Luck

A spell of silence wove its way over the college crowd, only the muffled tones of the post-game show playing and the occasional car sloshing along the road in the background. Sasuke downed another shot and muttered something unintelligible to himself, though Naruto was fairly certain it wasn’t a word of thanks.

Before him, the girls shifted nervously, Sakura and Ino obviously upset over the blond’s comments. Faces pale despite the flush on their cheeks, eyes sparking with outrage. But they said nothing, and he knew it was because he had been right, which shocked him. Apparently all those years spent studying the politics of human behavior had paid off.

He did feel bad though when his gaze found Hinata huddled behind the other two, her eyes on the floor and face red like the leaves of a poinsettia. Quickly diverting his attention to Kiba’s rustlings behind the bar, Naruto tried to push the image from his mind. Sure, he felt awful for lumping her in with the others, but the last thing he wanted was to have a stand off with Neiji Christmas morning.

“Naruto’s right about one thing. We’re about to close, so if you ladies wouldn’t mind heading out soon, I’d appreciate it,” Kiba called out from below the bar where he was rummaging around for one thing or another.

Hinata was the first to turn about and gather her coat. Still plagued by guilt, Naruto slid off of his seat and jogged to the door. With an apologetic smile, he opened it, murmured a soft I’m sorry as she stepped out into the cold, which only made her cheeks burn all the more fiercely.

However, when Ino and Sakura filed out past him, he simply turned his gaze back inside where Sasuke was finishing off the sixth shot. Probably wasn’t the smartest move to make, diverting his attention as two very pissed-off females walked past the source of their malcontent. He wasn’t sure which of them did it, but before they both moved outside, a loud slap rang against the side of his head, causing him to yowl out with the pain. Not that it really hurt all that badly, but coupled with the alcohol swimming around in his head, it felt like being pelted with a large boulder.

“Merry Christmas to you too!” he called out as they made their way down the steps and out onto the sidewalk.

There was a splatter of muttering tossed in his direction and what looked like Ino flipping him off through the snow. Before he pulled shut the door, the church bell rang twelve times, the sound reverberating through the grey-sky night with a deeply joyous cry. Yeah, this was exactly how he had wanted to greet Christmas.

“I suppose I deserved that,” Naruto laughed somewhat embarrassedly as he walked back to the bar. He ran his hand through his hair, knocking the fresh collection of snow there onto the floor and bar top.

“You’re making a mess,” Sasuke mumbled, dark eyes shifting over to the blond, an annoyed scowl playing about his mouth.

“Fuck you. It’ll melt. And if it bothers you that much, I’ll help Kiba clean it,” the Sociology major bit back.

“Don’t bother. I’m leaving.”

“Like hell you are! In another twenty minutes or so, those last three shots are gonna hit you like a cement truck.”

“I don’t need your help,” Sasuke growled as he turned in his seat, bringing the blond into full view. He was already feeling the alcohol though, that pleasant desire to sleep suddenly creeping up from the back of his skull. With a good shake of his head, black strands of hair whipping around and settling back into that confined disarray it had worn all night, the youngest Uchiha regained control over his senses.

“Maybe not, but you’re getting it anyways. So just sit there,” Naruto commanded, pushing the dark-haired Architecture major back into his seat. “I’ll walk you home once I finish helping Kiba. Might as well enjoy another drink while you’re at it.”

“I don’t need your fucking charity!” Sasuke yelled, suddenly brought his voice back down to a whisper as the next thought hit him. Eyes narrowing into fine slits that made him appear angrier than he actually felt, he asked, “Who the hell are you anyways?”

“Eh?” the blond uttered, completely taken aback by the one hundred-eighty degree change in attitude. Now, he knew he was feeling somewhat drunk at the moment, but Uchiha Sasuke must have just fallen into it headlong. “Me? I’m Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto. I work here on most nights.”

“Well, I don’t usually come here,” the Architecture prodigy said, more to himself than to Naruto. He sighed, turned back around in his seat and set his hands on top of the bar. “How long is it going to take you?”

