There was smoke everywhere. It lay heavy in their lungs, making them drowsy, stupid. They laughed, talked loudly. Life, to them, was always good.
Their blood splattered pipes were at their feet and, the fight now eradicated from their memories, they simply hung together and got high; their way of celebrating. They'd gotten out with but a few cuts and bruises.
He leaned over her cigarette, trying to keep himself from giggling too hard as he inhaled the bitter, musty smell. Pleasure; the one thing he never had at home.
But Asuma stopped, pointing.
There was someone at the edge of the alleyway. If they'd been sober, they'd realize this wasn't at all abnormal. They were quite near a high school, after all. Their high school.
The boy stood before them, strong stance, neat-and-tidy school uniform looking strange and out of place in contrast to their gang emblems. He narrowed his bushy eyebrows and hissed,
"Scum."
---------------
It was another one of those days where, had he not been in danger of being kicked out of the house, Kakashi would have skipped school.
Keyword here being 'not'.
Amazingly enough, the legendary 'White Fang', the city of Konoha's number one ex-delinquent, didn't want his son following in his infamous footsteps. Go to school, he said. Get educated, he demanded. Kakashi missed the days when all he had to do was trash-talk him about mom, and he'd fall silent. But lately, good 'ol Whitey felt the obligation to force Kakashi to school anyway, grimacing at his acid remarks as he pushed him out the front door.
"At least show up for homeroom."
And he would. But as soon as the bell rung, outside he went again to join Anko, Asuma, and the others whose names had long escaped him, though not that he cared. They were just another set of replaceables to him, anyway.
However, despite how he'd been doing this the past week or so, Anko and Asuma still looked at him with utter astonishment whenever he said he'd meet them after homeroom.
"Whaaaaaat?!" Anko whined, hunching over her knees. Asuma just looked confused, and stroked his three chin-hairs.
"What's with the noble-ness all 'a sudden?"
Kakashi rolled his eyes, not bothering to answer the question. Hell, they'd forget by tomorrow anyway. Maybe even forget he'd been talking to them in three minutes or so. He simply turned his back on them and, with a shrug, waved at them over his shoulder. "See ya later. I'll tell Orochi-sensei 'hi' for you, kay, Anko?"
She replied with an un-lady like grunt before taking a deep breathe of tobacco... or whatever mind-numbing, doubtedly legal drug she had in there today.
He entered the classroom fifteen minutes late and, when questioned for his actions, Kakashi simply saluted his teacher with a smile and stated he wanted to make an entrance. Most of the other students sighed, not really caring what happened with the disgraceful excuse for a human being one way or another. As long as he wasn't making trouble for them or the school. Many parents had threatened to pull their kids out over him.
"By the way, Orochi-sensei, Anko says you're still her favorite teacher."
The tall, attractive man standing at the front of the classroom sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose with his lithe, pale fingers. "Yes, but could you tell Anko I actually need to see her once in a while for me to keep that particular position?"
Large vocabulary, handsome face, and the youngest teacher by far at the school. There was no doubt this man was classy. Most of the female students (and teachers, speaking of which) desperately pursued him, though Kakashi couldn't quite see why. He was ghostly; rather scary, too, what with the piercingly bright, snakelike eyes and long, black hair that fell well past his shoulders.
Kakashi narrowed his discolored eyes at him. What a jackass. Why exactly did Anko like him, anyway? He was such a fruit, and besides. There was an air about him that gave even him the shivers.
Suddenly, those scary eyes met his – one brown, one blue – causing him to snap back to reality.
"Hatake-san, would you mind sitting down?"
"Huh? Oh, right." Fuck, did I just zone out?
A teeny, hushed group of brave giggles sounded near the back of the class.
--------------
Kakashi let out a wild whoop! as the bell rung, signaling that the end of homeroom had finally come... and he could go smoke behind the school with Anko and Asuma.
Feeling happier than usual, he rounded the hallways, making his way for the door--
To find his sweet escape blocked.
A boy about an entire head-and-a-half taller than him stood in his way, angry scowl plastered on his round, friendly face. Well, of course it wasn't friendly now, but Kakashi imagined it might, when smiling, actually become...
He sighed, tapping his foot. "Move, will ya?"
The boy faced him completely, and it took him a moment to register that the too enormous caterpillars crawling on his forehead were his eyebrows. He blinked. This guy has the whole Bruce Lee-thing going on, bowl cut, muscles an' all... To top it all off, he had bad taste, too, or at least in Kakashi's eyes. He wore a green T-shirt beneath his unbuttoned black school uniform.
"Fine, whatever," he grumbled in a deep, smooth voice. Despite himself, Kakashi found it pleasant to listen to.
The mondo-freak stepped out of the way, allowing Kakashi passage. But when the poofy, gray-headed boy didn't move, he raised a giant, furry eyebrow.
"Uh. Hello...?"
"Hatake. Kakashi Hatake."
The boy rolled his eyes. "I was pausing for the sake of pausing, I didn't ask your name."
"Oh." Freak.
"Besides, I know you. You're that gang-banger who's always giving everyone shit."
"Yup!" he brightened; so he was famous.
"That wasn't a compliment, you know."
Silence; awkward, to be exact. Just the kind Kakashi was used to... and just the kind he hated.
"Well, if we're done here..." the boy turned and began to walk away from Kakashi into the empty hallways. "I'm going to be la-"
"Wait!"
He turned. "What now?"
Kakashi fumbled for the right words. Yeah, what?
"Uh... what's your name?"
At this, the other boy's face softened considerably and he straightened up. Kakashi had been right. When he wasn't looking at you as if you were the scum of the earth, he did have a gentle face. Probably a pansy-type, he thought to himself.
"Well. Assuming you don't recognize your own student-body president... which I didn't suspect you of doing so anyway..." he paused, again. Dramatic effect, Kakashi thought.
"I'm Maito Gai."
Rated for future chapters. I've always loved this little piece, and I'm just now deciding to continue it. Who knows? This may turn out to be interesting…
PLEASE, I BEG you! Do NOT complain about the format! I tried to fix it, transferring it to multiple medias but STILL the stupid site wouldn't fix it correctly. -.-