto didn't notice as he shuffled through his songs. Finally deeming one upbeat enough to raise his mood, they cruised past the train tracks and down their city's parkway until they were at Mitsuki's house about ten minutes later.
Boruto jumped out of the little red Ford and shut the door, and Sarada followed in suit. The music could be heard from outside and there were colorful lights shining from inside past the curtains. He was so excited, but Sarada on the other hand still hadn't peeped a word since they'd gotten in the car.
Not bothering to knock, Boruto opened the front door only to be greeted by the strong smell of marijuana and alcohol, and people packed against the walls with different snacks, drinks, and miscellaneous items in their hand. There was a pong table in the center of the room, the large bongs were placed on the counter, the loud music was blasting, and everything was exactly how Boruto had been expecting it to be. He was thrilled.
"C'mon," He urged Sarada, and she followed him through the crowd of people into the living room. Mitsuki was easy to spot as he was at his usual place by the kitchen island with a drink in his hand, Chocho next to him in a sparkly purple dress talking ecstatically to her friends. Boruto was going straight to Mitsuki, but then Iwabee appeared from the crowd with his arms held out. Sarada fell back into the crowd to observe.
"Boruto fuckin' Uzumaki," He said with a large grin on his face, his eyes drooping and bloodshot, "you escaped your jailhouse. How the hell didya do it?"
"It's me, what do you expect?" Boruto and Iwabee clasped hands and pulled each other in for a pat on the back. "Are you hammered already?!"
"Just about!" Iwabee exclaimed. "Oh, I also brought this for you."
Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a long red rectangular device and handed it to Boruto. His eyes lit up.
"Sick, dude! Thanks a lot!" Boruto put it to his lips and inhaled, then exhaled, letting a large cloud puff escape into the air. It dissipated moments later.
"Yer welcome," Iwabee swayed back and forth, the grin still plastered to his face. "So did you come here by yourself?! That's not like you!"
"No, I'm actually here with Sarada–" Boruto looked in different directions but wasn't seeing Sarada in his immediate vicinity. Did she get lost? Oh, no she didn't. The crowd swayed to the left and revealed Sarada standing back sheepishly. Boruto beckoned her forward, and she pushed past the couple in front of her. "What were you doing back there?"
Sarada shrugged, and Iwabee filled the silence.
"You tryna take a shot with me, Sarada?"
"No thank you," She said meekly.
"Aww, that's no fun! You did last time!"
"Yeah, and it made me sick." She scowled at the memory. It was disgusting. Alcohol was disgusting.
"D'awww," Iwabee threw his arm over Boruto's shoulders. "I'll convince you! Tonight I know you will!"
Sarada gave a halfhearted laugh, and Boruto kept his gaze on her. What was up with her tonight? Was she okay?
"Hey Iwabee, do you know where the–"
A voice stopped all of them in their tracks, and if time could stop, it definitely would have in that moment.
There he was. Metal standing right in front of Boruto and Sarada. Sarada's eyes widened, and all Boruto could think was are you fucking kidding me.
"What, Metal?" Iwabee stumbled over to his other friend. Metal wasn't fazed by his drunk friend and kept his strong gaze placed on the two in front of him, clutching the Coors bottle in his hand.
"The vape. The red vape you had earlier." Metal said evenly.
"Oh, I got it for Boruto, so he has it now!" Iwabee said, completely oblivious to the situation happening right in front of him.
Metal looked back and forth from Boruto, to Sarada, back to Boruto, then ultimately landed on Sarada. His eyes quivered for a moment, emotions sailing through his eyes.
"I thought you hated parties."
It was an attempt to sound snarky, but the expression on his face was opposite of the words he had spoken. He was looking at her like she was the small beam of sunshine on a rainy day. Hopeful and happy. Like this was the golden opportunity he'd been blessed with to have a redo, and he was going to take ahold of it.
The ugly, venomous jealousy completely encased Boruto's body. He felt the corners of his mouth curling up in disgust.
In response, Sarada glared at him.
"And I thought you didn't drink."
"I-It's Iwabee's!" Metal said quickly, and Iwabee looked at him weirdly.
