You Again
Sakura hadn't been this drunk in a long time. Maybe not ever, really, because this was some ungodly level of inebriation, and she felt silly for walking around in broad daylight, staggering and laughing louder than she thought was possible. She probably would have been mortified if she hadn't been surrounded by swarms of equally-intoxicated partygoers.
It was all so overwhelming; all the noise, and colour, and feeling of people brushing past her. On more than one occasion, a stranger had been so overcome with joy that they had scooped her into a hug, something that would normally have infuriated her, but now, all she could feel was unbridled delight. She couldn't believe she had resisted the pull of this celebration for so long.
Ino's arm slung over her shoulder as she stumbled against her heavily, her beer sloshing out of the big plastic cup she'd been carrying for the last three and a half blocks. It was probably piss-warm, but that didn't stop Ino from tossing back a substantial gulp before pressing the cup to Sakura's lips and urging her to do the same.
Sakura grunted in surprise but accepted all the same. Ino's grip wavered as they continued moving down the crowded road, splashing the beer up onto Sakura's face and sending it dribbling down her chin and neck. Sakura pushed her hand away, coughing and laughing.
"Ugh, Pig! I think you got more in my nostrils than in my mouth!" Sakura's complaints were made ineffective by the giggles she found impossible to suppress. Ino tittered beside her, pressing a quick, apologetic kiss to her cheek before gripping her hand and leading her through a throng of people that had paused in their parade to bear witness to something that was clearly very exciting.
Ino had no qualms about digging her way through the crowd to get to the bottom of it, wielding her elbows like the deadly weapons Sakura knew they were. They were almost to the front of the crowd, the only obstacle blocking their view being a shock of silver hair, sat high atop the head of someone too tall and broad-shouldered to be standing at the front of a spectacle the way he was.
Ino hip-checked him until he made room for them, readying her elbows for any pushback. Instead, he simply shuffled aside to allow them passage. Sakura was distracted from the shocking display of courtesy by the scene unfolding before her.
"Oh, my god!" Ino cried in disbelief, pointing frantically as a blond young man knelt down before his partner and displayed a ring to him. "Naruto is proposing to Sasuke!" Ino howled, her excitement unparalleled and entirely unwarranted, considering they were already engaged and had been for awhile.
Sakura watched on in exasperated amusement as the crowd around them hooted and hollered when Sasuke said yes and accepted the ring; the same ring that Naruto had already given to him about eight months earlier. Sakura couldn't help but laugh as Naruto made a show of hugging Sasuke tightly around his middle and spinning him around in a joyous hug. Sasuke's scowl was marred by lips that twitched incessantly under the force of the grin he was trying to desperately to bite back.
Ino bound forward to join their hug, quickly followed by a swarm of strangers who did the same.
"Friends of yours?" Sakura started at the sound of a low voice speaking so close to her ear. She tore her eyes from the massive group hug unfolding before her to turn her attention to the tall, obstruction of a man who had so kindly stepped aside for them. She found herself face-to-face with a rainbow bandana and two smile-crinkled eyes. When she didn't answer, his eyes grew a little less crinkly and a silver eyebrow—bisected down the centre by a scar—lifted curiously.
"Oh—um, yes. Yes, those are my friends," she said, still staring up at his silvery hair glinting in the sun, that seemed so strangely juxtaposed with his eyes that looked so young. She hadn't expected that.
"Sakura!" someone shouted from behind her, but she was still curiously gazing up at the half-face that stared back down to her. She was vaguely aware of her name being called again,
"Your pushy girlfriend is calling you," he said. Her eyes dropped to the rainbow cloth dangling off his nose, under which she assumed he was hiding a teasing smile, judging by the faint creasing of his eyes.
"She is so pushy," Sakura grumbled in complaint, pouting at this stranger as she heard her name being shouted again. Someone—probably Ino—grabbed a hold of her arm, yanking it so hard it nearly popped out of its socket. She let Ino pull her away—it was that or lose her right arm—but glanced back over her shoulder at the old man with the young eyes.
"Bye, Sakura!" he called out, eyes creasing fully with the smile she imagined he hid behind his bandana. Her cheeks went pink when she realized she had let him believe she and Ino were together.
Sakura was lounging on Ino's bed, watching as she twirled around, assessing her reflection for the umpteenth time. She wasn't sure where Ino found the energy. After being so horrifically drunk under the sun all afternoon, Sakura had promptly passed out the moment they returned to their apartment. She was thankfully not nursing a headache, but she did have some nasty bed head and a severe aversion to going out again for the night.
Naruto and Sasuke's fake proposal had garnered the attention of some swanky club owner, and they had decided to bequeath a VIP booth unto the lovebirds for the evening, so they could celebrate their union in style. Sakura wanted nothing more than to call them up and tell them that they had been celebrating their union for the last eight months, and, in fact, the wedding was fast approaching.
"You can't sit in a booth looking like a toad, Forehead," Ino chastised as she sent a sultry pout to herself in the mirror, running her hands over her chest and pushing her breasts together to exaggerate her cleavage. As if she needed the help. "Is this classy-slutty, or just regular slutty?" Ino asked, spinning to face Sakura's lifeless body, sprawled inelegantly across the bed.
"Because I am clearly the expert," Sakura grumbled.
"Quit being such a stick in the mud! You were much more fun when you were hammered," Ino said with a roll of her eyes. Ino tossed a tube of lip gloss at her when she gave her no response regarding the sluttiness of her dress. With a sigh, she propped her head up on her hand and took Ino's outfit in. She wore some muted-rainbow striped, sparkly, cowl-necked thing that scooped all the way down to her bellybutton, and somehow managed to look excessively tacky and exorbitantly expensive all at once.
"On any other day, it would be regular-slutty, but I think today it is very appropriate," Sakura offered honestly. Appeased, Ino spun back toward her mirror to reassess her colourful sequins with newfound appreciation.
"Your turn," Ino said once she'd exhausted her need to gaze at her reflection. Sakura groaned and buried her face in Ino's pillow. "Sakura," Ino sang warningly.
