AN: If you're still following this story, consider yourself my personal hero :)
Story summary: Naruto meets a perfect stranger who turns out to be a bastard and keeps meeting him over and over again. And why does it seem that elevators conspired against humanity? Modern AU. SasuNaru, KibaNeji, other pairings
Chapter summary: Kiba rushes to his favorite professor's rescue despite the still unresolved feelings. KibaNeji finale!
DAMN ELEVATOR
Floor 8. About time
Neji stood with arms crossed at his chest, cool and composed as if the elevator didn't just shook violently, slowed down and then screeched to a full stop. He let out a slow breath and waited, for sure it was nothing to worry about – just a glitch that's soon to pass, an inconvenience of few mere seconds.
Seconds turned to minutes.
And then to a few more minutes.
"This can't be happening" the brunet pinched at the bridge of his nose in annoyance and then looked at the metal doors again with a particularly icy stare, but the treacherous thing remained shut, completely ignoring the attitude it was given. He pressed the button for basement again, but just like the previous few times, nothing happened.
The elevator was stuck.
With Neji in it.
"This can't be happening", he couldn't help repeating. This was not right... Being stuck in an elevator was something that happened to Uzumaki (a lot), or Inuzuka (sometimes), or any other damn person on this planet, but not him (ever).
Hyuugas don't get stuck in elevators.
Period.
This wasn't happening.
He refused to accept it and pushed the button again, sighing in frustration.
"You can't be serious!" Kiba shouted at the driving away cab. The driver dropped him off just a few blocks away from the bar blatantly refusing to drive outside the city. But that was okay— there were still other cabs around... he had a few numbers saved, if only he could just find it— why did it have to be tonight?
The minutes added up to half hour. It was now official: some Hyuugas do get stuck in elevators.
The emergency call didn't seem to do anything. Anything helpful, that is. It did other things—honestly, something weird was with that button. The first time he pushed it, it would not stop ringing as if whoever was on the other end of the line didn't want to pick up. Well, it was just after three in the morning, but wasn't it supposed to work 24/7? It was the emergency button, wasn't it? The second time, the call just disconnected and he waited a bit before trying again. Same thing happened the third time, then the forth. It was on the fifth, that the call seemed to go through, but to his 'hello?' he only heard a 'damn elevator' in a very raspy grumpy voice right before the connection broke again.
"That would be my line" Neji mumbled under his breath trying the button again. He did not care how inconvenient it was for the person on the other end, for sure it was their job to pick it up and send someone to rescue him from this, as Kiba put it before, demonic device. This time though the call went right through but—
"You have reached Hoshigaki,"
—was it voicemail?
"I am either unavailable,—" yes, it was definitely a voicemail as it was the same voice as before, just less raspy and more menacing "—in which case I have better things to do than listen to your message, or you called me outside working hours. Which means you got balls, and I'll enjoy shredding them to ribbons. So, go ahead, leave a message and I'll know where to find you"
Needless to say, the young professor didn't touch the emergency button after that.
He still had a problem though: in the last half hour, the elevator didn't get any less stuck. Pushing the buttons didn't work, obviously, so Neji had to consider other options.
Cellphone.
Wonderful idea, why on earth had he not thought of that earlier? Well, technically, he was under earth at the moment, but that's not an excuse. So. Phone. 'Where was it again?' Neji thought looking through his pockets just as an image of the device laying on his desk in the Time Lab came to mind. He swore out loud, not ashamed. Not that there was anyone around to hear. Which brought him to the second idea.
Shouting for help.
Again, not bad. Generally, people stuck in an elevator would call for help, or otherwise let someone from the outside know of their predicament. There were two problems with this option, though. One: Neji have not shouted, screamed, or otherwise raised his voice since he was six. Since that one time when the little Hinata tied his precious hair in braids with purple ribbons, bows, and blue sparkles. As she cried loudly with tears and snot running down her adorable chubby face in response to his rushed reaction, he promised to never shout again. He would courageously sit there and allow the kid do her thing after that, if it meant to keep his baby cousin smiling (all photos from that period of his life were, of course, burned down to the ground, dissolved in acid, thrown into space, or otherwise destroyed without a trace) The second problem with this idea was one simple fact: there was not a single soul left in the observatory, or within the five miles radius, for that matter. His commitment to his job be damned that made him stay and not leave with the rest of the scientists when the storm cleared.