Naruto stared at Sasuke for a good minute before moving to answer. With a chuckle, he hefted himself onto the top of the bar, swinging his legs over to the other side and landing with a solid thud on the rubber mats. “To close? At least an hour or two to clean up the place.”

“Which I’ll be taking care of,” Kiba stated, grabbing the broom before Naruto could nab it. “You’re tipsy, and with your habit of breaking things in this place when you’re not drunk, I’d rather do it. Just watch him.”

With a kick of his head in Sasuke’s direction, the bartender swept past Naruto, made his way towards the tables behind the bar while humming random Christmas tunes to himself. He’d be damned if he was going to let the blond handle anything on the cleaning front. If he made it through the next hour or so without breaking any of the barware, he was going to consider it a very successful night.

“I don’t want to wait an hour.”

“And where exactly are you going to go?” Naruto asked, pulling out four shot glasses and setting them in front of Sasuke.

The dark-haired Architecture major eyed the glasses warily. Already he could feel the last three shots of Southern Comfort boiling in his stomach, threatening to revolt should any other liquor accompany them. “I’m not drinking another four shots.”

“You’re not. We’re splitting them.”

“I can’t.”

“I’ll walk you home. Live a little, Uchiha!” Staring out at the selection of liquor before him, Naruto began running his fingers over the bottles. Carefully contemplating the best choice for the situation. “You like peach-flavored stuff?”

Sasuke watched the off-duty bartender with a sense of impending doom. He had the vague feeling that listening to the blond was going to kill off more brain cells than the alcohol he had consumed. And yet, at that moment, he just couldn’t find it in him to care. “Huh?”

“Southern Comfort kind of has this peachy undertone to it. Here! We’ll go with this. It’s not as potent and goes down really easily,” the Sociology major explained as he pulled a bottle of peach schnapps from the shelf. “It’s more like drinking candy than liquor. Think of it as dessert!”

Despite the alcohol clouding his system, Naruto expertly filled the four shot glasses, spilling only few drops of the clear liquid in between each one. He pinched the nearest glass between his thumb and index finger, pulling it to the edge of the bar. “There is one thing I’d like to know.”

“What’s that?” Sasuke questioned as he reached from the second shot in line. Stared down at the water-like liquid, which seemed to undulate within its container as though announcing its true nature in the subtlest way possible. That or he was seriously beginning to lose control over his vision.

“What’s someone like you doing alone on Christmas?”

The youngest Uchiha’s head snapped up, eyes suddenly clear as they alighted upon Naruto’s figure. It was unexpected, only in the fact that he hadn’t taken Naruto for someone to care about his reasons for being there. And he disliked that fact that he could misjudge someone like that, proving himself wrong when he was always so certain.

“What do you care?” Sasuke asked coldly.

Naruto shrugged. “I don’t really. It just seems odd considering you have a family. A rather famous one at that.”

A wave of silence washed over them. Each of the boys drew the first shot of peach schnapps to their mouths, eyes locked on the other. With a flick of the wrist, the clear contents disappeared down their throats.

Sasuke still didn’t answer. Instead, he turned his gaze to the bar’s wooden top, dark eyes carefully tracing the patterns in the wood with mathematic precision. He could almost make out a logic behind the deep brown swirls. Almost. As soon as his mind reached for the answer, it sunk once more into the depths, frustrating him. He should never have come here.

“I’m just saying,” Naruto continued, “that it’s odd. I don’t have a family. Just me. So I have an excuse for spending my Christmas Eve in a bar. But you…you have everything.”

“I don’t...” Sasuke snarled defensively, “…have everything. You have no idea what it’s like.”

“What what is like?”

“I’m not going to spend my Christmas break at Itachi’s.” And it was out before he could stop it. Sasuke decided at that moment that alcohol was the worst thing invented by mankind.

