Together

Chapter Three

Trouble

Boruto's outlook changed a little since Thursday and his conversation with Kawaki. He decided to give the support group a chance and use the gifted stress ball when he felt himself start to go off. No one was around to witness it calm him, but his sister did notice the less snippy attitude and undestroyed apartment when she got home from work. He wasn't a perfect angel or anything, but he was taking a big step in the right direction. At least he hoped so. He even got on the group chat a few times.

Everyone was fairly active and Shikadai was on there too, making him think that perhaps this mediator thing wasn't just a job. Or maybe he was looking into it too much. Sunday night proved to be a particularly chatty time despite the meeting being tomorrow. He sat in bed, waiting for Himawari to get back, as his phone read off messages. The conversations were all over the place, but it brought a sense of normalcy that Boruto had cut out of his life. It was time he let it back in . . . for the time being.

"Metal says: 'An old friend of mine reached out to me just now, wanting to know when I'm free'."

"Chocho says: 'Sounds like fun, you should accept'."

"Metal says: 'I don't know. It's been years and she might not be prepared for everything I've got going on'."

"Chocho says: 'She?! Well well well'."

Possible romance, huh? Boruto was surprised the little ones weren't jumping in on this.

"Hōki says: 'Oh yay! Send pics'."

It seemed he spoke too soon.

"Kawaki says: 'Hōki, stay out of it'."

"Sumire says: 'You won't know until you do it. If she's worth anything then she'll stay no matter what you have going on'."

"Chocho says: 'Exactly! Go for it, Metal'."

"Metal says: 'If you all think so. Yeah, why not? I'll invite her over and try to stay positive! It'll be nice to get back in touch'."

"Chocho says: 'Your house, ey? Metal, you dog'. Wink wink, smiley face."

"Inojin says: 'Is this another one of those (get a bedroom) things'?"

The blond frowned. What the fuck?

"Hōki says: 'Yes, Inojin, it is'."

Boruto took it back, Hōki wasn't as innocent as he pretended to be and was taking Inojin down with him.

"Kawaki says: 'Hōki, stop it'."

"Hōki says: 'Why, Kawaki? Mad because you haven't had any bedroom time with Boruto?'."

"Metal says: 'NO! I didn't mean it like that. The only room we'll be using is the living room'."

"Sumire says: 'Kinky'."

"Chocho says: 'HA! Sumi'. Smirk smirk."

They were all a hot mess, but the blond was smiling nonetheless. "Text to chat: Leave Metal alone, if he wants to be kinky that's his business." He said and waited for the message to send. He wasn't going to comment on Hōki's nonsense and decided to let Kawaki handle that.

"Kawaki says: 'That's it. I'm coming for your ass, Hōki'."

"Metal says: 'Come on, not you too Boruto'."

"Hōki says: 'Oh but it's Boruto's ass you really want'."

Boruto's face flamed. He didn't pull any punches, did he? Hōki was determined to make his ship a reality and wasn't afraid to say whatever came to mind. Basically, he was a cheeky little shit.

"Iwabe has joined the chat."

"Hōki says: 'Oh no, he's really coming. Iwabe, help'."

"Iwabe has left the chat."

"Sarada says: 'Lol'."

"Inojin says: 'Hōki! Come over and hide at my place'."

Boruto shook his head. "Text to chat: You realize Kawaki can still see these messages, right Inojin?"

"Kawaki says: 'I'll find both your asses so don't bother'."

"Chocho says: 'Oh no, not our babies'. Worried face."

"Sumire says: 'At least we know what happened if they don't show up tomorrow'."

Damn.

"Metal says: 'Wow, just throwing them to the shark'."

"Sumire says: 'They gotta learn how to swim some time'."

"Shikadai says: 'Well I've had my fill of this underwater adventure, see you lot tomorrow. Night'. Shikadai has left the chat."

"Hōki says: 'Y'all know better. Watch him come just to be nice'."

Funnily enough, Boruto didn't doubt it. "Text to chat: Spoiled. Absolutely spoiled."

"Chocho says: 'As they should be'. Heart heart heart."