Prying the doors open was not an option as the professor, armed with only one half-bent plastic pass card, didn't have anything to pry it open with. He also had no idea if he was between floors or not, which complicated things substantially.
Escape through the hatch was also discarded immediately. For so many reasons. First, he wasn't tall enough to reach the ceiling. Second, there wasn't even any hatch, and if it were, what next? Would he rope-climb up? Let's get real, he wasn't in a ninja movie...
There was only one other option left—the one Neji was least comfortable with as it required admitting his own helplessness—sit back and wait till morning. He slowly slid down to the floor, arms resting on his propped up knees, lips tight and a frown firmly in place to show just how pleased he was with the whole thing. But there was no point in standing – the morning was still few hours away. Four hours and twenty seven minutes, to be exact, till the cleaner's first shift at 8:00am. Even though the young professor never carried a watch, he always knew the time. And it wouldn't pass fast enough...
Being stuck in an elevator was disturbing, to say the least. Floor was dusty from the whole day of use, and Neji knew for a fact that his white lab coat, on which he was currently sitting, was going to be ruined by morning. The air was stuffy and cold, which started to creep in under his clothes leaving traces of goosebumps. But what bothered him the most was silence.
While the quiet was normally his second best friend,—kind of comes with the job in an isolated lab in the basement of a remote research facility that is hidden away from the city lights— today, Neji went out of his way to avoid it at all costs. He actually made an effort to be around other people, which went against his whole nature. His mind always worked faster in the quiet, but today—
Neji sighed heavily, closing his eyes and feeling the silence ringing in his ears
—today, he simply didn't want for it to work, didn't want to think at all. Because every single thought led to the same damn thing – the fight he had with Inuzuka. Now, without anyone around, it all came back: the words he said, that hurtful look in the widening dark eyes, and the sight of the man's back when he turned around and left. His heart still ached from having said all that but was there another way? It's not like he lied, saying that he didn't want friendship.
"But the imbecile is just so damn persistent," professor murmured and his head ducked in despair "so damn friendly"
The very first day Neji joined the Time lab, he noticed that, like Earth and other planets moved around the Sun, everything and everyone in the Konoha Observatory moved around the lead mechanic. Soon after, he learned that it was not because of the role itself, but because the person occupying it was Inuzuka Kiba, who was like the star of this closed-off system – endless source of energy that connected thousands of moving pieces on the go. Every night and most days he would spend in the lab, making sure the equipment worked, scientists had space and resources for their research, mechanics and other employees had something to do and enjoyed doing it. He would smile left and right, offer to or simply help without even asking, connect the teams through constant get-togethers and birthday celebrations. He was friends with everyone and made sure to treat everyone equally. And that last part was the cause of a certain professor's agony.
Neji didn't want to be treated equally.
And it hurt.
'Neji' the lead mechanic's voice ringed in his ears.
It was same as 'Naruto'
Or 'Karin'
Same as every-bloody-one else.
It hurt every single time he was addressed to informally, treated on par with everyone.
The young professor sighed again and stared at the ceiling blankly, feeling the familiar dull pain return to the middle of his chest.
Honestly, falling in love with the idiot was inevitable. That warm outgoing personality—which was complete opposite of Neji's cold and composed demeanour—made it so easy to be around Kiba. His sense of humour could rival Gaara's, and the way he laughed at his own jokes was so damn endearing. And that broad strong body and blinding smile of his weren't helping either—
The scientist felt his cheeks burning thinking back about the results of the stupid contest and released a slow breath. How could Kiba get the last place, and with only one vote to boot? Suddenly even more embarrassed, Neji buried his fully flushed face in his hands. Thank heavens the lead mechanic threw away the list without noticing... No one else made a big deal out of it either. So he was safe.
But he was still stuck.
With four hours and five minutes more to go.
"Damn elevator"
The light inside flickered and turned off.
"This is ridiculous!" Kiba slammed the cab door so hard it echoed through the empty parking lot "highway robbery!" he shouted again after the driving away cab that charged him thee times the regular rate.
