Chapter Text
Lee’s eyes slowly open to a clear blue sky above him, and he sits up abruptly when he’s blinded by the sun. He groans as he rubs his eyes, suddenly awfully aware of the cold, wooden bench beneath him.
What’s more concerning to him than any of this however, is that he currently has no idea how he got here, nor why he’s here in the first place.
“Finally awake, are we?”
Lee jumps to his feet with a shriek. His eternal rival stands before him, arms crossed with a very disgruntled look on his face. Lee suddenly feels very, very awake, and in turn of that also very, very confused.
“Neji… What is going on?” Lee’s first words of the day come out raspy. Something about it, and Lee's seemingly clueless expression finally pushes the Hyuuga over the edge.
“You tell me!” Neji stomps towards him, and Lee nearly stumbles backwards as his teammate gets all up in his face. “Gai Sensei practically demanded me to locate you when you didn’t show up for training this morning, just for me to discover you in the same place you ran off to yesterday to find your little girlfriend!”
Lee blinks rapidly, his head trying to take in all the information that’s being thrown at him at once.
He is late for training? Lee is never late for training! What time is it? What day is it? G-Girlfriend? Is he talking about you?
“Oh, and did she like that overpriced piece of plastic you gave her? Did you tell her I paid for it after you ran off with it, huh?” Neji, clearly not done chewing him out, points an accusatory finger in his face, and this time Lee actually does fall flat on his behind. He looks down to see something rolling by his feet. He seems to have tripped over… a bottle? He barely gets to pick it up, before Neji leans down and grabs it out of his hands.
Lee looks up at his teammate, who’s eyeing the bottle suspiciously, turning it around by the neck to read the label. His eyes go wide with the realization.
"Sake,” he states. “Did you drink this?"
"I… I do not recall," Lee says, glancing off to the side.
"So you did," Neji sighs. His pale eyes soften a little, and soon after, a high pitched voice cuts through the air, calling for the both of them. Tenten appears from behind the trees, out of breath.
“There you are!” She approaches the two of them. “Why is Lee on the ground?” She tilts her head in question, and Neji turns away with a huff, crossing his arms again.
Tenten places her hands on her hips with a frown. “Are you still being petty about that bracelet? You’re basically royalty, why are you being so stingy?” Tenten argues, and the Hyuuga lets out an exasperated gasp, and goes on to say something about it being a matter of principle.
When the two start to argue, Lee decides he's been sitting on the cold, hard ground long enough, and quickly he's on his feet again.
When he brushes the dirt off of his jumpsuit, he feels something unfamiliar in his back pocket. He pulls out the mystery item, and in his hand is what he assumes to be the bracelet his teammates keep going on about. He brushes his thumb over the pink beads, and Tenten seems to notice.
"You didn't give it to her?"
"I did not give…?" Lee is still fixed on the bracelet, when his eyes go wide, as the memories come flooding back.
He remembers everything that transpired, from the way that you looked, that made him feel so out of it, to when he accidentally ran off with the trinket now placed in his hand, all too eager to see you, but then… then what? What happened after that? And why did he drink? Why does he still have the bracelet? Did he perhaps get rejected? No. Lee shakes off the thought. Even if he did, he would never intentionally drink alcohol.
Still, Lee feels his chest clench around his heart, worried and upset. Yesterday was supposed to be a special night for him, and now he can't even remember the most important part.
"LEE!!!"
The student in question is harshly brought back to reality, by the loud shouting of his beloved Sensei. Before he knows it, Gai has thrown himself at him, engulfing him in a bone crushing embrace.
Neji and Tenten have long stopped arguing, as they take in the scene before them. This is nothing new to them of course, but the sheer volume of their teacher’s outburst is extra loud today.
Gai pulls back to look at his currently overwhelmed student, shaking him back and forth by the shoulders.
"My beloved pupil! I was worried sick, when you missed training! Whatever happened to you-”
To everyone's concern, Gai suddenly goes completely quiet.
“Gai sensei…?” Lee watches his mentor curiously, as his eyes seem to be particularly fixated on Lee’s neck. After an alarmingly long while for Maito Gai standards, he finally speaks up again.
“Lee… that bruise on your neck…” Gai eyes him seriously. He tugs on Lee’s collar to get a better look, before he dramatically bursts into tears, throwing his arms around Lee again. “OH MY PRECIOUS STUDENT! You are truly in your springtime of youth!!!”
Lee quirks an eyebrow. He gets bruises and scratches all the time during his rigorous training. Why is this one a big deal?
Tenten, unable to curb her curiosity, steps closer to take a peek at the bruise in question. Her jaw drops, before she covers her mouth with her hand, doing little to hide her giddy smile.