"Hōki says: 'Hahaha Inojin come over. Kawaki will take us out for ice cream'."

"Inojin says: 'Okay, be there in a sec'."

That was some ass kicking Kawaki was giving. Yep. "Text to chat: Kawaki, you're too soft. Some stern dad you are."

"Sumire says: 'Dad is right. Him and his little gremlins. You gotta love 'em'."

"Chocho says: 'Papa Kawaki. I'm a fan'. Rolls on the floor while laughing."

"Metal says: 'We love them alright. Even though they're so bad'."

"Hōki says: 'Hurry bro and papa Kawaki, I'm hungry'."

"Kawaki has left the chat."

"Sarada says: 'Lol'."

"Metal and Sumire have left the chat."

"Chocho says: 'Aw man, we didn't pick who the mom is yet'."

"Hōki says: 'It's Boruto of course'."

There he went again, ever vigilant. "Leave chat." Boruto said and dropped his phone down on the mattress. He wasn't staying around for that nonsense.

The sound of the door opening had the blond on his feet and he made his way into the living room. He could smell the take out, knowing she didn't have the energy to cook dinner. Once again he was left feeling useless. Unemployed and unskilled compared to other blind people, Boruto had little to nothing to contribute. Himawari was doing it all. Some older brother he was. Starting to get frustrated, he took the stress ball out of his pocket and tried to keep his attitude to himself. After all the shit she deals with at work, she didn't deserve for him to add more at home.

Himawari ended up getting something just for Boruto and went straight to bed after she gave him a hug. He was proud of how much she had grown, being more of an adult than he had been these last two years. Truth be told he should have spent that time learning how to manage himself better. Sure he could get dressed and shower and all that stuff, it didn't take long at all to navigate those routines. He knew how to get around with that wretched cane and memorize locations and layouts after a while. Still, there were things he never bothered to relearn.

He hadn't touched a stove in ages and he could pick up around the apartment if he put forth the effort to control his temper. Maybe he could walk to the market down the street and get groceries, little things like that that would help Himawari out. He knew it was possible, but he had never bothered. All these thoughts bounced around in his head as he ate and he was well aware it wouldn't kill him to do something. Hell, he wanted to do something other than sit around all day and listen to the television. Even running on the treadmill got old and he could never do it for as long as he used to, it just reminded him that he couldn't ever run track again.

Another one of his triggers . . . he was set off pretty easily, huh? The question was whether or not it was worth it to attempt these things. Did he still want his sister to be rid of him? Two meetings of support group and a week later, he was already getting a little better. A lot better in fact in some cases. Boruto decided to give it a shot, why not strive for more? It would be nice if he could . . . if he could make Himawari smile and create some good memories. It was about time they had some, wasn't it? And it worked out alright with Kawaki. Mind made up, the blond was going to start helping out more this week.

The next morning Himawari drove him to the care center to drop him off, bag packed and all. No matter what he said she was determined to do so and it made her feel better to know he had everything he needed packed away. He supposed it was a win-win, the little ones sure enjoyed sharing his snacks. The meeting opened with the others grilling Metal about his special lady friend since he had left the chat before telling anyone how it went. Apparently his old friend agreed to the invite and was coming over Wednesday, giving him roughly two days to prepare.

Shikadai went around the group and asked how everyone's weekend went just like he did last Monday. Now a part of the chat, Boruto wondered why the other man did that considering he and everyone else should already know. Meanwhile the Nara was pleased by how quickly the blond was settling in. It was good to see that his decision to let Kawaki handle him when he got upset Thursday had been right. As for his routine questions, it was important the group members talked face to face and it gave them another chance to say things they might have hesitated about before.

The topic changed after Iwabe went into a story about what happened to him on his way here this morning. Boruto was realizing the man was really dramatic, but fun to listen to all the same. Inojin got up to use the bathroom in the middle of it and Chocho went on a rant about her co-workers after Iwabe was finished. She was a chef at a steakhouse, working her way up to head chef. The blond was listening to her complaints, though couldn't help but notice the increase of voices in the hallway. They weren't the only ones in the care center and he figured there might be some event going on judging from how loud it was getting.