"Sakura is dead," she cried into the fluffy pillow. She should have known something was amiss when Ino didn't barrage her with threats and blackmail attempts. She yelped—loud and unrefined—when Ino slapped a hand down onto her butt so hard she actually bounced on the mattress. "Owwwwww," she cried, with just the slightest hint of dramatic flair.
"Drama queen," Ino said as she grabbed Sakura's hips and rolled her over so she was laying face-up on the bed. "We are going out to a glamorous nightclub, getting VIP treatment, and celebrating Naruto and Sasuke's engagement," Ino said matter-of-factly, wagging a finger so close to Sakura's face that she felt herself go a little cross-eyed. "Understood?"
"I have nothing to wear," Sakura said with a pout. Ino smirked wickedly and Sakura knew immediately that that had been the wrong thing to say.
Thirty minutes later, she was wearing what she could only describe as a handkerchief. Sasuke and Naruto had materialized in their apartment during the great dressing debacle—in which Ino had been unnecessarily rough, shoving Sakura down onto the bed and dressing her herself.
"I feel like you did something to deserve it," Sasuke said with some nerve considering he was sipping on her wine.
"She absolutely did," Ino said sweetly while she fished a pair of shoes out of her closet for Sakura.
"Did not!" Sakura fumed as she rummaged around the washroom, looking for a bandage. In her attempts to kick Ino off of her, she had managed to roll off the bed and onto the floor. That wouldn't have been so bad, except for the fact that she had also knocked Ino's glass off the bedside table on her way down and a piece of the glass had scraped against her thigh.
How was it possible they didn't have any band-aids? They were—mostly—functioning adults. Wasn't that something adults usually kept around?
"I have one, Sakura," Naruto said cheerfully, digging around in his pocket. She smiled at him in thanks, forgetting for a moment that it was his fault she was being roped into going out at all. He handed her a rainbow-printed band-aid.
"Are you serious?" she asked, deadpanned. He grinned.
"Yep. They were giving them out at pride! I got a bunch of condoms, too…" he said, digging through his pockets again. She shook her head in disbelief, but applied the bandage. The sparkly handkerchief she was wearing would cover it anyway. Barely. She didn't ask Naruto why he was carrying around a bunch of free, rainbow-coloured condoms. Some things were better left unsaid.
"All patched up, Bambi?" Ino quipped as Sakura and Naruto rejoined her and Sasuke.
"You look really pretty, Sakura," Naruto said, dropping his arm around her shoulder, probably hoping to distract her from biting Ino's head off. Instead, she turned her anger to him.
"You," she said, wagging a finger in his face and watching as his blue eyes went cross-eyed as he tried to follow it. "I could be asleep right now, but no, youhad to go and be all stupid, and charming, and romantic and now, instead of watching bad reality television in my sweats, I'm going to be traipsing around this city in a napkin!"
"Just think of this as you catching up on all the years you've missed out on," Sasuke offered, sneaking up behind her and gently leading her and her pointed finger away from Naruto. Naruto slumped in relief, smiling sheepishly, and looking stupidly adorable. She snatched the up the rest of Sasuke's—her wine and downed it.
"Atta girl," Ino praised as Sakura poured another big glass.
Sakura wasn't really sure why Ino owned so many sequined dresses, and she was even less sure why she had agreed to travel across the city wearing one on what was probably the busiest night of the summer. All the expensive frocks in the world, but Ino was too cheap to spring for a taxi. Sakura was pretty sure they would be the only VIP guests arriving by metro.
She was pleasantly tipsy enough that she wasn't very annoyed by it, though. Once in awhile, someone would jostle her and her frustration would flare back up, but Ino was quite good at keeping people out of her personal space—probably because she knew that too many jostles would have Sakura stepping off the train and back towards their apartment.
Ino was very diligent in that, and Sakura was thankful for her and her sharp elbows. No one did passive aggressive violence quite like Ino did. She was especially grateful for those elbows when it came time to transfer lines and Sakura had fallen behind the group, scuttling in short steps, clutching the hem of her dress to keep it from flying up when a train whizzed by.
Sakura nearly missed the train that Ino, Sasuke and Naruto had already piled into, the door chiming and the light flashing in warning, but Ino's arm darted out and grabbed her, yanking her through just as the final chime sounded. It would have been perfect, except that there had been other people in front of her, and Sakura had pushed rather brusquely past someone on the platform in her valiant attempt to rejoin her friends.
She peered out the dirty window as the doors shut, finding herself staring at a familiar raised silver eyebrow. Old man with young eyes, she thought. She was significantly less drunk now than she had been, though, and see could reasonably assume that he was most definitely not old. She wondered if that hair was natural.
He held her gaze as the train started moving and she felt her cheeks flush.
"How do you manage to live closer and leave earlier than me, and still be late?" Genma complained the moment Kakashi saddled up to him on the crowded sidewalk.
"At least I got here before Obito," he said with a shrug. He didn't mention anything about how he had said he was leaving about twenty minutes before he had actually gotten up to leave. Genma snorted as he put a cigarette between his lips.
"The next ice age will get here before Obito does," Genma grumbled around his cigarette as he clicked his lighter. "I need more punctual friends," Genma said as he offered his pack to Kakashi.
"He's getting better, I promise!" Kakashi turned to see the punctual half of his two best friends scurrying down the sidewalk, while her far less timely partner lingered behind, not at all inclined to keep pace with her. "We balance each other out," Rin said with a bright smile as she looped an arm around Kakashi's neck in greeting.
"She's lying to herself," Genma said. "Obito is slowly corrupting her, and soon, they'll both be tardy assholes."
"Don't call my wife an asshole, asshole," Obito said as he plucked the cigarette from Kakashi's fingers and took it for himself. Genma snickered until Kakashi snatched his.
"Alright, I take it back. You two are the assholes, and Rin is the only decent person here," Genma griped as he pulled a third cigarette out of his pack.
"Imagine how tardy they'd be if they were married," Rin said with a giggle. Obito squawked around his stolen cigarette in protest. Kakashi didn't bother. This teasing was standard protocol, and the more Obito rebutted, the more ardently they teased. He would never learn.