“Your brother? He’s a legend! I bet he’s throwing a rocking Christmas party right now…”

Without warning, Sasuke began to laugh. That sort of laugh that has nothing to do with amusement or joy and everything to do with disbelief, that knowing more than most knew. “You have no idea what Itachi is like.”

“Well, no. But I do know what people say about him,” Naruto countered, somewhat offended that Itachi’s own brother would call his character into question. Sure, there were those rumors surrounding the guy, but at the same time, no one denied that he was a genius. He was the campus god.

“He’s not like that. Not really,” the Architecture major said, his voice low, full of hidden understanding.

Naruto shifted uncomfortably, thrown off by the sudden darkening of Sasuke’s eyes. It was like staring into a pool of melted onyx. No way out. Only an endless ocean of black thought. Clearing his throat, he reached for the next shot of schnapps, held the glass in his hand.

There was something troubling about the way the dark-haired prodigy appeared now. Somewhat worn, and yet nursing a world of anger. Tired and yet unable to give up.

“You know, my dad probably used the weapons your father designed.” An attempt to change the subject.

“Why’s that?” Sasuke asked, eyes still transfixed on the wood before him. Only this time they weren’t seeing, his gaze lost in some other plane of existence that only he seemed capable of accessing. It was one of the most alienating things Naruto had ever witnessed, and he had been alienated in almost every way possible throughout his life.

With a cough, the blond sought to clear the air around them. Hoping the sound would somehow draw the Architecture major back into the present. “He uhh…he was a soldier. Pretty damn good too from what I heard about him. Back when I was sixteen, his commanding officer found me. Some guy named Jiraiya. Crazy ass bastard too…” he laughed.

That had been an interesting experience for him. Recalling the day nearly sent him into a fit of laughter, that kind that was tainted by tears because it dragged up a line of hurt in its wake. “First time I was ever taken to a strip club. Not quite sure how he pulled that off…”

Sasuke looked up now, the black clouds of memory dissipating as he began to focus on the words coming from Naruto. It was a bit nerve-wracking though, listening to this story. For some reason, he got the feeling it wasn’t something easily told. And the only way Sasuke could explain it to himself was the alcohol. At least it was the only comforting explanation he could find.

“Gave me his dog tags then along with my first lap dance,” the Sociology senior said, the hints of a sadly nostalgic smile tugging at the corners of his lips. He laughed it off though, the smile brightening into a full-on grin. “He told me my dad was a hero. Apparently gave his life to save his own men. Even that old pervert’s life. Not a bad way to go, huh?”

But Sasuke could see behind the grin, could see the deep-rooted pain that dug further down with every passing day. It lingered in his eyes, even has his face displayed the purest smile he had ever seen. He found himself unable to keep his eyes on the blond, finding it too painful. And that angered him, though he couldn’t strike back. Couldn’t give his anger room to run. With a huff, Sasuke grabbed the last shot glass standing and poured the contents over his tongue.

* * * *

Two hours later, Uchiha Sasuke found that he could barely see straight. The image of Naruto danced before him, pieces of his body blurring into the multi-colored Christmas lights which now glowed three times their size.

Naruto wasn’t fairing much better, though the Architecture major sat clearly before him in one piece. Obviously though, he had a higher tolerance than Sasuke, whose slight frame and reputation betrayed him in the realm of alcohol. He’d probably never even played a game of beer pong in his life, a thought that suddenly sent Naruto into giggles.

“What’s…so…damn…funny?” Sasuke asked, his words thick and slower than rubber cement being poured from a jar. He lifted his head from the bar, stared out at the blond in a drunken haze.

“How often do you drink?”

“I don’t…usually,” the dark-haired prodigy muttered, trying vainly to blink Naruto into one person and not two. “Itachi makes me though…”

“Your brother?”

“That’s his name, isn’t it?” Sasuke scowled. “Always gets me into these damn drinking matches with him when my parents aren’t around. Like I’m some sort of disappointment because I’m not like he was in college…Like he can turn me into him.”