Naturally, it was hard to find a cab willing to get you to a remote research facility in the middle of the night. It was even harder to get it drive the unlit country road safely. But the hardest part was—
The hardest part was explaining to the driver that at the end of the road was an observatory, and not a mass burial site of cab drivers that were not paid enough to drive maniacs around! Garh! So frustrating. He really didn't have time for this, so agreed to pay the outrageous fare.
As soon as the car left the premises, the brunet pushed the button to close the gates and jogged to the entrance, leaving deep footprints on the fresh crunchy snow and a trail of puffs of white air. It was bloody freezing after the snowstorm, but helped to clear off some buzz from all the drinking with Naruto. He needed that, so just before entering the building, Kiba took few more deep stinging breaths of dry winter air and felt its coolness go all the down to his insides, which flipped immediately at the thought of seeing Neji so soon. With heavens help he would be in some sort of condition to talk to him. It was unplanned, the anger was still there together with other raw and unexplained emotions, not to mention alcohol still clouded his brain, but—the mechanic looked at his watch and swore out loud—it was quarter after four in the morning, making it roughly two hours since the scientist got stuck in the elevator. And regardless of how angry he was with the man, there was no use to keep him stuck in there all night.
Inuzuka stepped inside and hurried off to the supplies closet, hating the way the warm air brought heat right back to his cheeks. Dammit, he should have stopped with the shots much earlier. Having grabbed whatever needed, the brunet ran to the service room to check on the computers that monitored elevators. The technician mentioned to him before that they could require a reboot, if there was power outage or some other glitch.
Kiba checked the computers and found them working perfectly. They also showed that the elevator wasn't between floors, it actually reached the basement. Which was good, but something happened with the door or maybe something was blocking it from opening. Having set up the system, the mechanic fled down the stairs: the reboot would take a few minutes and it was programmed to open the doors right after. So he wanted to be there, in case the door was jammed and he would need to pry it open with a wench.
It was weird and uncomfortable, the floor was too hard and Hyuuga could already feel the pain in his backside. The wall of the elevator was cold, but he was still leaning on it for support because it's not like there was anything else around. Neji must have dozed off sometime ago because he almost lost track of time and finally, finally, stopped thinking. Also, his eyes were closed and he honestly would rather keep them that way: staring at the four tall walls wasn't fun or of any use. But then, something was poking on his shoulder. Neji tried to ignore the feeling, but it grew harder and harder each time, it persisted. His brows furrowed. Why would't it just go away?
"...ake up, Ne—..." he heard a soft voice "wake up" his eyes snapped open to a face leaning over him, then closed immediately from the blinding light. "Good, you're awake. You're ok?"
The professor groaned and rubbed at his face from the remains of the sleep, at the same time trying to gather bits and pieces of his consciousness together. What was Kiba doing here? Didn't he leave with Uzumaki?
"Oh, I came to get you out" he heard the brunet answer. How did he?—Wait, did he ask that out loud?
Eager to get out of the elevator, Neji tried to stand up, he had enough of that thing, but his numb legs failed him and he found himself back on the floor. The second try was better but only because this time the mechanic gently supported him by the shoulders first and then slipped an arm around his back. They were so warm, Kiba's hands, in contrast to the air in, and walls of, the elevator. It was like being wrapped in a blanket and Neji couldn't stop himself from leaning in to the pleasant feeling for a second.
Only a second, though, as right after, the professor straightened and, sensing the strength come back to his legs, walked out of the elevator.
"Thank you" Neji heard his raspy voice and felt the dryness all the way down his throat. "Coffee?" He asked without turning back to the other man that was still standing inside the damned machine. Getting a simple 'sure' in response, he walked away towards his lab. With all the time in the elevator, he still felt too bare, too unprepared for being around Inuzuka.
The mechanic walked into the time lab right after the professor and watched him discard the dirty lab coat to a chair and then start the coffeemaker. The man only had a dress shirt on, no wonder he was so cold to the touch in the elevator; it must have been freezing in there! He saw Neji put on a sweater, which appeared from one of the drawers, thankfully, and then busy himself with mugs and sugar.
Taking off his puffer, Inuzuka sat on the couch without a word and simply waited for— something. Anything. It was awkward and quiet and he hated every second of it but couldn't quite bring himself to break the silence.
