I'm not helping myself here by updating all at once, people will think it's always going to be like this.

Nothing belongs to me but my shitty writing.

"Yo, Bushy Brows, you coming or what?"

"BB, seriously are you going to come get ice-cream with us?"

"...Lee? Lee~!... LEE!"

Lee jolted in his seat, head snapping away from the window he had been mindlessly staring out since the last bell of the day had rung in the now almost empty school. His large obsidian eyes focused on the blonde boy impatiently fidgeting behind his desk, hand outstretched as if he was about to pull at Lee's unsuspecting braid trailing down his back.

"Ah, Naruto-Kun, I am so sorry but I am afraid I was not paying attention, what did you say?" Lee asked with apologetic eyes, head tilted guiltily.

"About time you started paying attention, you've been wish washy all day, seriously," Naruto huffed indigently "Anyways, a bunch of us are going to get ice-cream, Teme's treat, you in?"

Lee heard a brief shout of "you bleached blonde bastard, I never agreed to that!" from behind Naruto and ducked his head around his friend to see a group of five people waiting outside the open classroom door. Tenten had a placating hand on Sasuke's shoulder as he fumed over his adoptive brother's declaration. To the left of Tenten stood Neji and Hinata Hyūga, cousins from one of the wealthiest families in Konoha.

Although Neji and Lee had gotten off to a rocky start, the former finding Lee insufferably overbearing at first (before Lee had sat and talked to a sullen Neji in his estate Garden about all the different flowers and what they meant while Neji's father could be heard yelling from inside the complex), but became fast friends that shared a push and pull kind of relationship. Hinata, on the other hand, had gotten along with Lee almost immediately. Her shy demeanour and quite nature meshed extremely well with Lee's talkativeness and overly affectionate habits. Off the the far right, almost as if he was purposefully trying to remove himself from the group he had found himself with, was Gaara Sabaku.

Although Gaara was standoffish and with an overall apathetic outlook, he had managed to become Lee's first friend outside the orphanage.

They had met, quite accidentally, when Lee had turned twelve and had somehow gotten separated from the group outing that Saint Kage had gone on. Lee, on the verge of a panic attack, fretting about potentially being abandon yet again by the one group of people he had trusted so much, had aimlessly wandered the small park he had found himself in quietly sobbing as fat tears rolled down his cheeks. When he had almost lost all hope and plopped himself down on a lonely bench on the outskirts of the playground to continue crying silent tears, a small hand had reached out and grabbed Lee's own.

Lee, startled out of his crying fit, had turned to see a small boy, with piercing teal eyes ringed in dark kohl like smudges, staring at him. The redheaded boy, despite not speaking a word to Lee, had stayed with him until one of the Sisters, in a flurry of movements, had rushed over promising that they'd never leave him again.

Gaara, as the other kid finally offered, didn't let go of Lee's hand until he was safely on the bus again where Lee promised to come back the following week and play with him as a means of thanks. True to his word, he was allowed a second outing (which became a bi-weekly occurrence) to the small park in the city where he spent hours with his strange new friend. It had just been an extremely happy coincidence that Gaara had, by the time Lee arrived at the new high school, reluctantly befriended Naruto and eventually their small group had formed.

Lee, with a quick wave and smile to the rest of his friends, brought his attention back to the still fidgeting Naruto.

"However much I wish to join you in this truly delightful adventure, I must decline," Lee replied sadly a little pout forming "I promise that next time I will most definitely come with you on such a glorious outing!"

"But Lee, you've been so busy these past months and you've barely hung out with us at all!" Naruto protested loudly in a whiny voice. "C'mon BB, just like one scoop and you can eat it really fast! I mean, you inhale your food all the time anyways, just do it with the ice-cream!"

Lee laughed lightly, the cheerful sound echoing slightly in the barren room. Naruto grabbed his hands in a desperate plea, putting on his best puppy dog face to get Lee to come.

"I cannot my dear friend, I am truly sorry for not being available this past while, but I must finish my homework before I go to work so that my grades do not drop" Lee smiled brightly squeezing Naruto's hands in reply.

"Bu-"

"Naruto, let him be," Neji called from outside the classroom, an irritated look on his face "he'll join us when he's not busy."

"Yeah you dope, no need to be so overly dramatic. Let's just walk Lee home and then get ice-cream, that way we can spend time with Lee and still go out. Win-Win" Tenten added, a sunny smile on her face as she easily solved the little dilemma.

"Yosh!" Lee quickly agreed as he eagerly jumped out of his chair slightly startling the blonde still in front of him, "What an excellent idea Tenten, I would love for you all to accompany me home!"

Naruto made a face as if still uncertain as to whether or not he agreed with the decision. He briefly squeezed Lee's hands tightly before releasing one and reluctantly jerking his head in agreement, expression still pulled in slight annoyance.

Lee beamed as Naruto turned and dragged him to the open door where their group of friends were waiting, secretly thankful for Tenten's passive acceptance of his busy schedule. The less they pressured him about his work the less likely it was that Lee would cave and tell them the whole truth about his new employment.