"Remember junior year?" Genma snickered, bumping shoulders with Rin as she giggled.
"We agreed never to speak of that again!" Obito shouted, his lit cigarette falling from his lips and to the ground. "This is your fault," he whined, pointing at Kakashi in accusation.
"I didn't touch you," Kakashi said, ducking around Obito as he reached out to pinch his cigarette again.
"I mean, technically, you did—" Genma started, Rin bursting into a new fit of giggles as Obito went beet red.
"We said we would never speak of it again!" Obito wailed, lunging for Kakashi again. This time, Kakashi was fairly certain it was less about the cigarette than it was about retribution as a whole. Thankfully, Obito was a little drunk, and Kakashi was a lot fast.
Unfortunately, Obito wasn't that drunk, and Kakashi did not have eyes on the back of his head.
In his efforts to escape Obito's grasp, he had collided with something. Someone, he realized, at the indignant grunt that echoed his own as a sharp elbow dug deep into his gut at the same time he found himself leaning heavily onto a slight body. They lurched under his weight. He twisted until his hand was planted on their shoulder, holding himself up as well as them, if the way they were staggering about was anything to go by.
"Shit—sorry," he mumbled, straightening himself up and dutifully ignoring Obito's poorly disguised laughter. He glanced down to see two startled green eyes staring back at him.
"Oh, it's you!" she said in surprise.
"Uh," he replied with all the astuteness of a man well-learned. Obito was still sniggering obviously behind him. He wondered how many women with green eyes and pink hair were wondering around this city.
"Sakura! Stop flirting with that old man!" Sakura. That's right. He remembered now. He wondered if her friends ever said her name in any other way aside from shrieking across crowds. He heard one of his jackass friends giggle out a "they called him old", but he would deal with that later. The pink-haired woman—Sakura—turned her attention back to him after glaring at her friend. A different blond this time; Kakashi recognized him as the public proposer.
"Ugh, so annoying," she grumbled as she looked back up at him. Her smile was sheepish and appallingly cute. "I guess this makes us even," she said with a small shrug and pink cheeks. Adorable, he thought wholly against his will.
"Sakura!" a shriller cry sounded, loud and alarming, turning the heads of all the pedestrians, as well as a few people stopped at the red light beside them. Her cheeks reddened further.
"Your pushy girlfriend is calling you," he teased. She ducked her head a skittered away with one last fleeting smile. He returned to his friends, pretending like he hadn't just spent a good thirty seconds watching her walk away.
"Smooth, Hatake," Genma said, rolling his eyes. Kakashi pretended he hadn't noticed that, either. Truthfully, his mind was still circling those green eyes, and that daringly short dress.
"Y'know, I don't think that's really her girlfriend," Obito said, his eyes narrowed as he stared off behind Kakashi's back. Kakashi hummed noncommittally, despite his curiosity to how Obito had come to that conclusion. He ducked his head and dropped his bandana as he took a drag of his cigarette.
"I should hope not," Rin said, and Kakashi resisted the urge to take the bait. "Otherwise, she really shouldn't be looking at Kakashi that way," she finished wickedly. Kakashi choked on his puff, loudly and embarrassingly, but mostly uncaring as he whirled around to see it with his own eyes. All he saw was her hand slipping into the pushy girl's hand as they reached the top of the steps and disappeared into the darkness of the nightclub.
His friends—cruel and dastardly as they were—were overcome with laughter at his expense. Even Rin—sweet, reliable Rin, who had always been on his side—was giggling relentlessly. She had the decency to look at little guilty as he fixed her with his most betrayed look, but it wasn't enough to subdue her giggles.
They were lucky he had little shame and even fewer friends, otherwise he would have dumped them long ago, he thought. Even when they finally got a hold of themselves, they spent the rest of their time out on that sidewalk outside the club teasing him relentlessly. It was rare for them to find him interacting with people who weren't them. He wasn't sure what had possessed him to engage in human interaction with witnesses nearby.
But then he remembered those eyes and he thought that he really couldn't be held responsible. Besides, he hadn't really done anything so embarrassing, he thought. Aside from nearly trampling her to death, anyway.
Genma wouldn't stop offering him tips on how to pull, and Obito would burst into laughter every time he looked Kakashi in the eye. He couldn't believe Kakashi had actually shown an interest in someone that existed outside of a book. Rin was the only person who showed him a morsel of respect, and even she had her digs.
As they made their way inside, Rin hugged at his arm and smiled at him softly, giving him one little, half-assed "sorry, Kakashi," before relocating herself to Obito's side. He couldn't stay mad. Had the tables been turned, he was sure he would be just as merciless as they were. It was also damn near impossible to latch onto a negative emotion when the bass of the music was pumping so loud he could feel it in his bones, and the lights were flashing entrancingly.
When Genma slid a drink into his hand, all was forgiven. He pretended not to hear Genma ask him for some cash for the bar, and walked away with that drink in hand. Okay, now all was forgiven.
Sakura was grateful for the deafening music, because it made it impossible for her friends to prod at her endlessly with questions about the "old man" she had been talking to. After coming to his defense for some inexplicable reason, and insisting that he was not old, she had resolutely ignored every other comment and question they'd thrown her way. Instead, she shuffled through the crowd to their designated booth and got their drinks flowing.
She made sure to keep their mouths occupied with sipping, and away from speaking to her about the silver-haired man with the dark eyes, and deep voice; who smelled of eucalyptus and cloves, whose hand had felt strong on her—
"Uh oh, someone's fantasizing," Ino said loudly into her ear, sliding down into the leather booth sloppily and thrusting her chest into Sakura's face as she hugged her around her head. Either Ino was far too drunk, or Sakura was not drunk enough. She was leaning toward the latter. Rather than fall prey to that taunt, Sakura whisked away Ino's glass and gulped.
And then proceeded to choke and gag on it.
"Ugh, ew! Ino, what is this?" she cried, wiping the dribble from her chin. Ino giggled and leaned further against her side.