Naruto frowned, dipping his head down to stare Sasuke straight in the eyes. “Should I not have made you drink then?”

The Architecture major scoffed. He hated concern, which he lumped together with pity and every other emotion that implied he wasn’t good enough. People were always worrying over him. Over whether he could live up to his family’s name. “It’s what I chose to do.”

Lips were draw taunt, the color seeping out the center portion and staining the outer edges an even darker red. Sasuke shifted his head, lifting it a tad higher to better focus his sight on the blond’s face, which was slowly starting to come into focus once again. His facial features relaxed a little now that he could better see the world around him, and Sasuke let loose a low sigh of relief. As far as he could tell, the Sociology senior had already forgotten about those last few shots.

Naruto leaned in closer, the tip of his nose brushing against a few stray strands of black hair. “You really are cute.”

“What?” Sasuke squeaked out in surprise, jumping back from the bar and nearly toppling back over his bar stool. Maybe Naruto had forgotten those last few shots, but his mind sure as hell hadn’t.

“I said you’re cute.”

Spoken like there was nothing more to it. Nothing weird about it. A plain and simple fact. What happened to the former loathing? Even the melancholic remembering was better than this.

“Oi! Uzumaki, take your drinking buddy and get the hell out of here. Don’t care if you drop his ass out in the snow, but I’m closing up!” Kiba called out from the pool tables, where he was gathering the last of the rogue pool balls.

“Yeah, yeah. Let’s go pretty boy,” Naruto snickered as he began walking towards the door. He pulled Sasuke’s coat down and tossed it at him, laughing as the Architecture major scrambled to catch it in his drunken state. Nothing like the coolly poised boy that had first walked into the bar.

After pulling on his own coat, the blond turned to the back of the bar where Kiba was shutting off the various Christmas lights around the place. “Yo, Kiba, you going to be ok if we leave?”

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that, you fucking drunk!”

“Maybe. Though I’m not as bad as genius boy here!” Naruto laughed, grabbing Sasuke by the arm and pulling him to the door. The dark-haired prodigy growled, threw off the blond’s grasp with a sharp jerk of his shoulder.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Just have to shut off a few more things and lock up,” Kiba said with a grin as he watched the two at the door. Waiting for one of them to tumble out into the snow.

“Have a good Christmas then, Kiba! Try not to get yourself killed before next semester,” The Sociology senior flashed a wide grin, then tossed Sasuke out the door he now held open.

“That goes double for you! Merry Christmas, Uzumaki!”

Before shutting the door completely behind him, Naruto stuck his head back inside. “Oh and Kiba, thank your sister for me. The other night was great!”

“Fuck you!” Kiba called out as the door slammed shut.

Outside, the snow was still falling. Thick white flakes spilling down from the clouds, creating a cushiony covering all over the streets and sidewalks. Naruto jogged ahead, kicking up the powder with every other step. Suddenly, he stopped and howled into the night with reckless joy.

A good ten feet behind, Sasuke ducked down within the confines of his coat, letting his breath hit the noir material to create a warm but foggy breathing space. “It’s almost two in the morning. Stop screaming, dumbass.”

“Doesn’t it feel great though, Sasuke? Best thing about drinking in winter. Heats you up and makes the cold feel fantastic!”

At that moment though, Sasuke could have cared less about the cold. His head was starting to throb, but not hard enough to displace the delightful haze brought about by the alcohol. Instead, he was caught between a mix of knowing what was going to come and trying to enjoy the moment.

The Architecture major shifted his eyes towards the blond, who was grinning a fool’s grin back at him. That stupidly joyful sort of grin that found the smallest things in life amazing. “C’mon! Don’t you just want to yell out? It’s Christmas!”

Sasuke stared out from his coat, dark eyes searching the streets and finding them relatively empty. A few people were scuttling across the snow, slipping occasionally, as they made their way to their cars from one neighborhood party or another. He stopped, swaying slightly, and had to close his eyes as the world began to swirl. Felt like he was sitting at the center of a spinning top.