It also came to his attention that when Chocho had said her peace, Inojin still wasn't back yet. Before anyone else could take the floor and start another conversation, he brought it to everyone's attention. "Isn't Inojin taking awhile?"

"Now that you mention it . . ." Metal trailed and shared worried looks around the circle.

"Oh no… Kawaki?" Hōki looked to Kawaki who was trying not to get concerned about it.

His leg bounced where he sat and he scoffed. "Alright. I'll go check on him." He said as he got up.

"I'll go with you." Shikadai said quickly and got up as well. The crowd outside was rubbing him the wrong way and his instincts told him something was wrong.

"Okay." Kawaki nodded and then the two of them left the room.

Boruto had wanted to go too, but he would just end up slowing them down. The room went silent as everyone waited and it only set the blond on edge. Their reaction meant there was something to be worried about . . . something he didn't know. Sumire reached over and held Sarada's hand when the raven started biting her lip, trying to offer her some comfort. Hōki was the most worked up though and kept his eyes on the door. It was hard to tell what was going on given the number of people moving around in the hallway. However Boruto did pick up on some faint yelling, frowning at the sound.

Not too long after that the doors burst open and nearly everyone jumped. "Iwabe, get the blanket from the shelf." Shikadai instructed as he led a panting Inojin inside.

"Shit." Iwabe bolted from his seat to get the blanket, quickly meeting the pair and handing it to Shikadai so he could wrap it around Inojin.

"Oh no. Oh no." Hōki whispered frantically, fidgeting with his fingers while he stared at his panicked friend and then glanced back at the door. "Where's Kawaki?" His voice has turned so quiet, so frightened.

The mediator sighed as he sat Inojin down on the floor. "Raising hell. Would someone please go calm him down?" Shikadai needed to tend to Inojin first before his panic attack led to him passing out. "Hōki, come down here with us." His presence would help ease the blond.

"I got it." Sumire volunteered and this time Boruto did ask to come along. The lavender haired woman didn't have a problem with it and helped him through the sea of people outside.

They traveled down the hall and this time Boruto could hear the yelling loud and clear. Kawaki was raising hell alright, voices around them talking about calling security. Sumire's brow furrowed as she spotted the taller man punch someone before tossing two others to the side. It wasn't hard for her to put together what happened. Boruto on the other hand had no idea and was completely unsuspecting as to what his companion was planning. Figuring it would be the fastest and most effective way to stop the mini rampage, Sumire pushed Boruto right into Kawaki once they were close enough.

Boruto yelped, bracing himself but never hit the ground. Instead he fell right against a strong chest and familiar cologne. "Um . . . Kawaki?"

Kawaki was breathing heavily, his whole body tense with aggression. He was too worked up to calm down immediately, but his rage died as soon as Boruto bumped into him and the urge to see to his safety took over. He wrapped his arms around him and started dragging him away from the others while trying to calm his breathing. Sumire followed behind them, giving warning looks to the angry and judging audience. She didn't give a fuck if they were mad at Kawaki, if anyone so much as glared at him she would knock a bitch out. The woman could get just as protective as the grey eyed man.

The blond was at a loss at this point and simply let himself be taken to wherever. Sumire watched the pair round the corner, realizing Kawaki was headed outside. She let them be and went back into the meeting room to check in on how Sarada and Inojin were holding up. Kawaki got them outside and away from everyone before he released him, knowing he was safe now and he needed to worry about calming himself down. He got out his new new stress ball and worked it so fast in his hand that it couldn't even keep up. He took deep breaths and paced back and forth, telling himself he had to calm down. Everything was okay.

Boruto could hear the hurried and angry steps along with the long and measured breaths. The shoe was on the other foot now and the blond wasn't sure how to handle this. He had trouble calming himself down, how was he supposed to help Kawaki and return the favor? Deciding not to overthink things too much, he just went for it. He stepped forwards and caught the other man's arm on one of his strides. Then he took off his sunglasses in order to give the Kawaki his full attention, angling his head up more than he used to now that he knew their height difference.