"Hmmmm…a mix of everything," she said with a wide grin. "I couldn't decide what I wanted," she added with a pout. Maybe being as drunk as Ino was a bad idea, Sakura reconsidered. Perhaps the goal ought to be as pleasantly tipsy as Naruto, who was currently leading a train of people from the dance floor to their booth. Ino was nuzzling into her neck, ever the affectionate drunk, and giggling endlessly. "Naruto brought hot people," Ino slurred loudly into her ear. Sakura couldn't help but laugh; Ino had a knack for finding hot people everywhere she went.
Still, Sakura took the opportunity to assess Naruto's finds as he paraded them through the booth, picking up a mostly-empty bottle of champagne as he went. Sasuke did not look impressed, but did nothing to stop him. Sakura was pretty sure she even caught the hint of a smile when Naruto lowered the bottle from his lips and blew him a kiss before leading the parade away again.
She wasn't really sure how Ino had determined they were hot when Sakura could barely make sense of anything she saw between all the flashing lights. She was pretty sure she saw a couple of their friends in the mix—the telltale twin buns of Tenten, followed by her surly-faced partner and her friend, Lee—and then a face she didn't know, but felt she had seen before.
"Her!" Ino shouted, pointing at the familiar faced woman. "I love purple!" Ino cried, wagging her hand excitedly at the woman who appeared to be wearing prominent purple eye makeup. She paused in the parade to squint down at the two of them, sprawled out on the booth. Recognition crossed over her features when she got a good look at Sakura.
"Pink!" She yelled, abandoning the parade to approach them. "You have to come with me," she said excitedly, reaching forward for Sakura's hands. Ino threw a leg over her and hugged her tighter, pouting at the woman with the purple makeup.
"Why?!" Ino wailed and Sakura wasn't sure if it was because she didn't want Sakura to leave, or if she was just upset the woman didn't want Ino to go with her. Apparently, Purple Eyes was not in the mood to negotiate; instead, she took one of Sakura's hands and one if Ino's and lifted the two of them off their asses before towing them away. "Hot," Ino said to Sakura with a wiggle of her eyebrows.
Sakura was grateful for the dark ambience, otherwise Ino would have teased her mercilessly for her flushed cheeks. She still couldn't remember why this woman's face looked so familiar to her, but Ino didn't seem to recognize her. Perhaps she'd been mistaken? More likely, Ino was just too drunk and horny to know any better.
She didn't have to think about it too hard, because it seemed Purple Eyes had reached her destination, flinging Sakura forward to present her to the three men standing at the bar. Sakura was apparently more drunk than she'd thought, because she had wobbled straight out of Purple's grasp and into a chest that smelled of eucalyptus and cloves.
She blinked up dazedly to see that raised, bisected eyebrow for the fourth time in the last twelve hours. His eyes were twinkling with mirth as he ducked to speak into her ear.
"Ah, it's you again." She felt more than heard his voice, low and rumbling. She pushed away from him so he wouldn't feel the shiver that went down her spine. She was suddenly feeling very exposed, like all his friends were watching her—which they very likely were—and turned to the bar to order a drink for herself, even though she had all the free liquor she could drink at their booth.
When it came time to pay, Sakura realized she had left her bag back at the booth. Apologies were tumbling out of her mouth, frantic and embarrassed as she scrambled to go back and get some money, but she was stopped when she felt that hard body lean up to the bar beside her and that low voice rumble through her again.
"Just add it to our tab, thanks," he said, his dark eyes crinkled kindly. Appeased, the bartender slid her drink to her and moved along to their next customer.
"You didn't have to do that," she said, turning to face him and leaning up on her toes to shout in his ear. His eyes creased before he leaned down to speak into her ear.
"It's his tab anyway," he said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder to his long-haired friend that was currently eyeing up Ino. Sakura giggled. Ino was still fawning all over Purple Eyes, not at all inclined to give anyone else her attention. Even when Purple moved to stand beside the third man in the group and sway her hips playfully in front of him, Ino remained determined.
Sakura watched in amusement as Ino moved to sway in front of her, Purple's hands coming to rest on Ino's hips while Ino placed her hands on her neck. The man Sakura assumed was Purple's boyfriend didn't seem to mind terribly. Sakura wondered how long that would last; Ino was just getting started.
She stood at that bar, people watching and slowly sinking further into drunkenness, feeling surprisingly at ease standing amongst these strangers. She blamed the alcohol. Especially when her own hips started swaying to the thrumming beat reverberating through her. She hadn't even really noticed until Ino peaked over her shoulder and flashed that thousand-watt grin of hers.
Before she knew it, Ino had clasped her hand and Purple's in each of her own and was dragging them away from the bar and toward the dance floor. Sakura giggled as Ino tugged them through the crowd, straight to the middle of the floor where the lights were brightest and the bass shook her to her core.
Ino wasted no time in saddling up behind Sakura and pushing their hips flush together and moved together. She had her hands outstretched in front of Sakura, holding Purple's hands and pulling her closer so Sakura was in the centre of a dance-sandwich. The drinks she'd consumed all night were going straight to her head, aided by the heat of the crowd and the thumping music.
Never one to be left out, Naruto was quick to find and join them, bringing Tenten with him. Tenten was one of the best dancers Sakura had ever met, and before long, she was tearing the place up. She and Lee were all giggles as they crouched low, back-to-back, and rapidly twerking against each other. Naruto was overwhelmed with the need to join them, planting his rump as close as he could to theirs, and jerking around so violently he sent the three of them tumbling to the floor.
Then, Purple's boyfriend was poking his head into the chaos and gesturing to her that they were going outside to smoke. She turned to Sakura and Ino in question, pointing to the door in an invitation. Ino was already reaching out to take her hand, ready to go wherever Purple wanted her. Giggling to herself, Sakura followed her shameless friend out to the patio.
"Shouldn't we have told our friends?" Sakura asked once they were outside and it was quiet enough that she didn't have to scream. Ino was either ignoring her, or had completely forgotten that they had come with anyone else. She really did have a one-track mind, Sakura thought, rolling her eyes but smiling despite herself.
"I'm Rin, by the way," Purple said, smiling brightly over her shoulder.