“MERRY CHIRSTMAS FROM UZUMAKI NARUTO! DON’T YOU FORGET IT!”

“You have got to be kidding me,” Sasuke muttered as the shout penetrated his mind. Eyes flew open, located Naruto hanging off of one of the lampposts, one hand pumping in the air as laughter poured out from his mouth. Idiocy had no limits it seemed.

The blond jumped down as some old woman screamed at him from one of the apartments above. Racing over to Sasuke, nearly sliding out of control as he did so, Naruto reached out and pulled the dark-haired prodigy to his side. “You kill everything, you know that,” he teased.

With an irritated scowl, Sasuke tried to pull himself away only to find his footing give way, leaving him hanging onto the blond like his life depended on it. Forget Naruto. Forget alcohol. He hated snow more than anything at this moment. So caught up in his anger, he failed to noticed Naruto dragging him back upright and linking their arms with a loud burst of laughter.

“I really hate this place,” the Architecture major muttered. Why the hell had he come out here in the first place? The answer eluded him for a moment, and desperate for it, he walked quietly beside Naruto until it came to him. It was all Itachi’s fault. His father just had to designate that house as their holiday base for this year.

“Come on now, it’s Christmas,” Naruto coaxed, suddenly concerned that his drinking buddy and foe of the night was progressing towards the negative end of the Christmas cheer spectrum. Oddly though, the thought of Uchiha Sasuke as the Grinch came across as something entirely plausible. At least with the way things were going now. “Ah, I live here! Let’s go.”

“I have my own place,” Sasuke stated stubbornly.

“Do you want to go there?”

For a moment, Sasuke imagined his apartment. Dark and flawless in its set-up, where surely his mother had left six or seven messages on his answering machine. Had probably gotten both his father and brother to leave one as well, though neither of them would beg him to join the family for the holidays. Theirs would be a cold mix of disappointment and arrogance. “Not particularly.”

Without warning, Naruto pushed him against the wall. He could feel the coolness of the bricks crawling through the material, seeking out his skin. Wide-eyed with surprise, Sasuke stared into the deep blues examining his face.

“Good,” the blond whispered. He leaned in, frozen fingers closing in around the prodigy’s arms, and pressed his mouth to Sasuke’s. Naruto’s eyes remained locked on his, searching them quickly, before he shut out the sight of confusion and fear completely. Any minute now, he was going to get hit.

But Sasuke simply stood there, plastered against the wall as the snow settled along their bodies, fell into their hair. He couldn’t shut his eyes though, still completely bewildered by the whole situation. Yet Naruto was hot, his lips sending a new pulse of heat through his body that seemed to warm him from the inside out.

And the alcohol in his system wasn’t helping his logic any. Even as he could taste it in their kiss, reminding him that they were both fairly drunk, it urged him to accept this, playing upon unconscious strands of thought that found comfort in the whole situation, in Naruto’s presence. When the blond pulled away, Sasuke gasped at the sudden return of air to his lungs, which was so cold he could feel it biting at the delicate cellular lining as it filled them.

“We’re on the street,” he hissed, dark eyes glaring at Naruto. Embarrassment masked as fury.

“Afraid someone from your fan club might see?” the blond teased, pushing in closer once more so that his lips brushed against the other’s cheek. Unable to touch upon Sasuke’s mouth because the Architecture major had quickly turned his head to the side to avoid the risk.

Sasuke growled deep within his throat. Annoyed at himself for having been caught like that, for having gotten himself into the situation in the first place. “I don’t care about them…”

And that’s when it hit him. It wasn’t Why are you kissing me. It had been We’re on the street. Sasuke could feel the heat rising from his core to his cheeks.

“Mmmm….” Naruto purred, gently nuzzling the exposed portion of Sasuke’s neck, lips drawing back into a mischief-soaked smile. “You’re even cuter when you blush.”