Chapter Text
The closest thing to the club that’s still open turns out to be a greasy little dinner, only a couple minutes away. It’s a place like any other, arranged the way businesses that cater to a late night audience usually are.
The same sticky floors and vinyl seats as the club. Speckled formica tables dented with age and use. The texture of their tops gone rubbery, sprinkled with crumbs Tenzo had to sweep off with a bare forearm, no longer in possession of his jacket.
“Thanks for this by the way,” Kakashi says when they slide into their booth. Plucking at the stiff canvas that drapes around his shoulders. Covering him just enough to skirt past the ‘no shirt’ portion of the dinner’s ‘no service’ policy.
“All my stuff is at the bottom of my bag, it would a pain to dig out.” He adds, punctuating it with a shove to the overstuffed bag that takes up half his side of the booth. Bulging with god knows what and with the boombox sitting on top. Something else Tenzo had been deputized to cart around on Kakashi’s behalf.
“Don’t mention it.”
“Ah, but I’m meant to be making it up to you. Not swindling you out more stuff.”
Kakashi sighs, more than a bit dramatically. Elbows on the table while he flips through the menu; his shoulders dwarfed by the width of jacket, clearly made for a broader pair on a shorter body. Leaving the bottom riding up around his waist. The top bunched and splayed open under fluorescent lights. Harness still on full display.
Tenzo flips open his copy to study their selection of waffles and ignores how Kakashi still looks good under better lighting.
“Like I said, don’t mention it.” He stresses. Letting Kakashi’s answering hum go by without comment. Leaving them in pleasant, if awkward silence.
Still feigning interest in the menu while Kakashi roots around his overstuffed bag for a book. Clearly ignoring him for far more interesting sources of entertainment. Something that suits Tenzo just fine, until he catches sight of the cover, and goggles at it in confusion long enough to be caught in the act.
“I can lend it to you when I’m done if you’re that interested.” Kakashi says casually, like he isn’t reading something titled ‘Taken by the Billionaire Werewolf’ in public.
“Smut’s a little amateurish, but the rest of it is surprisingly decent. Solid 6 out of 10.”
“You have a ranking system for soft-core erotica novels?”
“Hey, hey, hey,” Kakashi cautions, emphatically rapping the book’s spine on their questionably clean table. “Some of them are hardcore erotica, if you must know.”
Tenzo tries to swallow what little saliva is left in his excessively dry mouth. Looking around for a waitress to flag down, not finding anyone who could interrupt their conversation.
“Do you always read weird books in public?”
“I figured: we’re out of the club, the fantasy’s gone. You already gave me your money, might as well finish my porn.” Kakashi says airily, burying his nose back into questionable literature.
“There was a fantasy?” Tenzo repeats. Peering over again to squint at the cover. A woman with her head thrown back; cleavage in full display while an equally half naked man came worryingly close to suffocating in her décolletage.
“There’s always a fantasy,” Kakashi answers. Low and sotto voice in a way that reminds Tenzo of how he looked on that stage. Back-lit by pink neon, with a scrap of fabric riding up the cleft of his ass, leaving little to the imagination.
He stumbles to answer, making a mumbled noise that means nothing even to the most generous interpretation of language. Saved by the appearance of a waitress that seems to materialize out of thin air. Looking as tired as Tenzo feels, brandishing a pen in a way more suited to stabbing than note taking.
“You ready to order?”
“Sure thing,” Kakashi says pleasantly, pointing to something on his own menu and letting the waitress scribble it down on her pad.
“Combo number three, with Bacon and whole wheat toast.”
“I thought we were getting coffee?” Tenzo asks, feeling just as thrown as he did mid porn debacle.
“I just remembered I was hungry, but that’s a great suggestion. Add one black coffee please.”
The waitress finishes jotting down his order with a flourish that threatens to rip the paper, turning to Tenzo with an impatient looking expression.
“And for you ‘hun?” She asks, in a tone of voice that makes him feel like he’s not allowed to ask for anything at all.
“I recommend the ham and cheese omelet with hash browns.” Kakashi suggests, back to flipping through his book, unbothered.
“Ham and cheese omelet coming right up. I’ll bring you some waters with the food, ok?” The waitress says, as if that had been a real thing Tenzo had ordered for himself. Sweeping back towards the kitchen without another word, forgetting to take back their menus.
“Anyway, where were we?” Kakashi asks. In what seems like a purely rhetorical exercise, diving back into it without waiting for Tenzo to answer.
“Right, the fantasy thing. Of course there is one,” He says with a scoff, dog earing his book and setting it down on the table. Cover in full display.
“The idea that someone wearing nipple tassels thinks you’re sexy and interesting, without having to work for it. Why else would someone come to a strip club?”
“Designated driver.” Tenzo shoots back pointedly. Phone sitting still and quiet in his pocket. No response from Anko, even after he’d texted her that he was stepping out for a bit.
“You know,” Kakashi says conspiratorially, kicking off his heels with a pair of heavy thuds. “You can just drop people off and come back later if you’re not that interested.”
Tenzo tries - futilely - to focus on the words. Instead of the bony joint of Kakashi’s ankle when he stretches his legs out to the other side of the booth. The warm press of his calf against Tenzo’s thigh as he dominates what little space they have, in a move that feels more habitual than seductive.
“She’s very…persuasive.” Tenzo picks his words carefully. Doing his best to ignore the way he’s been boxed in again. “Also a lot more likely to get in trouble if I’m not around.”
A comment that earns him a laugh; raspy and charming, despite the muffling from the mask.
“You’re a very good friend then.”