Back in the elevator, he almost called the other man by the first name again, barely stopping himself at the last moment – no use to wake him up just to start an argument again. But, dammit, it just came so naturally! His crush was sitting asleep on the floor of an elevator – calm and relaxed, despite the obviously uncomfortable position. The frown Kiba was so used to seeing was gone as if it was never there, loose strands of hair gently falling over the shoulders. All the anger he felt before dissipated like it was nothing. How could he address him formally, coldly when his heart was swelling with fondness? It took his all willpower to not kiss the man right there.
And now that said man was quietly pouring coffee in the mugs, as composed as ever with the usual crinkle back in place between the brows.
"Um—" the silence was killing him, and Kiba decided to start with something small "Sorry about the elevator"
Surprised at the sudden break of silence, Neji's hand froze mid-air interrupting the task of pouring coffee but then relaxed and continued with the next mug. "Why apologize? It's not like you had anything to do with it"
"Ah, about that—" Kiba scratched at the back of his neck awkwardly, intently following professor's movements: there was boiling hot coffee involved...and perhaps he shouldn't have started with this..."—fox-face and I actually did have something to do with it"
"What" with the word—not a question, a demand—Neji walked over to the couch and stood right in front of the other man, glass carafe still firmly in his hand. Kiba's eyes moved from cold pale ones to the steam coming off the dangerous object and then finally to the floor.
"Err—before we left, we may have, urgh, kicked it" the mechanic felt like falling through that floor from shame "a few times" all the way to hell actually as the floor was in a basement and there was nothing else under it "more than a few times. It left a dent—" seeing the professors eyes turning to icicles, he gulped audibly "—on the door. And it jammed when you reached the floor"
"Why does this not surprise me" Neji released a frustrated breath and walked back to the coffee maker, then, finding a way around his desk, he landed on the chair gracefully and took a sip from his mug "was it Uzumaki's idea? Such unprofessional behaviour should not be entertained in a research facility. He is really being a bad influence on you"
"It was my idea, actually." Kiba countered, confused "The darn thing was pissing me off for the past two weeks—got to get the thing replaced—so no need to blame Naruto for anything. And what do you mean by bad influence?"
"You're constantly late, distracted, short tempered, it is not like you" Neji stated matter-of-factly, pushing the mug closer to the other man.
"Huff, he is hardly at fault here" the mechanic snorted and breathed in the steam from his mug. The alcohol buzz returned and with it the usual sleepiness, but coffee was supposed to help, wasn't it?
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing." He said but together with the burning coffee he had to gulp down the desire to just blurt his frustrating feelings out. "What are you doing here anyways? Everyone else is gone"
"That's precisely the reason. Nara left without finishing the work. Machine needs to be prepared for tomorrow night's time adjustment. And he just left"
"Damn, he shouldn't have. But when it comes to Temari, he is so bad, just forgets about everything else when she is around. I can't figure out if she ignores him on purpose or not"
Neji gave this a thought: it was true, indeed, every time Gaara's sister was in town, Nara would be useful only around her and neglect everyone and everything else around. It seemed he had finally gotten his driver's license to be able to offer her a ride to the airport. Not that he couldn't drive before, of course the idiot genius could, but was just always too lazy to go through with the paperwork and exams. There was resemblance to how Inuzuka behaved around a certain blond scientist. With the memory of them two walking out of the kitchen together playing before his eyes, Neji quietly stated:
"Just like you, around Uzumaki"
Kiba's eyes narrowed at the accusation and a bolt of hurt and anger flashed through his veins.
"Just like you around Gaara", he countered knowing that it wasn't really true as Neji has always been very diligent and responsible, but so was he for damn's sake and being accused was simply maddening.
"Now that's not fair" the professor stood from his chair in defence "Gaara and I are good friends and I don't forget my obligations when he is here"
"Friends, really? Is that all you are?" the mechanic stood as well, remembering the redhead's hands all over the professor, dammit. The pulse ringed in his ears and buzz from alcohol increased tenfold, with it the whole bouquet of ugly emotions overwhelmed his senses. He should have just helped the man out of the elevator and left him to his own devices. Instead there they were again, fighting.
He was about to walk around the desk and press Hyuuga for explanations, to finally get some answers, or better yet to shut him up and not talk at all and make his feelings clear through something else entirely but a piercing sound from the other end of the room forced him out of the moment.