“Oh God Lee… That’s one hell of a hickey!” Tenten says now fully cackling, and even Neji's interest is piqued as he peers over her shoulder. Lee's eyes widen, and his face goes completely red.
A wry smile appears on Neji's face, and then he snorts."Too bad he can't remember it," he says curtly, to which both Tenten and Guy look at him in shock.
Lee is absolutely mortified at this point, head riddled with all the implications of the supposed hickey on his neck, and Neji's taunting does nothing to ease his worries. He is already fleeing the scene before they get the chance to ask him any questions about it. He doesn't have the answers anyway.
Alarmingly quick on his feet, Lee is inside his apartment in a matter of a few minutes. A million thoughts are going through his head at once. Did you really leave a hickey on him? His heart starts racing just thinking about it, and the fact that he doesn't remember drives him crazy.
This is really, really bad. Had his Sensei been given the time to put two and two together, he would no doubt be reprimanding him right now.
He has barely locked his door behind him, before he’s standing in front of his bathroom mirror. Lee gulps, before carefully pulling down his collar. His mouth goes wide open, when he sees the deep purple mark on his neck. He's had a lot of bruises throughout his shinobi career, but none of them ever looked quite like this: Intentional and precise, like it was meticulously planned.
He carefully places a hand to the blemish, fingers lightly brushing against the discoloration. He pulls a face at the touch, the spot more sore than he thought it would be. He takes note of how the bruise seems to continue further down his neck, and curiously he pulls down his collar further. It’s not that much bigger than he thought, but he is shocked when his actions reveal another hickey down by his collarbone.
He can see his own skin turning red in the mirror, but it doesn’t rein in his growing curiosity as he unzips his jumpsuit, exposing his torso. Sure enough, his reflection reveals several more hickeys down on his chest. He groans at the sight, his imagination running wild with all the possibilities. When he examines each mark with calloused hands, he doesn’t have to imagine anymore. The sensation triggers his memory, and in an instant it’s all crashing down on him at once.
The taste of your mouth, the sound of you moaning his name, and the feeling of your mouth sucking, teeth gnawing on his sensitive flesh to leave him as many reminders as possible.
Lee’s breath hitches, as he recoils. He’s ashamed at the arousal that starts to rise within him. While he was already blushing before, his skin now feels as if it’s on fire.
But then he also seems to recall the conflicted look of hesitancy upon your face, seemingly acutely aware that he wouldn’t remember any of it.
He frowns. The immense feeling of guilt upon him quickly subdues his growing lust. Still, he feels the need to take a cold shower, before he is off to find you.
♡♡♡
You down a glass of water, trying to dull your terrible headache. The memories of the night prior haunts your every thought.
You plop down onto your couch, and with a sigh, you bury your throbbing head into your hands.
Now in your sober state, you’re terribly regretful over what you did yesterday. You knew you would be, and you still went ahead and did it anyway. You even left Lee on the bench, when he suddenly fell asleep under you, because you were so frustrated with him. How could you just leave him there? You feel terrible.
And those marks you left on him…
You quickly grab a pillow and scream into it, unable to contain your discomfort. You're completely mortified by your choices during your drunken stupor. At the moment, you’re so embarrassed that you’re not even sure you want him to remember anymore. But with the way you’ve marked him up, surely he’ll eventually put two and two together regardless.
Oh God, why did you do that? He may have been the one to ask for a kiss, but you were sound of mind enough to know it was a bad idea. Doesn’t that mean you technically took advantage of him? You suddenly feel very nauseous.
God still hates you, because it is at that exact moment you hear knocking on your door.
You briefly contemplate whether to just pretend that you're not home, before hesitantly getting up, to peek through the peephole of the front door. Your stomach turns, when you see a very forlorn looking Rock Lee standing on the other side.
Shit.
You don't feel ready for this at all, but you're not sure you ever will be, so you might as well get it over with. With shaky hands you turn the handle, and slowly open your door. Now it's your turn to avoid eye contact, afraid the nausea will spill over otherwise.
Lee however, is already bowing to you in apology.
"I am so sorry! I…" he trails off, and he stands up straight again. "Can we talk?” You bite your lower lip, still unable to meet his gaze. Still, you move aside to let him in.
You sit on your couch for several agonizingly slow minutes, before any of you say anything. You nervously fiddle with the fabric by the hem of your shirt, racking your brain for a place to start. Lucky for you, Lee takes the lead.
"I… remember what happened," he says, ripping off the bandage, and leaving your stomach in knots.
You flinch a little when he suddenly grabs your hand, and you finally meet his eyes.
"I am so sorry for coming onto you like that! That was very unbecoming of me!" His dark eyes look into yours with most sincerity, so very Lee-like, genuine and sweet, and it breaks your heart.