"Cooking. Know anything about it?" Boruto asked. Changing the subject helped, right?

Cooking? Kawaki's face fell at the question and it ran through his head several times while he thought of a response, having to work through his anger and remember where to direct it. "Not much." He said, voice a little shaken from his frazzled nerves. When he finally zeroed in on Boruto's eyes, he sighed, his breathing finally settling.

"Hmm. I was thinking about picking it up again." He confessed. "But I can't really do that unsupervised . . . and I might be biting off more than I can chew."

Kawaki smiled and couldn't believe it, but every ounce of his anger washed away at the idea of Boruto wanting to do something like that. And he was so cute. "You can do it. I would love to eat your cooking."

"Who says you get to eat it?" Boruto teased. "I won't feed you anything until I'm sure it's edible. I used to be pretty good, but who knows now. It's a whole new ballgame . . . do you think Chocho would help me out?" She was a chef after all as he conveniently discovered this morning.

"Why her?" Kawaki frowned. "Why can't I help?" It wasn't fair for it to be Chocho.

Well, if he was going to insist. "Alright."

"What?"

Boruto grinning, crossing his arms. "I said alright. You can help me instead." He had wanted Kawaki's help in the first place.

"Really? Like cooking? Me and you?... a date?" Kawaki hadn't expected this.

Boruto hadn't either, at least that bit. "D-date?" He flushed.

"Shit." Kawaki sighed, unable to believe this guy could get any cuter. "Is that a no?"

"Wait a second, let's not get hasty." Boruto got out, not entirely sure how he felt about it. "I . . . I want to do it. Uh, it as in cooking, not it as it. Not that that's bad either! I-I mean . . ." God, why was he rambling?

"Whoa, back up." Kawaki laughed softly and rubbed the blond's flailing arms. "Did you just say you wanted to do it?"

He hadn't meant for it to come out like that or for the notion to pop in his head. He blamed Hōki. "Nonsense. I said nothing of the sort."

"So that's a no?"

Boruto could hear the smirk, making his cheeks turn a deeper red. "Shut up."

"Fine." He hummed and wrapped his arm around Boruto's shoulder, hugging him to his body as he led him towards the door. He needed to check on Inojin. "Date first, we'll talk about the rest after."

"No we will not."

"So you're straight then?" He frowned, just his luck.

Boruto hesitated, wondering if he should give up that bit of information. "I didn't say that . . ." He trailed and put his sunglasses back on.

"Damn just give it to me already." Kawaki groaned and then stiffened, that had not come out right at all.

Boruto was not ready for that level of boldness and nearly tripped. "Y-you—what?" He couldn't believe the other man just said that.

"That's not what I meant—shit… I just… I meant, give me a straight answer, damn it." Kawaki was sure his face had never felt so hot before.

"I'm not so sure I trust that." The blond mumbled. His heart was hammering in his chest. "Do you come on to all the boys like this?"

"Of course I don't. I don't know why you make me want you so much. But I like it."

There he went again with those killer lines. "I think that's enough out of you." Boruto hadn't had this kind of attention in a long time, much less these feelings running amuck inside of him. Were his palms sweaty?

"Okay. I'll back off." He smiled and they made their way to the meeting room silently.

Inojin had calmed down. He and Hōki were sitting on the floor, holding onto each other for dear life. They both turned to look at Kawaki and Boruto when they stepped in. Kawaki pulled his arm back, hand falling to the small of Boruto's back. He helped him to his seat before turning to the two on the floor.

"Are you okay now?" He asked Inojin, walking over to kneel in front of him.

Inojin came out of the blanket, letting go of Hōki for a moment so he could hug Kawaki. "Thank you for saving me." He whispered in his ear, grip tight.

"It's okay. You know I've got you." Kawaki assured him while rubbing his back soothingly. "I know you were scared… and then I just lost it and that wasn't good for you. I'm sorry."