“No,” Tenzo argues, having had this argument with himself already. “I’m just a push over, or a sucker. Depends on who you’re asking.”
Kakashi holds his hands up, palms out in a placating gesture. The arch of his eyes making it clear that he’s smiling, even if Tenzo can’t see it.
“Nothing against suckers, they’re half my income. Very pro-sucker, personally. I have eight mouths to feed, after all.”
“You have kids?” Tenzo asks with barely concealed horror.
“Hell no, dogs.”
Kakashi shuffles upright and shoves a cracked phone screen across the table, letting Tenzo peer down at the mess of floppy tongues and furry bodies pictured in his lock screen.
Tenzo learns all eight of their names, and gets shown more pictures. He listens attentively as Kakashi talks about Akino’s tolerance for being put into little outfits, Bull’s bad habit of resource guarding and Biscuit’s even worse habit of stealing people food.
Involved enough that he forgets to panic at the shift of Kakashi’s leg. The way he tucks his toes underneath Tenzo’s thigh to try and stay warm. Entertained enough to focus more on the annoyed wrinkle he can see, half hidden, along the bridge of Kakashi’s nose when he talks about his small army of canine problem children.
Interrupted only when the waitress slams down their plates, barely giving them enough time to move out of the way. Walking off just as fast as she came.
Tenzo gets to wonder, for a moment, if this means he’ll get to see Kakashi’s face.
Before he sees that he’s started to construct an intricate little shield from their forgotten menus. Stacked just so, leaving him completely obscured from his side of the booth.
Face mask delicately folded and set to the side, near the edge of the table. Perfectly in view, even if Kakashi isn’t.
“I’m surprised you let me talk for that long.” Comes his voice from behind his makeshift partition, hidden but audible. “Why don’t you tell me about what you do? You know, when you’re not taking strangers out for dinner.”
He lets himself smile, knowing Kakashi can’t see him either. Letting him guide the conversation with a question or two, until all the food is cleared off of their plates and the mask is back on his face.
“That was surprisingly not terrible, as far as unplanned meals go.” Kakashi says into the buzzing quiet of the dinner’s background noise. Fully wrapped up in Tenzo’s jacket, looking like he’s only a minute or two from falling asleep.
“Do you think I could talk you into giving me a ride home?”
Tenzo laughs for what feels like the first time that night, caught in the two AM delirium and willing to stretch out their unlikely meeting for just a little longer.
“I’ve come this far; so, sure.”
Kakashi’s eyes narrow further within his jacket cocoon. “If I mention how you’re a very attentive listener with great forearms; could I talk you into paying for dinner too?”
A hysterical little bark bubbles up Tenzo’s throat. “That’s just a scam at this point.”
“Is it working?” Kakashi asks. Eager in a way that sounds more endearing than predatory - even though it absolutely is both of those things.
Letting Tenzo shove his legs off of his side of the booth without protest. Quietly watching him head to the cash register to pay and get their night over with, because he is, as previously stated, a sucker.
The ride back feels shorter than it is. Even when Tenzo finishes pulling into a shabby looking driveway at three in the morning. Rolling to a gentle stop and placing his car in park.
“Well, there you are. After you’ve successfully conned me out of cash, a ride and a full meal.” He says, more amused than he should be at this turn of events.
“And here I was thinking I was gonna make it up to you.” Kakashi sighs, mock seriously. Shaking his head and letting little flakes of glitter rain down over the upholstery.
“But, I do have one last thing I can give you,” He adds, coy. With the flash of the hazards painting the curve of his cheek orange. On and off then back again.
“You just have to close your eyes.”
“If you’re trying to steal my wallet and run inside, I’m sorry to say that it’s in my back pocket.” Tenzo tells him. Desensitized to his look and proximity by the end of the night. Having spent the last hour making casual conversation with Kakashi’s nipples out and about to the world at large.
“If I wanted to steal your wallet I would have done it while you were trying desperately to look at anything that wasn’t my thong.”
“Now close your eyes.” Kakashi repeats. Crawling over the center console until he's close enough that Tenzo has a hard time looking at anything else.
So he obeys. Buzzing with anticipation until he hears the snap of plastic. Feels the cool and ticklish drag of something against his forearm.
“Now I can send you pictures of dogs whenever you want.”
Kakashi finishes scrawling his number across Tenzo’s forearm, punctuating it with a strange little face of his own invention. The crinkles at the corners of his eyes turning delighted, when he sees Tenzo take a long look and an even longer sigh at what he’s left behind.
“Fair enough.” Tenzo says, because it is. Knowing you can’t expect much more from someone meant to be beautiful and unattainable by professional necessity.
“Take my jacket if you want -” He adds, tired and not looking forward to doubling back to the club for Anko.
“It’s cold and your clothes are still -”
He has more words to add, lost and muffled by the inelegant crash of Kakashi’s lips against his. Their noses bumping together as he presses forward, mask shoved down somewhere around his neck.
A kiss that slides into something slower and softer. Lingering when they try to untangle themselves the first time. After his hand slides into the thick warmth of Kakashi’s hair, forgetting to care about the glitter. Pulling him back in for another go.
One more for the road that steals his breath while he’s sitting down.
Licking his lips on reflex when they pull away. Eyes closed to try and respect his privacy. Staying in the darkness with nothing but the metronome tik of the hazards to match his racing heart.
“Call me,” Kakashi says, with one last kiss to Tenzo’s cheek. And he nods, dumbly, refusing to open his eyes until he hears the slam of his car door.
Following the line of Kakashi's bare back until it disappears into the house. Leaving him with what looks like a permanent marker tattoo and his pulse high in his throat.