You feel tears welling in your eyes, threatening to spill. Of course he blames himself for this. Of course he is apologizing profusely over and over, and you're just sitting here trying not to cry.
"No, Lee. I'm the one who should apologize… I knew you were drunk, I knew you would forget, and I still… It's all my fault. You didn't know what you were doing, and I took advantage of you," you sniffle, no longer able to hold back the salty liquid rolling down your cheeks.
You can only barely see his astounded face through blurry eyes, as he blinks several times.
"Oh no, angel…" He cups your face, and wipes away your falling tears with his thumbs. He feels so warm against your damp cheeks, and you can't help but lean into his touch. "I would have kissed you sober any day of the week." Lee says, a tender smile on his lips.
His words make your heart dance happily, and you breathe a sigh of relief. You feel the nausea steadily start to subside.
"Then why haven't you?" you ask softly, voice shaky. The question triggers a flush of pink to spread on his cheeks.
"A gentleman confesses his love first, before making such advances!" Lee wears a serious look on his face, and you suppress a giggle.
He's so cute.
He inhales sharply, before saying his next words, "I have wanted to tell you for so long. Yesterday I was finally going to do it, but… I messed up completely. I did not expect you to… look like that. Just looking at you, took my breath away. I was at a complete loss for words," he admits, while you both turn redder and redder.
You can barely believe what you’re hearing. You managed to make the second loudest shinobi you know speechless? Just by dressing up a little? A strange sense of pride fills your chest.
Lee's hands leave your face, to rummage through his pockets, and you’re a little relieved he can’t feel the temperature rising on your face. He pulls something out, and then he takes your hand. The next thing you know, a pretty little bracelet wraps around your wrist.
Your eyes sparkle in awe, and your lips are slightly parted as you observe the little trinket. Lee rubs his neck, anxiously watching your reaction.
"I bought this- well uh, not quite, but I was going to… it does not matter." He shakes his head and you quirk an eyebrow in confused amusement. Lee doesn’t elaborate, but he does continue, "The point is, I love you," he finishes, looking just as overwhelmed by his own words, as they are making you feel.
Your tears start to fall again even more rapidly, and Lee's eyes widen with panic at the response, but then your arms are thrown around his neck, and he falls backwards onto the couch with you on top of him.
"I love you too, obviously," you say gleefully, and you feel his heart thumping loudly against your face nuzzled in his chest. His arms wrap tightly around you, returning the embrace.
“I am so happy, I could cry," he says into your hair, voice breaking slightly and you suspect he already is. You giggle, as you pull him up with you.
“Oh no, not you too!” You gently hold his face in place with one hand, dabbing his wet cheeks with the sleeve on your other arm. He looks at you with eyes you can only describe as enamored, as he presses a sweet kiss to your palm. Suddenly you’re very aware of the close proximity between you. In fact, you’re practically sitting in his lap.
Physical contact is nothing new to the two of you, Lee has always been a big cuddler. But the atmosphere has shifted now, your mutual affections no longer unspoken. To your own surprise, it doesn't make you nervous. Now that it’s out in the open, the progression feels natural, and simple. You feel safe, because it’s him.
It feels right.
You drop your hands from his face, and lean in close.
“Kiss me,” you simply say, and he nods with determination, a twinkle in his big round eyes.
Lee leans in first to place a gentle kiss to your forehead. He cups your cheeks in his warm hands again, and plants a little kiss on your nose. He hovers over your mouth for a second, hot breath on your lips before he’s pressing against them with his own.
The kiss is so sweet, so tender, so very Lee. It’s exactly the kiss you always dreamt of, and the fireworks go off, this time behind your eyelids.
When you pull back, you rest your forehead against his. You open your eyes, and your face heats up, when the purple bruise on his neck suddenly catches your eye.
Lee looks puzzled for a moment, but realizes your concern, when you pull down his collar to take a peek at your artwork. You grimace at the sight, but Lee only seems amused by your reaction.
“I’m so sorry, Lee, I still can’t believe I did that…”
“You did way more than that! Would you like to see?” he laughs, pulling down his collar further to tease you. You cover your face with your hands.
“Nooo, don’t remind me! I’m so embarrassed,” you whine. Lee pulls your hands from your face, and looks at you with an angelic smile, but his next words proves that looks can be deceiving.
He pulls you forward, and his breath tickles your ear. “Would you like me to return the favor?” he speaks in a sultry voice that you didn’t even know he was capable of.
Your skin shivers with delight, and you splutter and stutter in a failed attempt to respond. He leans back again, still wearing that same smile.
“Just kidding!” he says in faux innocence, and you just sit there and watch him in disbelief, mouth agape.
Now this is a new side of him you really can’t wait to get to know!