"Ino," Ino said, practically gushing as she leaned closer to Rin. Rin's friends were quick to find a corner of the patio to claim as their own.
"That's my husband, Obito," Rin said, looking away to wave at the dark-haired man that was trying to wrestle a cigarette out of the long-haired man's hands. She missed the way Ino dramatically pouted at the mention of a husband. "And that one there is Genma," she said, pointing to the long-haired man who had just planted a palm on Obito's face and was holding his head an arm's length away from him. Rin turned back to flash a mischievous smile at Sakura, "and that one is Kakashi."
Sakura unwillingly felt her gaze slide from Rin's smiling face to the silver-haired man, standing aloof against the wooden fence, patiently waiting for his friends to stop horsing around. His eyes landed on her, dark and intense and unabashed. She ducked her head as she felt her cheeks heat.
"I'm Sakura," she said to Rin, once she realized she had been too busy staring at Kakashi to introduce herself. Rin had a knowing smile on her face as she led them to her friends.
Ino plopped herself down onto the bench and dragged Sakura down with her to sit primly on her lap, knees locked together in her itty-bitty dress. Sakura tried not to look up at Kakashi, even though she was fairly certain she could feel his eyes on her. Either he was looking at her, or her wishful thinking had gotten the better of her. When she whispered in Ino's ear for her to check, Ino blatantly ducked around Sakura to look over her shoulder to see if he was watching her.
"Like a hawk," she said with a bright smile.
"I hate you," Sakura grumbled, feeling her face ignite. She pivoted on Ino's lap so she was facing the four friends that had seemingly adopted them for the night.
"Do you guys smoke?" Genma asked, mostly keeping his eyes trained on Ino and her dangerously low-cut dress. Ino lapped up the attention but was still pouting after Rin. Sakura was shaking her head no, but Ino was reaching a hand out to accept a thickly rolled joint. Sakura gaped at her when she took it between her lips.
"What?" she asked, eyebrows pinched as she held the smoke in before slowly letting it out and straight into Sakura's face. She took one more drag before passing it along to Rin. "Not all of us are lightweights like you," she teased, pinching Sakura's cheek lightly. Genma snickered at her expense and Rin elbowed him roughly.
"Don't worry, Sakura. I'm a total lightweight, too," she said as she held the joint up over her shoulder to Obito's lips from where she was hugged tightly to his chest. "I usually just take it second-hand."
"Second-hand?" Sakura asked in confusion. Rather than explaining, Rin tilted her head back and sealed her lips to Obito's. When they parted, Rin exhaled slowly, a small string of smoke blowing out from her mouth.
"I am so jealous," Ino grumbled quietly into Sakura's ear. Sakura ignored her.
"Does that really work?" she wondered, watching as the joint got handed to Kakashi. Rin was speaking, probably telling her exactly how it worked, but Sakura was far too preoccupied with watching as Kakashi accepted the joint to listen. She wondered if he would drop that bandana.
"You wanna test it out, Pinky?" Genma asked loudly, calling her attention away from Kakashi as she stared at him in surprise.
"My name is Sakura," she said with a small frown. By the time she looked at Kakashi again, he was blowing smoke out the side of his bandana and passing the joint off. Damn it. His eyes locked on hers, catching her shamelessly staring at him. She felt her cheeks warm again but she couldn't bring herself to look away. Even when a ruckus sounded by the door to the patio, and Ino tittered under her, Sakura kept her eyes on Kakashi.
Something about him felt magnetic. Ridiculous, she told herself. The only thing pulling you to him is the alcohol in your bloodstream. But even her infallible logic couldn't dissuade her drunken infatuation, or the bizarre circumstances that continuously put him in her path. Literally in her path, for her to physically bump into him constantly.
Then, she was pitching forward off Ino's lap and Ino was shrieking at someone—Naruto, Sakura heard as she tumbled to the floor, face-first—and Sakura was made all-too aware of how short her dress was. She hit the ground less hard than she had anticipated, probably thanks to the strong hands on her waist. Her knees had already hit the wooden slats but only just.
She blinked up for the umpteenth time to find herself staring at those grey eyes peering down at her above a bandana.
"Pushy girlfriend," he quipped and she felt her cheeks ignite as she sent a fiery glare to Ino over her shoulder. Kakashi helped her get to her feet, slowly lifting her from the ground, keeping his hands on her until he was sure she was sure-footed.
"Your ass is out, Sakura," Sasuke noted helpfully, pursing his lips at her exposed hindquarters. Kakashi's hands immediately fell from her waist, dropping the bunched fabric of her dress along the way, while she simultaneously yanked at the hem.
"She's not my girlfriend," Sakura grumbled. "And thank you," she added as an afterthought. Ino was at her side, fretting and apologizing, and blaming Naruto for being a spaz—which was fair enough, honestly—and swearing she hadn't meant to knock Sakura on her ass, but Naruto had spilled beer all over her and she jumped. "It's fine," Sakura told her, mostly just to get her to shut up about it.
"I mean…I kind of did you a favour," Ino said with a wiggle of her eyebrows. Sakura sent her a look that could kill and she backed off, hastily excusing herself to go clean the beer out from between her tits. Sakura was pretty sure she heard Genma offer his assistance again, but her attention was back on Kakashi.
"Thank you," she said again, shuffling to stand beside him. Magnetic pull, her drunken brain told her.
"You already said that," he teased. "Your debt is growing. How will you ever make it up to me, at this rate?"
"I didn't realize you were keeping score," she said between her giggles. "Maybe I should have just hit the ground." She was leaning into him, and she could feel it, but she couldn't stop herself. Not that she was trying very hard to stop herself. He didn't seem to have much of an issue with her invading his personal space, in any case. In fact, she could almost be certain that he was leaning towards her, as well.
"Hey, what are you doing here, asshole?!" Kakashi and Sakura jumped, whatever spell they were under promptly broken. She felt her cheeks burning as she looked away from him and toward Obito who was shouting at Sasuke from where he stood behind Rin.