Boruto was extremely irritated. He didn't expect Metal to be here of all people. He should've expected at least Boruto to go and therefore would know not to come. But, Chocho's birthday party was an entire school event no matter who had beef with who, but that didn't make it any less annoying. And judging by the aghast expression on Sarada's face she definitely wasn't okay now. The last time she had seen Metal was more than likely when they broke up.
If Boruto knew a thing or two about breakups, it was that the first one was always the hardest to get over, no matter how long the duration. So now if he and Sarada had anything worthwhile, it was gone now. It had to be, there was no way Sarada could walk out of this party unscathed or without talking to Metal to get "closure", or god knows what else. A "lets meetup after this" text? A sneaky kiss? A private conversion alone in the bathroom? Boruto knew this situation all too well. He had experience, he knew what happened when you ran into your ex at a party.
So, inevitably, Boruto and Sarada's relationship was screwed. When Metal was involved, it always was.
Boruto suddenly felt sick, and he grabbed onto Sarada's arm.
"Ohh look, it's Chocho! Gotta go say hi to the birthday girl!" He yanked her towards the kitchen where Mitsuki and Chocho were still chatting. Sarada exclaimed his name, but he ignored her. He didn't want her near Metal. She came to this party with Boruto, and she was leaving with Boruto. He wasn't going to let her out of his sight. He didn't care what she said.
"Oh my god, Boruto! Sarada!" Chocho exclaimed as she saw them approaching her, "Thanks so much for coming!" She hugged both of them tightly. Well, there went the assumption that she had any resentment towards them, Boruto noted. See, he had been overthinking for absolutely no reason.
"Glad we're here, Chocho," Boruto said, keeping his grip on Sarada's arm tight. Chocho pulled away from both of them. Her makeup was starting to smudge, and Sarada chuckled softly.
"Uh, hey, Cho, let me fix your lipstick."
"Oh my god, please!" Chocho held still while Sarada found a napkin and wiped away the lipstick off her chin. She held her hands to her face. "What would I do without you? I miss us being best friends!"
"Me too," Sarada said, her voice barely heard above the music, and Boruto looked at her, his grip faltering the slightest bit. He couldn't handle this tonight.
"So where's the alcohol?" He asked, reaching for the bottle of tequila on the other side of the counter. He could not handle being sober for one more second. "A shot for the birthday girl?"
"Duh!" Chocho went next to Boruto. "Sarada, Mitsuki, you want one?!"
"Sure," Mitsuki said. Sarada shook her head.
"No thanks."
"Aww, c'mon Sarada, it's my birthday!" Chocho grasped Sarada's wrists tightly. "Pleaaassee?" She blinked innocently, and Sarada shifted uncomfortably. She was avoiding eye contact, but eventually fell for the Akimichi's puppy dog eyes.
"O-Okay, fine."
"Yay! Make that four shots!"
"Roger that." Boruto gathered four shot glasses before filling them to the brim. He was surprised to say the least that Sarada caved, but she always had a weak spot for Chocho. Truly, she could get that girl to do anything no matter their status of friendship.
"I'll need a chaser," Sarada said grimly, and Mitsuki handed her a mixed drink in which she was probably unaware it also contained alcohol, but details.
Handing everyone their designated glasses, Boruto noticed Sarada didn't look quite happy to be drinking alcohol, but after this he'd be sure she didn't drink any more. He wouldn't want her to get sick again.
"Cheers!" Chocho exclaimed, and they all clinked their glasses together before tapping the bottoms on the countertop, throwing the alcohol into their mouths effortlessly. Sarada struggled and recoiled at the taste only to chug the mixed drink once the shot glass was empty. She shuddered after, and Chocho laughed.
"I forgot you've never really drank before!"
She let out a disgruntled noise, and Chocho hugged her tightly.
"Aww, you're so cute! I've missed you! Come here, I want you to meet some people!"
Chocho dragged Sarada off into the mass crowd of people, and Boruto took a sip of the mixed drink that had been left behind. Orange juice, sprite, and vodka. Nice.
"How'd the dinner go?" Boruto asked, pulling the red vape from his pocket. He took a hit, and Mitsuki smiled.