Kiba had to cover his both ears to somehow lower the effect of the loud noise and saw Neji do the same. Two pairs of eyes widened in panic when the realization hit both men – the sound came from the Time Machine, and as it was an atomic clock, so many things could go wrong. No, nothing could explode, and no, the clock wasn't radioactive as it didn't rely on atomic decay, but the thought of it breaking and interrupting the time of Japan was just as terrifying.
The sound wouldn't shut up – it was continuous and high-pitched, and, dammit, Kiba's eyes started watering already as he ran towards the machine, with Neji hot at his heels. The first looked through every piece of equipment one by one trying to find the source of the noise, while the other checked the computers for any abnormalities in the second count. Both breathed out in relief noting that everything was correct and as it should be – the machine was not the source. But the sound still continued and still was coming from that general direction.
The professor saw mechanic disappear under the computer desk to check the wiring along the wall and to see what else could possibly be the cause. His eyes shut, as if it would help, but, heavens, the sound was unbearable. It bounced from concrete walls and seemed to echo through his whole body. Through the noise he heard the other man swear and then the sudden silence pierced the room. Though it seemed just as loud and the ringing in the ears wouldn't stop.
"Fuck!" Kiba shouted, trying to get out from under the desk "I am firing that lazy couchfucking pinapple-headed assholefuck!" He turned around to the wide eyed Neji and continued with the explanation: "the uninterrupted power supply—the battery that is connected to the time machine in case of power outages—is loosing its capacity. I asked the lazy fucker to change it today but he obviously forgot. Had no idea the warning sound would be that loud, but then gain I always had it changed on schedule"
As a light chuckle reached his ears he looked at the other man in the room, who was by then laughing out loud.
"I thought my heart would stop" Neji said between the laughs, a tear rolling down his cheek "it was a damn battery" he laughed more, trying to cover his smile with one hand, another clutching at his abdomen, but it didn't really help and Kiba looked at him in bewilderment. It was the very first time he saw the professor laugh and couldn't stop himself from following suit.
They walked away from the machine, still laughing at the whole stupidity of what just happened. Why on earth would a battery need to have such warning signal? It didn't even need to be replaced right away, it could work for at least two more weeks without any critical loss to the performance.
As they sat on the couch, finishing their coffees, Kiba felt the urge to bring out more of that smile he got a glimpse of and started talking about other silly incidents that happened when Neji wasn't around. There were many and not all of them, contrary to everyone's opinion, were caused by him. Like how could he possibly arrange for Konohamaru to lock himself out on the dome of the Beast with pants stuck between the firmly shut door and the frame? The poor guy had to climb down the emergency stairs, flashing the strawberry-banana underwear to the world. And really, how could he know that letting Akamaru run around freely would lead to Karin's frothier flying out of her hands straight to Suigetsu's hair? Why else would he be so afraid of the thing? Oh, and, honestly, that time when the redhead's lab got raided by a hoard of bats was totally her fault! She needed to stop working so much in the dark and to the tunes of goth metal!
Neji listened to the stories with amusement in his eyes and let a few chuckles out. It only proved his point that the observatory was full of idiots. How could they even get through university and such prestigious one to boot? But all of them somehow made the place enjoyable to work in, they seemed to be so close, all of them. And talking to Kiba like this was nice, actually. So what if he was treated the same as everyone, it didn't hurt as much when sitting together so close and just chatting. Maybe he should give that friend thought another try. No one could know where it may lead to.
"Why is friendship so important to you?" He asked, taking the mugs away to the cabinet "You have so many, why need more?"
"It is not a numbers game." Kiba shrugged his shoulders, and yawned. The exhaustion finally coming over him. "You get to know a person a little and like them for one reason or another, want to learn more about them, share interesting things, help them out, hear them rant" It was simple, really, some people were nice to have around and some, take the oblivious professor for example, were downright essential. He yawned again and stretched, fighting the sleep.
"I don't rant" Neji said, drawing a laugh out of him.
"Didn't think so! Well, I rant, a lot. So what if I want to have a friend to rant to?" he said and the other brunet looked at him amused.
"That explains why you need so many."
"Hey!"