See, the thing was that Lee had finally gotten a job, and he had told his friends as much which resulted in many cheers and congratulations for they knew that he had been struggling (not the full truth of course because Lee would never saddle them with that burden). However, his place of employment was…..not so much the topic that Lee could speak freely on without his face burning with so much embarrassment that he could feel steam rising from his cheeks.

Of course they had asked him, being the caring friends they were, if they could drop by and visit him at some point, but Lee had blanched at even the thought of it. If he could barely stand the reality of his new job then how would they react themselves?

Being completely incapable of lying, Lee had resorted to….omitting some information. He fed them basic facts, so they knew he worked evenings and that he was a waiter at a rather popular establishment, but Lee had insisted that he wanted to focus on work when he was there and made them promise that they would never try to interrupt his working hours. What they didn't know…..well Lee was sure that it wouldn't hurt them to remain blissfuly unaware of those matters.

Lee quickly snapped back to himself when he felt a warm hand graze his still unoccupied one (as he realized that his other was still comfortably held within Naruto's) noticing now that the small group were making their way through the side streets of the city. Lee tilted his head slightly to the left to look directly into the unwavering eyes of Gaara as he once again brushed his hand to Lee's. Gaara briefly furrowed his non existent eyebrows asking, in his own silent way, if Lee was alright. Lee felt his face soften at the concern, which disappeared almost as quickly as it had formed, his cheeks heating slightly.

Chatter filled the air as Lee smiled gently, understanding Gaara's ploy to pull him out of his thoughts and back to the friends around him. Joining in the conversation, he reached over and grabbed Gaara's hand in his own, a subtle thanks to the redhead for bringing him back to the present.

After his friends had dropped him off at his house with calls of seeing him tomorrow and "we expect to know how your first shift is even if you don't want to talk about work!", Lee found himself staring into the pitiful contents of his closet (more like a small indent in the wall with a couple of hangers) praying that he could make something work. They had said that a more casual dress code was what they were aiming for but Lee was most certain that when they had said that they had meant the casual where one looked like they had carelessly rolled out of bed looking like a millions dollars not…some poor kid that only owned hand me downs.

He had a total of two long sleeved sweaters, one green and worn that, no matter what he did, fell of his left shoulder and a dark grey boxy number that covered much too much skin (which wasn't, in Lee's opinion, a bad thing) for his job. Beside the sad garments were two nondescript short sleeved shifts, one a light green and the other a faded pink, and three pairs of worn jeans that were tattered beyond repair. I can work with the jeans at least, Lee thought trying to keep positive when faced with such little options, they did say the more skin I am willing to show the better…

Letting out a soft huff of despair while cupping his round cheeks, Lee lowered himself to his floor resting against the small mattress he called a bed, which had been pushed flush against the opposite wall. How had he gotten himself in this situation again? Oh yes, he had needed money and Paradise had decided to, after everywhere else had turned him away, give Lee a chance.