"Great. She loved all of it."
"Good." Boruto said, passing the vape to his friend. "You seem happy."
"I am." Mitsuki was staring off into space dreamily after taking a hit of the nicotine. Regardless of the fact that it was because of Chocho, he was happy for his friend. Mitsuki tended to be a naturally sad, reserved person. So for something to bring genuine excitement into his demeanor showed it meant a lot to him.
Boruto let out a chuckle as Mitsuki passed back the vape. "Good, well don't let her break your heart too badly."
Mitsuki gave Boruto a look but dropped it. "How are you and Sarada?"
"Um, we're good." He scratched his head, feeling the alcohol burn his insides. His head was starting to feel fuzzy. He took another sip of the mixed drink. "Did you know Metal was gonna be here?"
Mitsuki nodded. "He came with Inojin, Denki, and Iwabee. And with both him and Leila I didn't know if you'd even want to come."
Boruto shrugged. "Can't really avoid them forever. It's fine, though. I just don't want Sarada talking to him."
"How come?"
Boruto didn't quite have a valid explanation to that answer other than because he didn't want her to. Why would she want to talk to Metal? There was nothing to say. She broke up with him, and that was that. He wasn't worth her time. But it was inevitable Sarada wouldn't see it that way; this was her first run in with her first ex so there was obviously going to be some form of conversation between them tonight. It sucked. Boruto didn't want that to happen. He wanted Sarada all to himself.
This summer, he and Sarada had been in their own blissful world with no other distractions or people to judge them. But now with school coming up, their fantasy was coming to an end. Reality had to settle in sooner or later, and it would really put their relationship to the test.
Unfortunately for Boruto, he wanted their daydream to last as long as possible. But looking at the circumstances, it seemed like it was going to be crushed sooner than he thought.
Finally, Boruto mustered up a response.
"'Cause he's Metal."
Mitsuki snorted and nudged Boruto. He only laughed in response and took another hit of the vape, slowly inhaling to feel the effects of the nicotine hit his brain before exhaling. He definitely was buzzed, but it was a good feeling.
Sarada was being dragged around like a ragdoll, being introduced to tons of people yet she couldn't quite grasp ahold of their name and face efficiently due to the alcohol that was now in her system. Her head felt quite fuzzy and her stomach was burning inside, and she kept blinking to try and get herself to snap out of it. She was the lightest lightweight to exist – there was no doubt about that.
Sarada was standing next to Chocho in a circle full of girls that she had recently become quite close with, as well as Wasabi, Sumire, and Namida. The other girls were very different from Sarada's volleyball friends; they all had long lashes and manicured nails with blush dusted across their noses. All of them were very pretty and radiated femininity – the girls Sarada usually hung out with were all adrenaline, ponytails, and sweat. But she didn't mind either group. They both had different things to offer. This particular group was just more intimidating.
"and this is Mia– hey, Sarada! Are you paying attention?!" Chocho exclaimed.
"She's drunk," Allison laughed from across the circle.
"Oh my God, pull yourself together." Chocho lightly hit Sarada, and she only giggled in response.
"Sorry, sorry, I'm listening." Sarada said, and took in a deep breath to hold her composure, but it quickly broke and she began laughing. All the girls in the circle started laughing too, and Chocho rolled her eyes playfully.
"We should play rage cage!" Wasabi said.
"Oh my god, are you trying to kill us?!" Leila exclaimed.
"What's rage cage?" Sarada asked innocently.
"The quickest way to get fucked up!" Boruto suddenly threw his arms over Chocho and Sarada's shoulders. Mitsuki wasn't far behind him. "Just say the word I'll go set it up!"
"Set up what?" Mitsuki asked.
"Rage cage."
"Ah, I'll go clear the beer pong table."
"You guys!" Leila whined.
There was a lot of discourse and excitement happening at once, and Sarada was lost in the mayhem. She kept looking from person to person to see how she should be reacting, but all she got out of it was confusion. So she just stood there and waited for someone to tell her where to go and what to do, which happened to be her and Leila leftover once everyone migrated over to the beer pong table. Now, she definitely was buzzed, but she was still coherent enough to know that Leila didn't like her due to the prom incident. But that was four months ago, and Sarada didn't hold any grudges, so she was hoping Leila at least wouldn't be mean to her.