"I apologize" the professor said, eyes suddenly serious. "For being so rude before and saying that I don't want to be your friend"
Kiba looked at him confused "that's alright, I shouldn't have behaved as I did, too. It's not like friendship can be forced on someone, right?"
"Still, it was out of line. I think I want to give it a try" Neji confessed and stretched his hand to the other brunet but seeing the large grin stretching Kiba's face withdrew it just before they touched "But we are still not on the first-name basis. I am not used to it, only family calls me that way. So, Hyuuga, ok?"
"Sure. As long as you call me Kiba, we are fine"
"I'll try" the long haired brunet sighed at the compromise and stretched his hand out again.
The mechanic smiled gleefully not believing his luck – for the whole year he was trying to get on the professor's good side. If he knew that would work, he would have let the damn battery expire long time ago. And maybe, just maybe, the pineapple-head didn't need to be fired after all.
Excitement rushed through his veins all the way to the fingertips and Kiba returned the gesture. But as their hands locked, the cold from the professor's fingers transferred over to the mechanic, travelled up all the way to his heart and it seized—
Friends
—another seize
Colleagues
The words echoed through his mind, louder than the sound of the battery before. It was what he wanted, wasn't it? He thought furrowing his brows and not releasing the hold.
No
No, it wasn't.
Of its own accord the tanned hand squeezed the pale one tightly and Kiba found himself falling—Or was it Neji's body that got pulled to him, he wasn't sure. He wasn't sure of anything in the world as his lips finally claimed what they yearned for from the moment he saw the scientist on the floor of the elevator, or earlier tonight in the kitchen, or yesterday in Gaaras arms, no, from very moment the man walked into the room at that damned Christmas soirée.
Chilly, and soft, like fresh snow, they were, and melting from his heated breath. He stilled and simply gave in to the feeling. A part of him wished for the time to just stop right there, right that instant. His hand, still holding the other man's, trembled against his chest as if afraid the beating heart behind it would jump out. He stayed like that, in heaven, but still unsure, doubt, panic, started to creep into his mind and he was about to pull away when—
it all went blank
—he felt soft lips move agains his and with that all doubts, all restraints evaporated. His other hand found its way up the man's nape and buried into long hair, just as he deepened the kiss.
Sweet
Damn, Kiba was thirsty for this sweetness, savouring it like it was the last drop in the universe. The taste of coffee, sugar—and something else unique overwhelmed his senses...just how much sugar did the guy put in the coffee? Enough to get addicted, that's for sure, or maybe it wasn't sugar he was getting addicted to at all. He plunged his tongue deeper and, feeling the other muscle respond just as eagerly, didn't bother to suppress the moan.
The need to be closer, to feel more of the man in his arms, drove the mechanic wild and he pressed further, and further, until not anyone could come in between them, not a single atom, until—
He heard the professor grunt in pain—not the sound he was expecting—and realized that the man's back just hit the cabinet and not in a pleasant way. That wasn't going to work, Kiba thought as he pulled Neji away from the hard surface into another kiss and moved backwards in the general direction of the couch. He hissed when his leg got caught by the coffee table corner and swore out loud drawing a laugh from the other man. Heavens, he wanted to hear more of that silver laugh, but later. Now—more than anything in the whole universe—he wanted to hear many other equally wonderful and slightly more delicious sounds.
Slowly and carefully, the mechanic lowered them both on the soft surface and pulled the professor on top of him. Pale eyes clouded with desire reminded him of the sky before the snowstorm – just as powerful, just as beautiful. Lose strands of long hair fell around the man's shoulders like the night itself. He was so mesmerized by the view that didn't register the buttons of his shirt being undone until none were left and slightly cold fingers came into contact with his heated skin. He hissed in pleasure just before the scientist dove into another kiss.
"You're drunk" Neji whispered biting on slightly swollen lips and searching for an answer in the dark eyes.
"Of course, I am." Obviously, the traces of alcohol still remained and Kiba laughed to that. "I am also dreaming, there's no way you would be responding if this was real"
He flipped them over and pressed Neji further into the couch, letting out a shallow breath at the heat and friction between them. No words were said after..
Heavens, being so close still wasn't enough. The need to possess every inch of the man beneath him only multiplied with every second, every heartbeat, every breath. The smell from hair he buried his nose into was simply divine. How many times did he dream of biting down behind this beautifully shaped ear? Leaving a mark on this long pale neck? This collar bone? Kiba moved lower and lower until the sweater couldn't stretch far enough and groaned, then withdrew sharply.