"The same thing you are, if I had to guess," Sasuke said impassively. Obito growled. "I thought this place had better standards," he said, leaning back on the bench beside Naruto and slowly sipping on the brown liquor in his glass.
"Clearly not, since they let you in!" Obito fumed.
"You guys know each other?" Sakura asked, feeling stupid as she said it. Looking at the two of them, it was clear to her that Obito must have been one of Sasuke's many cousins. All Uchihas bore striking resemblance to one another; impossibly dark hair and eyes, and stupidly pretty. Not to mention their fiery tempers, which these two were doing an excellent job showcasing.
"Obito, be nice," Rin said, nudging him harshly with her elbow.
"Why should I be nice to a spoiled brat like him?" Obito complained loudly. Sakura's eyes went wide as she watched Sasuke's eyebrow twitch. Naruto was watching the exchange in shock. "Self-righteous dickwad," Obito grumbled.
"Obito's just mad he's the least impressive person to ever bear the Uchiha name," Sasuke drawled, sucking back another long sip of his drink.
"Okay…this was fun!" Sakura said, deciding to diffuse the situation before that vein in Obito's neck popped. "You guys enjoy your night, we should get back to our friends," she said pointedly to Naruto, hoping he would usher Sasuke away. He stared blankly back at her, not catching her drift in the least. With a roll of her eyes, she yanked to the two of them to their feet and shoved them toward the entrance of the club.
She cast one last look back to Kakashi, leaning against that wooden railing and gazing at her unrepentantly.
"It was nice to see you again," she teased before walking away. She felt his eyes on her all the way into the club, and this time, she couldn't convince herself it was just the alcohol talking.
With World War Uchiha put on the backburner, Kakashi returned to musing about the pink anomaly that kept stumbling into his life. He almost felt like he should thank her blonde not-girlfriend for dumping her off her lap so unceremoniously. It had felt a little too good to have his hands on her. And Rin was looking way too impressed with herself.
"Told you I'd find her," she said with a smug smile. Obito was chortling behind her, ducking his face into her neck, as if that would disguise it. Kakashi hadn't doubted that she would; his friends were far too invested in his private life. "She's cute," Rin continued, as if he hadn't noticed.
"I hadn't noticed," he lied. Genma snorted.
"Is that why you two were whispering over there?" he asked sarcastically. Kakashi dutifully ignored him. That was a mistake. "But, hey, if you're not into it, maybe I should try my luck," he continued with a wide smirk. Obito let out a long "ooooo", bouncing on the balls of his feet as he watched Kakashi and Genma stare each other down.
"Yeah, because she seemed so impressed with you," Rin said with a roll of her eyes. "I wanna go back inside. All this testosterone is suffocating," she said with a dramatic gag. Obito pouted after her as she walked away. "Come, Kakashi," she said, gripping his wrist and dragging him along behind her. He heard Obito and Genma protest and whine as she left them behind.
"I always knew I was your favourite," he joked. She rolled her eyes but still fixed him with her warmest smile. There was something particularly fulfilling in being whisked away by his only reasonably behaved friend. Even if her definition of reasonable behaviour did include flinging pink-haired women around a crowded bar.
She had ulterior motives, though, and that really shouldn't have surprised him, but he had held her to too-high standards. She wasted absolutely no time in prying him with a couple shots on Genma's tab before dragging him off to the dance floor. Horrifying. It wasn't the dancing or the music that put him on edge so much as the people. They were all so close and touchy.
After the fourth eye-roll he'd earned from Rin for stiffly standing beside her and awkwardly shuffling from foot to foot, he forced himself to relax. When Rin started laughing at him, he realized he had failed miserably and abandoned her to retrieve more alcohol. Two shots in hand, one for him and one for Rin, and he was navigating his way back to her. He didn't make it very far when two sparkly figures caught his eye, stumbling together through the crowd toward a roped off area.
Would it be absurd to invite himself into her booth? He downed both shots and suddenly, he found nothing absurd about it at all.
He wasn't sure what the cause of the nervousness in the pit of his stomach was. The prospect of being incredibly awkward or maybe that he would be rejected? Perhaps he'd mixed too many liquors and it was catching up to him. Or, most likely, it was the fact that her eyes sparkled about as much as her dress did. When she saw him coming, her smile was breathtaking.
Seriously, he couldn't breathe. He nearly hightailed it the hell out of there.
"You again?" she teased, coming forward to clasp his arm and bring him into the threshold of their luxurious booth, chalk full of champagne and liquor, and he really shouldn't have bothered paying for those two shots, because she was already heavy-handedly pouring him a drink and she was not taking no for an answer. Her blonde friend was assessing him closely. He hoped she would stop, but he also hoped she approved. People cared about their friends' opinions, didn't they? He knew he did.
Rin telling him she thought Sakura was cute echoed in his clouded mind. Fuck, but she was right. Sakura was speaking to him, and he was smiling and nodding along, even though he hadn't the faintest idea of what it was she was saying. He couldn't remember the last time someone had captured his attention like this.
She was looking at him curiously now, her head tilted and her brow knotted as he continued his smile-and-nod routine. Clearly, he had missed the mark. She laughed and leaned forward, her hand on his knee while she put her lips to his ear.
"Where are your friends?" she reiterated, giggling at the sheepish look on his face when she pulled away. He pointed to the dance floor, where he could see Rin, Obito and Genma dancing. Really, Obito had pulled up behind Genma while Genma tried to put the moves on someone, and had effectively ruined all his efforts. He almost felt bad for leaving Rin alone with the two of them, but then Sakura was learning back toward him, and all that guilt disappeared.
Before she reached him, he felt his phone buzz from deep within his pocket. She lifted her hand off his leg, startled by the vibration. More petulantly than he cared to admit, he pulled his phone out to see a message from Rin.
Rin [1:32]: why did you leave me with these idiots :-(
Rin [1:32]: wait are you with pink? omg
He blinked down at the screen, and then glanced up at the faint sound of laughter amid the loud music. Sakura was mouthing an apology as she sheepishly looked away from his phone. He wasn't sure she was the one that needed to apologize. He was sure that he needed new friends.