"So, uh, I've never played rage cage before." Sarada offered the pathetic excuse for a starting conversation, and Leila rolled her eyes.
"I hate it. It's the worst drinking game ever, but whatever. Come on, I'll show you."
She followed behind Leila sheepishly and was placed to the left of her at the table. This was awkward, but she wouldn't try and start something at Chocho's birthday party, right? If Leila was truly Chocho's friend then she'd know every single thing about tonight was about her, and if anyone tried to take her spotlight, their social status would be ruined. No one would be stupid enough to try that, so Sarada at least had a safety net.
"Alright, if you're not trying to get fucked up then get away from the table!" Boruto exclaimed while Mitsuki was setting up cups in the middle and filling them with seltzers. Chocho was filling the middle cup with all sorts of liquid – rum, white claw, pineapple juice, tequila, vodka, and other things Sarada couldn't even recognize.
There were about thirteen people cramped around the table with an audience standing behind them, and Boruto cleared his throat. "The rules of rage cage are that you have to bounce the ball in the cup before the other person! If you get the ball in, you have to pass it to the person next to you, but always pass to the left! If you get it in on the first try you can pass it to anyone on the table. And if you get stacked, you get a drink from the middle. Got it?"
Sarada was a mass of confusion as a couple people left the table and new people joined, two of them being Iwabee and Metal. Metal was now standing right between Boruto and Mitsuki, and Sarada felt her heart throb nervously at the sight. It was so weird seeing the only two guys she had ever liked in her life that close in proximity to each other, but if Boruto had any feelings about it he sure wasn't showing them.
Boruto downed a shot of alcohol to empty the red solo cup then slammed it down in front of him. Mitsuki stood on the other side of Metal with a red cup and a ball ready in his hands.
"Ready?"
Mitsuki nodded, and loudly, Boruto shouted,
"Go!"
The hysteria was insane. Some people were cheering for Boruto, some were cheering for Mitsuki. They were trying to bounce the ball into the cup, and Mitsuki got it first, so he passed it onto Iwabee. Iwabee began trying to bounce it into the cup, and Boruto got his ball in. He passed it to Metal.
Metal got the ball in and handed it to Mitsuki, and with one quick bounce Mitsuki got the ball in. He stacked his cup onto Iwabee's and everyone was screaming. Iwabee let out a curse word as he passed the stacked cups to Chocho and took a red cup from the middle and threw it back in one go, then began trying to bounce the ball back into the cup. Oh dear. Sarada now understood.
It was too late to back out now as the cup and ball were rapidly approaching her. Leila prepared herself as Wasabi passed it onto her, and in one shot she bounced the ball right into the cup, passing it to Sarada. Sarada froze, and everyone started shouting at her to do something. Overwhelmed by all the commotion, she hadn't noticed Leila had gotten the second ball in the cup and stacked it on top of hers. Without hesitation, Leila passed on the red cup to the person next to Sarada and handed her a cup from the middle.
"You got stacked, so drink this."
Sarada was still dazed from the experience, and forced down the seltzer. Yuck, she was disgusted, but had to keep playing or else the ball and cup would round back around and she'd have to drink again.
Allison, Inojin, Boruto, Iwabee, and Chocho all had to end up drinking twice or more, and Sarada was finally getting the hang of the game. But she kept getting stacked by Leila so was having to drink more – so therefore her accuracy was slowly going down, down, down…
Only one cup remained alongside the horrendous middle cup which was just glaring at Sarada, taunting her. Knowing her luck, if she missed this one more time and Leila stacked her, she was done for. That entire cup had to be consumed one way or another. If she could win this round, that would be the best case scenario.
From Iwabee, to Chocho, to Wasabi drinking the last seltzer, to Leila, and then Sarada. The moment a cup and ball got passed to her, she focused and started bouncing it softly. God, her vision was so blurry she almost wondered if her glasses had stopped working.