The sweater had to go—no, everything had to go. With the way the man made him feel, his body heat was enough for the two of them. Pulling the professor up, he tried to take both the sweater and shirt in one go, starving for the skin it hid beneath, but the cuffs got caught in the process trapping Neji inside. Both laughed at the silliness of it all and slowed down to untangle the mess and free themselves of the unneeded garments.
As soon as that was out of the way, Kiba pushed the scientist back down in another searing kiss. His skin was on fire and cold fingers clutching at his back sent shivers and electric pleasure up his nerves right to the brain and he felt dizzy, uncontrolled, wild. His mind was already out of the window by then, but this sent it right into the outer space.
"Neji..my Neji.." the mechanic whispered between kisses, drowning in the unique taste of the other man. He felt fingers slide along his spine all the way down to the rim of his jeans and got the hint. Trailing his tongue, nips and little bites down the neck, then chest, drawing soft gasps out of the professor, he moved even lower until the pretty shaped belly button came into his view. Seriously, even the tiniest of details in this man were so beautiful. Did he not possess any flaws?
Another moan and Kiba was back to his task, unbuttoning Neji's slacks and tugging them down as far as they could go, exposing him to the chilly air in the Time Lab. But not for long. Not able to control himself, he sucked at the velvet skin while working on his own jeans. Dammit, slacks were so much easier to get rid of.
Not wasting another heartbeat and feeling the shivers on pale skin, he returned with another kiss to Neji's lips. Feeling long strong legs wrap around his hips and slim fingers clutch at his shoulders, Kiba lost the last restraint and pressed down, catching another gasp with his mouth, and then again, repeatedly, raising the heat between them. Acting purely on instinct, he slid one hand along their bodies and took both of their members at once, pumping in rhythm. All of it was unplanned, they were not prepared, so this had to do for now.
Naji raised himself to keep up with the movements and threw his head back just enough to expose more of the white neck to Kiba's lips. They weren't going to last long—the year of frustrations, longing, and misunderstandings finally came to an end—and the only thing they could see was white.
The mechanic woke up to the smell of fresh coffee, mild headache, and soft sounds of laptop keys. He sat up and noticed an unfamiliar blanket sliding down to his lap. Rubbing both hands on his face he mumbled good mornings to the man behind the desk and said:
"Didn't know you had blankets"
"I didn't" Neji responded in the usual cool voice, but a small chuckle still escaped his lips to Kiba's amusement. "Not until the cleaner lady threw it at our faces a little while go"
"You're kidding" he said bewildered.
"I have no idea how you didn't wake up to that"
"Growing up with two siblings, seven cousins, and five dogs in one house would do that to you" Kiba explained and laughed out loud "man, she is not going to shut up about it"
"Yes, I am sure that by noon, half of the lab would know" the professor said, standing up and throwing a shirt right at Kiba. Catching the garment mid air, he walked over to Neji and leaned in for a kiss, but instead buried his face in the man's neck. Morning breath after a night out with Naruto was a nasty thing and there was no way he was subjecting his lover to this torture.
Lover.
He smiled and mumbled into professor's collar "We should probably talk about that"
"Nothing to talk about" Neji tried to push the bigger man away by the hair "You were drunk, I took advantage of you" drawing a laugh out of him.
"That's not how I remember it" Kiba said wrapping both hands around the slender man, leaving no ways to escape and whispered "there is nothing you can do that would be taking advantage of me"
AN: This concludes KibaNeji story! I hope you weren't disappointed by my first attempt at writing smut. Please let me know if you found Neji as silly and Kiba as sweet as I did :) AND I need your help! After so long without any updates you all probably had to re read the story, so—
Help me find loose ends! I left clues here and there to different aspects of the story and now that there are only two chapters left, I want to make sure to clear them all up. Let me know if you have some unanswered questions from previous chapters! Like: who really and why donated to Kiba's shelter? Why did Sasuke exit at the different floor in ch4? Is he a stalker? Why is there discrepancy between how much time Neji spent in the elevator and Kiba's assumption? There are others and I just don't want to miss anything :)