Mortified and unsure of what to do, he decided he should just cut his losses and go ensure Genma didn't try to kill Obito. At least, not where there could be collateral damage.
"I should get back to them," he said in her ear. He was pretty sure he saw her shoulder shake with a small shiver, but he was also pretty sure the lights in this club were seizure-inducing. She nodded and mouthed a little "goodbye" to him.
He couldn't stop himself to glancing back at her as he descended the stairs, sending a small wave her way. She waggled her fingers back at him with a sweet smile. He nearly fell down the stairs.
Sakura tried to swallow the laughter that bubbled in her as Kakashi tripped over himself and clumsily made his way down the stairs. She felt laughter and enchantment rise in her with equal fervour, and it took every ounce of her self-control to rein that in. It wasn't enough to fool Ino, though.
"Where are Naruto and Sasuke?" Sakura asked, pretending not to notice Ino's knowing smirk as she leaned back against the black leather. Ino shrugged. Sakura peered out at the dance floor below them, scanning the crowd and trying hard not to let her eyes gravitate to where she knew Kakashi would be, where she knew his friends were dancing. Instead, her eyes found Tenten and Lee, dancing their little hearts out and garnering the attention of the club-goers around them.
Suddenly, Sakura was in the mood to dance again. Ino rolled her eyes, teasing her about how she just wanted to go down there to see her man. Sakura pretended she hadn't heard her, and ducked her head so Ino wouldn't see the stupid smile twisting at her lips.
"Oh, god," Ino said before bursting out into laughter as Lee hopped up onto a table, shaking his ass while Tenten stood on the floor below him and spanked him to the beat. Ino started heading toward the floor and Sakura grabbed at her wristlet and phone before following her.
They hadn't been dancing with Tenten and Lee for long when Sakura felt her pone start buzzing. She paused in dancing with Ino to take it out of her purse, much to Ino's displeasure, but she figured it was probably Naruto. Knowing him, he'd just gotten himself stuck in some ridiculous place. Last time they went out on a bender like this, he'd ended up halfway across the country because he'd made friends with an airline mogul.
She pulled it out, watching the screen light up with one text after another.
Genma [1:46]: fuuuuuuuck im so drurnk
Genma [1:46]: durnk
Genma [1:46]: dinkr
Genma [1:47]: duck it u know what i mean
Genma? Oh. She blinked down at the phone, bringing it closer to her face to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. Genma's messages kept coming in, and by the look of it, he was going through a rough time. Sakura was less concerned about him and his unfortunate vomit mishap than she was about the little pug that was fast asleep in the background of Kakashi's lock screen.
She heard Ino protesting shrilly as she started walking away, her nose buried in a phone that was not hers, staring at a pug she really hoped was not Kakashi's, because it was all just too adorable. The pug had a little blue vest on, and really, who was this man? This was unfair.
Genma [1:48]: answer me u ashore
Genma [1:48]: a shoelace
Genma [1:48]: ASSHOEL
Sakura smiled to herself and tucked the phone away. She could see Kakashi's white hair bobbing above the heads of the people around him from where she was and she didn't want him to think she was snooping. Did obsessively staring at his lock screen count as snooping?
Genma [1:51]: fuc k i missed the toilet and the guy beside me is piiiiiisssssssssssed
Shit, she'd done it again. She zipped her purse, and this time, letting it dangle from her wrist, and when his phone buzzed again, she ignored it. She moved with newfound vigor to that silver hair, reflecting every coloured light that flashed down onto it. Rin saw her coming before Kakashi did, as she approached him from behind. She lifted a finger to her lips, signalling Rin to keep a secret. Rin winked at her and Sakura thought she quite understood Ino's infatuation with the woman.
Sakura blamed the alcohol for her newly discovered bravado. She stepped up to his back, smoothing a hand over the back of his shoulder and around to the front, pulling him down and back to speak in his ear.
"I think this makes us even," she said into his ear. He jumped under her touch, but he didn't move away from her. Instead, he turned to face her, standing devastatingly close, and staring down at her with an intensity that put her at a great loss for words.
"You again," he teased. She felt her cheeks burn as she silently held his phone out to him. It took him longer than anticipated to move his eyes from her face to her outstretched hand. His eyes widened in surprise as he patted down his pockets.
"Shit," he cursed, determining his phone was not, in fact, on his person. She held it out to him more insistently. He leaned down, his hand sliding over hers. "Thank you," he said emphatically, and this time she had no way to hide the little tremor that worked through her.
"I think Genma could use your help," she took the opportunity to say while he was still close enough to hear it. His hand was curling over his phone and around her hand, his finger tips brushing against the side of her palm. His skin was rough.
"Obito's with him," he said, and while nothing about this conversation was thrilling, that didn't stop sparks from flying through her bloodstream.
Suddenly, his phone buzzed and lit up in her palm and both of them looked down to it, startled.
Genma [1:58]: lmao guy beside is obito hahhjajadahaha. trucker
Spell broken, they laughed and Kakashi leaned away from her, taking his earthy scent and warmth away as he did. Just as Sakura was about to reluctantly make her escape back to Ino, Rin reached forward and pulled her into a dance. She giggled and went along with it, mostly because she wanted to stick by Kakashi a little longer. She would tell Ino that she did it for her; one of them ought to dance with Rin.
Obito and Genma returned halfway through that song, though, Obito looking far more miserable than Genma did. He made a beeline for Rin, scooping her into his arms and complaining to her about everything Genma had just put him through. Undeterred, Genma circled to her and slung and arm around her waist, bumping his hip with hers and swaying them to the music.
All she could do was laugh. She had to applaud his constitution. If she had just been puking her guts out in a club bathroom, the last thing she'd want to do was hit on someone. Still, admirable as it was, she hit him with a particularly hard hip-check and watched as he stumbled away from her and into some poor, unsuspecting man. Luckily for Genma, he was cute, and the guy he'd collided with also thought so and was very welcoming of his intrusion.
With Rin occupied and Genma scooped up by a man with far superior balance, Sakura was left with two options; grow a pair and dance with Kakashi, or head back to Ino with her tail between her legs. She nearly imploded when she peeked over her shoulder to look at him, looking just as torn as she was feeling. Do it, she told herself. Just. Fucking. Do it.