Readjusting her glasses, it was a battle against her and Leila to see who could get the ball in the cup first. Everyone was going absolutely ballistic – cheering for Leila, cheering for Sarada, pleading Sarada to avoid having to drink that disaster of a middle cup – the noise was never ending. Sarada was on about five bounces now and still hadn't gotten it in. The adrenaline was causing her hands to shake and she kept missing. Just by watching the previous rounds, everyone was terrified Sarada was going to get stacked, so were all yelling at her how to bounce it, where to bounce it, get it in the cup already!
Finally, as Sarada bounced in the exact spot, the crowd screamed louder as Leila's cups stacked on top of hers at lightning speed. Sarada's ball landed in the cups dejectedly, and the whole room suddenly went dead silent. No one moved. Everyone was in shock.
Sarada had been stacked.
No one knew what to say. The rules were Sarada now had to drink the entire middle cup, but everyone in that party who knew her well would know that was going overboard. This was her second time drinking ever, and just… it was Sarada. That was the only reason anyone could justify. If it was Iwabee, Boruto, Mitsuki, or Chocho, sure, they'd expect them to drink it. But Sarada? Absolutely no way.
"Hey, it's okay Sarada, you don't have to drink it," Namida pushed into the circle nervously. She had been observing from afar, but decided to step in now. "You can just take a sip!"
"Yeah, seriously, we don't want you drinking that whole thing." Sumire said, reaching for the cup, but Leila glared at her.
"Why is she exempt from the rules? If anyone else won they would've had to drink it!" She exclaimed.
"Are you crazy? If Sarada drank that whole thing she'd die of alcohol poisoning." Iwabee said.
"Well I stacked her fair and square, so she has to drink it!"
"Relax, it's just a game. All of us will just split it." Chocho suggested, but Leila slammed her hands down on the table.
"That's not fair! If you would've been stacked, Cho, you would've drank it!"
"Yeah, because I'm fucking crazy and can hold my alcohol! Sarada's can't, so chill out!"
"No, she has to drink it–!"
"Hey, hey–stop! No one is drinking the damn thing!" Boruto finally interjected. "Sarada's not drinking it, we're not splitting it, we're dumping it down the drain. This is unnecessary drama."
"You're only giving her special treatment so she'll suck your dick after this!" Leila folded her arms.
"Ohhkay," Boruto rolled his eyes. He was pissed. Leila was only mad because he left her hanging at the prom after party – well she was going to have to fucking get over it. This was Chocho's birthday party, so Boruto was simply going to be the bigger person and brush it off, and go dump the stupid thing down the drain. End of story.
But suddenly, Metal swiped the cup from his hands. Without a word, he began chugging it, and everyone's mouth dropped.
There was about a good twenty seconds of dead silence until Metal finished, and he set the cup on the table and wiped his mouth. Everyone was completely aghast, and he shrugged.
"There, gone. Now there's not a problem."
He walked away from the table, and everyone stared at each other in disbelief. Iwabee was holding back an awkward laugh while Boruto stared at Mitsuki with a dead expression. He then turned around.
"I need a fucking rip."
"I second that." Shikadai said from the crowd, and followed Boruto over to the marble island.
Leila let out an aggravated huff and Mitsuki approached her, gently grabbing her arm and pulling her off to the side. She was bitching at him about something, and Chocho sighed. Slowly, she approached Sarada, who was still stunned.
"Um, sorry about that."
Sarada held her hands up. "N-No, it's uh, not a problem. I really would've drank it."
Chocho shook her head. "Girl, no one in here would've let you. But Metal is crazy for doing that, he really took one for the team."
Someone whisked Chocho off in a direction and she cheerfully resumed to the birthday girl that was the center of attention, while Sarada was left with her fuzzy, seltzer-influenced thoughts.
Metal drank about eight shots worth of – mixed – alcohol just so Sarada wouldn't have to. She wobbled over to the couch to regain her balance. She didn't know how to feel about that. He protected her tonight, even though they hadn't spoken or seen each other for months. He still cared about her, even though she had continuously played with his feelings just to get over Boruto. He definitely was not as upfront as most people, but he had his strange, unique ways that showed he cared. And drinking that alcohol was one of them.