Yes, Lee, after struggling with bitter rejections over the past two months, had indeed found himself as the newest employee of the biggest gay club in Konoha city: Paradise. Dropping his head to rest on the top of his bed, Lee looked unseeing at the white ceiling of his apartment as he recalled the…. unique events of his hiring.

~~~*flashback*~~~ ~~~*flashback*~~~

Even though Lee had been dead set on pushing through those doors and proving to anyone that would listen that he, Rock Lee of Saint Kage's institution, was more than capable of doing any job they threw at him be it day or night, anytime anyplace, the moment he had actually entered the clandestine establishment he had lost most of his nerve. Shuffling awkwardly to the side, Lee couldn't tear his eyes away from the sheer spectacle of the place. It was rather busy, Lee noted first, with men and women alike chatting and sipping on their (more likely than not) alcoholic beverages of choice as countless men, in various states of dress, shuffled around the crowds dolling out drinks or sharing conversation with the guests.

The tables and chairs were surprisingly luxurious, in their shades of rich reds and soft velvets, for the kind of establishment it was (for Lee had always picture these places to be cheap and seedy with simple furniture). The walls were what appeared to be a dark onyx that seamlessly enclosed the rather large space, but when the soft lights hit just right flecks of silver and gold could be seen sparkling in tantalizing movements along the partitions.

To the far left of the club there was what Lee assumed (for he had never seen one before but knew enough to piece it together) was the bar. It was a sleek black piece that jutted proudly from the ground connecting to the wall in a swooping semi-circle. Housed behind the bar were what seemed like endless glass shelves filled with so many different bottles of alcohol slithering along their lengths that Lee felt himself become dizzy.

What looked like thousands of lights to Lee were embedded in the dark ceiling of Paradise, emitting a soft sensual glow that enclosed the establishment in a mysterious air making the whole place even more appealing int it's forbidden feel. Lee was harshly pulled out of his silent gawking when sudden applause and loud whistles burst from the crowd. Lee turned his head to focus at the back of the club once again just in time to see the red curtain that had been obstructing the large stage, which Lee had just noticed, begin to part.

What Lee saw next threatened to have him passing out with how fast all his blood traveled straight to his face in a full body blush. A tall and slender man, with deathly pale skin and heavy lidded eyes, could be seen standing in the centre of the stage a haughty smirk plastered on his handsomely cold face.

His shirt (if one could call it that) was nothing more than a black sleeveless turtleneck that had been cropped to mid ribcage leaving the smooth expanse of his slightly toned torso on full view. He also wore a pair of matching black leather pants that stuck to him like a second skin, emphasizing his long slender legs. The heavy combat style boots on his feet clunked almost inaudibly as he began his seductive dance, rolling his (more than appealing, Lee's brain supplied) body to the thumping music that had started to fill the club.

I can not do this, I really can not, Lee thought to himself as he quickly brought his hands up to cover his flaming face. He had unknowingly started to back up in a futile attempt to escape from the scene unfolding in front of him and, as a result, ended up bumping into a figure behind him in his haste. Whipping around, Lee came face to - well chest - with what appeared, from his line of sight, to be a tall, toned man. He was dressed in a shimmery black wife beater that was slightly raised to reveal strong pelvic bones that disappeared into a well fitting pair of dark wash jeans.

Looking up, cheeks burning with renewed embarrassment, Lee's apology died on his lips as he took in the handsome face of the silver haired individual. His one visible not obstructed by the hair that had been styled to hide the other, focused lazily down on Lee. The odd black face mask he wore obscured the lower half of his face making it impossible for Lee to gage his current emotions.

Shaking himself out of his stupor as he noticed just how close he had been standing to the other man, Lee moved back to actually apologize when a strong hand shot out to grab at his left hand. Startled, Lee jolted at the unexpected contact, furrowing his eyebrows in distress.

He must be a bouncer, Lee reasoned calmly before the serious nature of the situation fully kicked in. Oh dear kami-sama he is probably going to psychically throw me out, Lee began to panic, and then he is going tell everyone about my trespassing and I will never be able to get a job because the police will arrest me for going into a club underaged and I really can not work from jail or, worse yet, Mother Tsunade will probably find me herself and scold me for hours before telling me how ashamed she is and how she wished I had just been left at the park during that outing and the-

Lee's downward spiralling thoughts were cut short when the other male brought his unoccupied hand forward to retrieve the flyer, which Lee belatedly realized he had been crushing in his clenched fist. Pulling Lee along with the hand he still firmly held, the man, now with the flyer in his hold, led him around the crowd, which was still cheering loudly at whichever performance was occurring on stage, to the bar Lee had spotted earlier.

Pushing past the man that was manning the rather busy bar, Lee was brought through a hidden door near the edge of the enclosed area that opened to reveal an office of sorts which, with it's clean white walls and business like set up of computer desk and chair, seemed oddly out of place. Upon their entrance another man, who had been perched at the desk studiously tapping away at the expensive looking computer, turned around to focus on the new occupants of the room.

Lee was not prepared for the loud yell of joy that ripped through the small area and was definitely not ready for the bone crushing hug that accompanied the exclamation.

"I found this one cowering by the entrance when Sai started his number," The silver haired man spoke for the first time, voice pitched low and smooth in a monotone statement.

"I would have kicked him out too if I hadn't noticed the flyer in his hand," he added lazily.

"OH JUST LOOK AT HIM KAKASHI!" The other man with a strong masculine face and thick eyebrows bellowed in delight, voice booming jovially, "So very cute and what a youthful appearance! He is most definitely a spectacular candidate for the - wait, why would you have kicked him out?"

"Gai, you can't seriously tell me that this kid looks older than, what, sixteen at most? He's underaged" the man Lee assumed must be Kakashi answered.

"THEN WHY DID YOU BRING HIM HERE, WE CAN'T CORRUPT TODAYS YOUTH THIS WAY!" Gai, whom had put Lee down at this point, screeched scandalized while pulling Lee back to firmly clasp him to his chest.

"Ah…" Lee stuttered out as two sets of eyes immediately focused on him "I…um, that is….I will be turning eighteen in two days time so technically I am pretty much, er, legal anyways….if that helps at all."

Gai immediately picked Lee back up and spun him around while laughing loudly. "THAT IS PERFECT MY LITTLE LOTUS! YOU CAN START THEN!"

Kakashi merely rolled his visible eye and turned to exit the room. "I guess you'll want me to take down the flyers, hmm?" he questioned with a slow tilt of his head.

"Yes my dearest friend, we will have no need for them now!" Gai quickly agreed.

Lee was unceremoniously placed down on a small leather couch situated to the right of the desk while Gai rolled his chair over and took as seat across from him.

"So," Gai smiled blindingly as he focused on his newest employee, "I'll give you a quick rundown of the job and then have you sign some paperwork. Oh, this is going to be so wonderful~ I'm so glad you came, er what was it?"

Without really thinking since he was still completely overwhelmed by the events that had happened in such rapid succession, Lee replied in the only way manners dictated he respond. "My name is Rock Lee, but everyone just calls me Lee, it is very nice to meet you."

"Well Lee, i'm Maito Gai and that silver haired serious guy is Hatake Kakashi, welcome to Paradise!"

Now the fun really begins~

Comments or, you know reviews, are appreciated but not expected!