Inojin shook his head. It was hard being an extreme introvert, he struggled with the simplest of things. He was a lot better than he used to be, but talking to strangers was a battle. Crowds freaked him out and the silliest of things set him into panic attacks. He couldn't help his anxiety and hated making his friends worry. It all just happened so fast. One second he was on his way back from the bathroom and then there were people everywhere. So many . . . too many. He had backed into a corner and covered his ears, wanting them to go away. That only drew attention and suddenly strangers were talking to him, touching him.

He couldn't hear what they were saying and he didn't want to. It had gotten hard to breathe and his chest felt tight, he was afraid his asthma might kick in. And then Kawaki came and the people went away. It was okay that he had got mad, it was okay that he had lost his temper. Inojin forgave that easily when he came out of the blue, saving him in his time of need like some kind of superhero.

"You did good." Inojin told him, wanting to make him understand. "You did good."

"Sorry I was late." Kawaki smiled and poked his nose before getting back to his feet. Then the door burst open.

Kawaki and everyone else looked to see who the intruders were and his heart fell to his stomach at finding two cops walking in. He didn't want to go back to jail. He'd been doing so well too.

Shikadai was the first to move, cracking his neck. Time for some damage control. "Officers." He greeted as he walked towards them. "Mind if we talk outside?" He asked and then said over his shoulder to everyone else, "Be back in a bit gang. Stay put."

Boruto didn't like this, not at all. Inojin clung to Hōki and hoped Kawaki wouldn't be taken away because of him. If he had been braver and stronger, none of this would have happened.

"This doesn't look good . . ." Metal couldn't help but comment, gripping the arms of his wheelchair.

"Fuck." Kawaki groaned once they walked out, palming his face. "Goddamnit."

"It's okay, Kawaki. Please calm down." Hōki said, patting his leg worriedly.

"I don't know what happened. I… I blacked out for a minute. Shit." He was starting to panic, knowing he was going to go back to jail.

Chocho got up and went to him, placing a hand on his shoulder with a firm expression. "Even if Shikadai can't smooth things over, we're not going to abandon you, you hear me? We'll bail you out so fast you'll forget you were even there."

"He could say he's mentally unstable and get off with a warning." Sumire suggested.

"That would never work." Sarada scoffed, scratching her arms as her own anxiety started acting up. Sumire frowned, but knew better than to touch her right now.

"Shit. Shit." Kawaki wasn't calming down. He could have done serious damage. It wouldn't be his first offense. He could be facing serious time.

Boruto feared this whole situation might set everyone off. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves." He said, easily eavesdropping on the conversation in the hall. "They're talking it out now."

"You can hear them?" Metal asked in surprise. The blond nodded.

"You can?" Iwabe asked, impressed. "Do you have like super ears or something?"

"Iwabe you sound like an idiot." Sarada said with a snort.

Kawaki was still in a panic. Chocho sat him down and tried not to worry herself, unable to sit still while one of her friends was in danger of going to the slammer. Kawaki was too kind a soul for that and she hated the idea of having to watch the police take him away. Not caring what Shikadai said, she crossed the distance to the door and went out into the hall to do something about this.

"Well… damn it." Iwabe sighed loudly. "I should have gone with him."

"So he could knock your ass out again?" Sarada laughed.

"Ouch." Surmire grinned.

"Whatever." Iwabe pouted.

Metal smiled at the memory. "That was the worst bet you ever lost, Iwabe."

Boruto continued to listen to the voices out in the hall, Chocho not being the only new arrival. There were people out there talking about pressing charges. This was such a shitty situation, Kawaki didn't deserve this even if he punched a few people. The blond took out his stress ball and started to squeeze it.

"It doesn't matter." Kawaki finally whispered, more to himself than his friends. "I knew what I was doing. I was aware of the consequences."

Boruto reached over with his free hand to grab Kawaki's, saying this in the nicest possible way, "Hush."

Kawaki turned his sad, fearful eyes to the blond and squeezed his hand. He didn't want to leave. "I'm sorry."

"I'm trying to listen." Boruto explained. Unlike the others, Kawaki's voice called to him like a siren. He could pick it up no matter how quietly he was speaking.