Sarada trudged through the long, marble hallway, keeping one hand sliding against the wall to keep her balance at all times, and checked every room for Metal. She had to talk to him and thank him for doing that, even though it was the stupidest thing he could have done out of all the options they had.
On the other side of the bathroom door, she heard clattering and whispered voices, and she knocked. She almost fell over in the process but straightened herself upright.
"Occupied!" Someone responded. It was Inojin. Sarada knew him relatively well now because of Himawari and Boruto, and she felt safe asking him for help. She knew he wouldn't judge or tattle on her for inquiring about Metal – he was a pretty neutral person.
"Inojin?" Sarada asked, her words slurring together, "Is that you?"
Seconds later, the door cracked open. Inojin popped his head out.
"Sarada, what's up?"
"Do you–do you know where Metal is?" She asked. Her brain felt like it was trudging through mud trying to form a coherent sentence. Inojin pursed his lips and glanced behind him, then slowly opened the door. Metal was wilted on the floor with his head resting on the toilet seat. His back was rising up and down slowly, and Sarada felt sick to her stomach.
"He's fine, he already threw it all up."
"Ew," Sarada heard herself saying, even though she didn't mean it like that. It just came out, she couldn't control it. Inojin held back a snort, and cleared his throat instead.
"Uh, Metal, I'll, uh, go get you some water."
There was a weak response and an arm twitch. Inojin closed the door behind the two, and Sarada leaned against the counter. Her heart was pumping like crazy. She hadn't seen Metal for such a long time… his hair was longer and starting to curl at the ends. And he was obviously very pale since he had just emptied his guts out, but his stature seemed different. He seemed more toned and his demeanor more confident. Slowly, he raised his head, a small smile gracing his lips.
"Are you okay?"
"I should be asking you that," Sarada said, shifting her weight onto her other foot. It almost made her lose her balance, but she held herself against the bathroom sink. Metal rested his forehead back on the toilet seat, and let out a sigh.
It was quiet between them. The distant sound of the bass thumped through the bathroom walls, reverberating the pictures hanging from their frames. As Sarada glanced over them, she saw there was a picture of Mitsuki and his dad when they were much younger – Mitsuki was atop Orochimaru's shoulders and they both looked overjoyed. The picture next to it was of when Mitsuki graduated elementary school and had a small graduation cap on his head with a big grin on his face. Looking at these distracted Sarada from the fact that she was in close proximity with her ex in a bathroom at her best friend's birthday party. It felt like a freeze frame moment of: how did she even get here?
"U-Um, well I just wanted to say thank you," The words came out clumsily and Sarada internally cursed herself, "you really didn't have to do that."
"You know I would do anything for you." Metal said, turning his head to her.
Sarada and Metal stared at each other, their hearts racing a million miles an hour. Her chest felt like it was going to explode. Her entire body was ice cold yet her core was burning hot. Fiddling with her fingers, Sarada cleared her throat, but then suddenly the door opened. It bumped the side of her hip, and Inojin cringed.
"Oops, sorry. Metal, here."
Inojin went in and set the glass of water down on the floor, and Metal picked it up weakly. After taking a couple sips, he put his head back on the toilet seat. Inojin stood there awkwardly for a couple moments before picking up on the vibe, and excused himself quickly. Sarada scratched the side of her head. Well, what now?
"Do you want some fresh air?" Metal asked. Sarada's brows furrowed.
"Are you okay to stand up?"
"Yeah, I'm fine now." Metal said with a grunt, gathering his balance before daring to take a step forward. "C'mon."
Sarada's heartbeat only continued to drum as Metal walked past her. As she peered her head out, she saw Inojin was inbetween the end of the hallway and the entrance of the living room chatting to some people, and Metal was heading the other direction. She followed in anticipation with a light step.
Metal opened the door to a large, grandeur room that had a king size bed in the middle with a canopy over top. The marble encased the entire floor and the walls were decorated with intricate designs and artwork. There was a large picture of Orochimaru and Mitsuki on the left wall next to the door. This room had to belong to Mitsuki's dad, but why were they in here?