She gathered her tail and moved to make her awkward exit.
"Dance with me and we can call it even," he said hurriedly in her ear just as she was about to squeeze past him. She froze, surprised but mostly thrilled that at least one of them had the nerve. She smiled up to him before adopting some of his nerve and using it to place his hands on her hips as she rocked against him.
She couldn't bite back her delighted giggle when she realized he could move. He circled his hips with hers, slow and sensual like the beat that thrummed around them. Her cheeks were starting to get sore from grinning so wide. One of his legs was snugly between hers as he led them in a smooth rotation, and she held tight to his arms while his hands sat heavily on her hips, gently guiding them into slow circles and swings in tandem his.
She was tempted to tug that bandana down to see the smile that matched the smug look in his eye, but she found herself coming to enjoy the sight of that obstructive bit of cloth. It was hard to think about exposing more of him to her when she was already so enveloped in him. His hands, his arms, his eyes, the smell of him, clean and warm, and the heat that radiated off his body; it was enough to overwhelm her.
Just as she felt she couldn't possibly handle the proximity, he held her tighter, his body moving so effortlessly with hers that she couldn't tell if he was moving her, or she him. Her hips dipped and swivelled with his, their bodies flush together as his hands pushed and pulled her about. She held herself tight to him, moulding her body against his, revelling in how solid and warm he felt.
Even when the music changed and picked up, he kept them moving along to the backbeat, his motions languid and enticing as ever. She could do this forever, she thought. She wasn't sure her body had ever experienced anything so sensuous. She was vaguely aware of her bag vibrating where it dangled on her wrist, and she was certain he must have felt it too, as it was resting against his arm, but neither of them acknowledged it.
Instead, she slid her hand down his arm to clasp his hand in hers before lifting his arm and spinning herself under it, bringing her back flush to his front. Her arms were crossed in front of her as he returned his sure grip to her hips, his fingers brushing against hers as he pulled her tighter against him. No amount of biting her lip could keep her stupid grin from getting even more out of control than it already was.
It was hard not to feel giddy; too hard, she found. The way he was rocking with her, her behind cradled so snugly against his hips, and his chest so hard against her back; he was far from being too-familiar with his hands, but she still felt her body tingling from his touch. She let her head fall to the side as she giggled at the feeling of his bandana tickling her neck.
"I'm glad you bumped into me, Sakura," he said into her ear, taunting her. She could hear the smile in his voice. And then, his head lowered a little further and she could feel the faintest brush of his lips against the shell of her ear. It was so subtle she could almost write it off, but she had been curious about what lay beneath that bandana all night, and that hint of skin had her mind reeling.
"Sakura!" Just as Sakura was about to whirl around and claim her prize—she was hoping for a closer inspection of those lips he'd brushed against her ear—Ino burst through the crowd, looking frenzied. "We need to go. Now," she said, reaching forward to grab Sakura from Kakashi's hold. Sakura held her ground, even though Kakashi had already dropped his hands from her hips and she could see the banana was back in place.
"What's happening?" she asked Ino, not at all hiding her displeasure with this turn of events. Ino leaned forward to shout in her ear.
"Naruto and Sasuke got kicked out. They threatened to call the cops," Ino explained hastily, her hand encircling Sakura's wrist tightly, and this time, Sakura didn't try to pull away when Ino towed her away.
She glanced over her shoulder briefly to see Kakashi turn away from her and toward his friends. She hoped, somehow, she would bump into him again.
Kakashi didn't know how long he and Sakura had been dancing. For a minute there, he forgot there were in a crowded club. Even now, if he really thought about it, he could feel the scratchy sequins of her dress beneath his palms, and her supple shape hidden beneath those sequins. He couldn't believe he hadn't even asked for her number. God, he was an idiot.
He spared his friends one brief gesture toward the patio door before turning on his heel and heading outside. Suddenly the loud music and heat of the crowd was unbearable.
"Hey, loverboy," Obito joked as he and Rin approached him outside. "Pink finally gave up on you?"
"Funny," Kakashi said, hoping his sarcasm was enough to hide the deep-seated disappointment he was feeling. "Something came up."
"Is everything okay?" Rin asked, genuinely concerned.
"She was dancing with Kakashi; clearly the girl is unhinged," Genma said, ducking with impressive agility when Kakashi threw a woodchip at his head.
"My cousin just invited me to an after party," Obito interrupted, frowning down at his phone. Rin peeked at the message over his shoulder.
"Aw, I love Itachi," she cooed. "He's a good egg."
"Better than his brother, that's for sure," Obito grumbled. Realization hit Kakashi and he stared at Obito imploringly. Obito stared back for a moment in confusion, but then the same realization came to him. "No," he said adamantly.
"Obito," Kakashi started carefully.
"No way," Obito said again, pointing an accusing finger at Kakashi as he neared him, palms outstretched, beseeching.
"You're my best friend," Kakashi said, slowly walking toward him.
"Genma almost died tonight! He needs to go home!" Obito insisted.
"What? I'm perfectly fine, it's your shoes that need to go home," Genma muttered around a cigarette.
"Yeah, because you puked on them," Obito complained.
"You think Sakura will be at Itachi's party?" Rin asked. He thought it was worth a shot.
"Obito," Kakashi said again. "Tell Itachi we're coming."
"No. I won't. Especially if that little shit Sasuke is going to be there," Obito said, shaking his head stubbornly. "I can't. I refuse."
Fifteen minutes later, they were loaded into a taxi and headed to Itachi's.
a/n: listen. look. i fucked up. i know it. this was supposed to be a lil one-shot. little. short. one chapter. here we are, 10k words later and this is part 1 of 2 and im. im kind of sorry, but im really NOT SORRY AT ALL because i MISS GOING OUT with my friends and this is the closest i can get to that for now
i hope everyone else who misses noisy clubs and public drunkenness and chaotic nights out with their friends could live vicariously through this as i have
tumblr: bl1ndbraavosi