The room went silent then, everybody taking Boruto's words in and giving him the floor. Kawaki just stared at the blond's face, watching for the slightest flicker of emotion to try and gauge what he was hearing. Boruto thought the people pushing charges were ridiculously petty. They weren't listening to a thing Chocho said and Shikadai had to remind her to keep calm. She did a good job of it, but her irritation was clear. Shikadai was making a strong case though he agreed that Kawaki shouldn't have hit anyone. The police were understanding of both sides, but the law was clear. Boruto held Kawaki's hand tighter as he gritted his teeth.

The doors opened and Shikadai and Chocho came back in, the cops right behind them. "Sorry, everyone." The Nara sighed. "Kawaki . . . you're going to have to go with them."

"No!" Inojin yelled, rushing to his feet to stand in their way. "N-no."

"Inojin, don't." Kawaki laid his hand atop his head and managed a reassuring smile. "It's fine. I've got this." He squeezed Boruto's hand once more before letting go, turning to look at him when he kept hanging on. He was frowning, seeming upset as well. "You guys don't worry about me. Okay? You've got each other."

Chocho nodded her head. "Come on, turn those frowns upside down. Remember what I said? We'll get him out."

"Yeah. Before we know it." Kawaki smiled and reluctantly removed his hand from Boruto's. "Hōki, stay with Inojin." He said as he moved over to the cops who were waiting with their handcuffs ready.

"That won't be necessary." Shikadai assured and then looked at Kawaki. "Nice and easy, yeah? Take a deep breath. They'll take you to holdings, but you won't be going to jail. Not on my watch."

They might as well have been the same in Boruto's mind, but he said nothing, hand turning white as he squeezed the stress ball. This was such bullshit. Inojin let Hōki come up and hug him, trying his best not to cry.

"I'm fine." Kawaki promised him with a nod. He wouldn't get himself in more trouble, not when he had people actually worrying about him.

"Alright, let's go." One of the officers spoke. "We won't cuff you until we're outside." He said as he took Kawaki by the arm and started leading him out.

Shikadai turned his attention back to his group, the atmosphere nothing but depressing. He went over to his things setting on the shelf as the others watched Kawaki being taken out before he pulled out a set of keys. Then he came back to the circle. "Well . . . what are you all waiting for? Let's go."

Boruto turned his head towards his voice, brow furrowing. "Go?"

"Where are we going? To save Kawaki?" Hōki asked, coming to hold Boruto's hand with the hand not occupied with Inojin's.

"Of course. Time to pile up in the van, go on a little field trip to the police station." Shikadai smiled. "You didn't think we were letting them get away with this, did you?"

"That's right, stick it to the man!" Iwabe hollered, ready to go.

"Yay!" Hōki's mood lifted immediately. "We can have fun together waiting on Kawaki and then we can all give him a hug!"

"Ugh. Gag." Iwabe huffed.

Metal chuckled, feeling lighter about the situation. "Don't bother resisting it."

Boruto took in a shaky breath before he stood. "Shotgun."

"Damn." Chocho clicked her tongue fondly. It was her spot, but she didn't mind giving it up to Boruto.

Sumire got to her feet as well and held out her hand to Sarada. "Come on, babe. Let's kick some ass."

"Let's!" Sarada agreed, black eyes gleaming mischievously.

Inojin was the only one still feeling down, but his eyes were filled with a rare determination. "We'll save him." He spoke almost silently.

Boruto heard him all the same, he always did. "Without a doubt." He replied and got a small smile in return.

The support group headed out to get back one of their own, but bailing Kawaki out was only the first step. Charges were still going to be pressed and he would still have to go back to court. With a record like his, he wouldn't get off with a warning or be sent to anger management considering he was already in it. Despite cheering everyone up, Shikadai's mind was racing. He knew better than anyone how far Kawaki had come and even though he slipped up, he was trying so hard. He had been doing so well. Going to jail could break him, this time for good. The punishment this time would be harsh . . . and he needed to think of a way to get him out of this. Until the day of Kawaki's court date, Shikadai would be putting together a plan to help his patient and friend.