Without paying attention to anything else, Metal headed straight for the patio door. Sarada followed suit, the music from the party completely dying out as she stepped outside. The oncoming autumn air felt nice and chilled – unlike the sweltering summer heat. A new season and a new school year was approaching them quickly.
With the party music drowned out and the chirping crickets being the only thing they could hear, Sarada took in a deep breath. She still felt nervous and fidgety being this close to Metal, but it was easing the longer she was in his presence. He'd apparently had a growth spurt because now she was having to look up at him instead of them being eye level.
The breeze rolled past them and it sent a chill up Sarada's back. She shivered, and Metal looked at her.
"Are you cold?"
"No," She squeaked out. What was she even doing here? She broke up with him months ago! So why was she feeling so drawn to him now? Not that much time had passed, so it was impossible for someone to entirely change that quickly. All summer she'd been all about Boruto, but now…
Leaning against the railing, Metal let out a sigh. He pulled a small puff bar from his pocket and took a long inhale before exhaling, letting the vapor dissipate into the air. Huh, he'd never done that before while they were dating, he must've picked up the habit after they broke up. It's not that she minded – she was used to Boruto doing it – but it was different seeing him do it.
The silence between them held a small amount of rigidity, but it was expected. Sarada didn't know what to do, and they weren't speaking to each other, so she twirled her hair around her finger nervously. Metal took a few more contemplative puffs of the vape and then put it in his pocket.
"How has your summer been?"
"Just fine." Sarada answered, although it had really been a rollercoaster of things. Volleyball, Boruto, dealing with their family's financial predicament… it had been a lot. Fun, but a little stressful.
"That's good." Metal took in a deep breath of the night breeze then looked at her. "Your hair got longer."
Sarada touched the ends of her hair softly. "You think? I haven't been wearing my extensions, maybe that's why."
Metal smiled. "It looks good."
Sarada felt butterflies fluttering in her chest. God, she really shouldn't be here right now. It was a bad idea. She had come sober to the party with Boruto, and now she was drunk on the patio with Metal. Her brain wasn't functioning properly – but she knew she had to leave.
Turning on her heel, she steadied herself against the railing. "U-Um, Boruto's probably looking for me, I should get back–"
"Wait, Sarada!"
Halting in her tracks, Sarada looked back at Metal. He had a very serious, but delicate, look on his face.
"I still have feelings for you!" His eyes glimmered with determination, his lips parting the slightest bit. "A-And, I think we can work it out if we just try."
Sarada was speechless. It was easy to look at all the bad things he'd done, sure. But looking back on all the positives, Sarada never hated the way she felt when she had been around him. It was calm and she always knew what to expect. She was never caught by surprise or dragged to any impromptu birthday parties, nor had to worry about him popping in her window whenever he pleased. He was predictable, stable, sometimes a little boring, but was that really a bad thing?
So many thoughts were swirling through her mind. There were things she really liked about Metal and things she really didn't, but it was the same for Boruto. She liked that Boruto was outgoing and got along with her family, but hated that he always got in trouble for lying and being too outspoken. She liked that Metal was put together and had a routine, but hated that he would prioritize other things over her. So it was truly a give and take situation.
But she was also taking in consideration that the entire time she was with Metal, she had been wanting to be with Boruto. But now that she was with Boruto, she wanted to stay here with Metal. What was wrong with her? Why couldn't she make up her mind?
"I just… really want to give us a second chance." Metal grasped her hands in his palms, stroking his thumb over her fingers gently. "I had a lot of time to think about what I did wrong and–and I just, I want to do it right this time."
Sarada was enraptured by the genuine sound of his voice and the hopeful look in his eye. There were so many conflicting feelings inside of her; emotions she hadn't felt for a very long time. As much as her feelings were telling her maybe, her mind was telling her no. It wasn't a good idea. They were both drunk, they were alone, and this was sudden. Sarada wanted to sit and think about it for a day.
Noticing her hesitation, Metal brought one hand up to her cheek, stroking his thumb across her soft skin.
"Just think about it." Metal said, and slowly placed a kiss on her other cheek.
He went back inside, leaving Sarada alone outside with chills running up her back.
What was she supposed to do now?