[Log] Ahrr, and it's drivin' me nuts! [Part 1/3]

[lookoveryondah]

Who: Kiba, Haku and Special Guest Akamaru! :D
What: Kiba's driving Haku home to Detroit. For Christmas.
When: Before Christmas. Because Mimi is just that on top of things. (/BS)
Notes: Part the first; still PG-13-ish. And did I mention we've been working on this since before Christmas?

They'd driven for over an hour after the worst of the snowstorm had hit them, searching for somewhere with a 'Vacancy' sign still lit up. Kiba was exhausted, both from the hours of driving he'd already put in, and the stressful driving conditions. Not to mention that he was currently stuck in a car with his newest roommate. Who he'd sort-of-maybe made out with a couple weeks back. And, it turned out, who was also a guy. He wasn't so cool with that, and it had been playing on his mind ever since he'd found out. Haku...was a bit of a confusion, in his brain. Kiba just couldn't reconcile the very, very girly appearence with...manly bits. Even now, he still had to keep correcting himself. Guy. Not a girl. Guy. Off-limits, dude. Don't go there.

But he sort-of-maybe-nearly had, and that really didn't help things.

THERE! There was a place! Sighing in relief - which was the most sound he'd made in a while, although prior to the silence he'd been singing along to whatever crawled through the tape deck - Kiba carefully turned his Impala off the road and into the motel parking lot. He rubbed his face before unbuckling and steeling himself to open the door against the whirling snow. On the backseat, Akamaru scrambled to his paws as the car stopped, whimpering with curiosity as he peered outside. "C'mon, mutt. Hope this place don't mind dogs," Kiba growled affectionately at him, trying not to look at the body occupying the passenger seat. It was just...gah. His head was bein' a real dick about this. Well. Perhaps that was more accurate than he thought.

The motel owner groused a bit over Aka's presence, but the place wasn't in such good shape that he could reasonably object. Kiba heaved another sigh as he unlocked the room door - and of course there was only one left, with one bed, of fucking course!! - Akamaru twining about his legs to get inside first and inspect the place. That was habit, training, and the dog's natural instinct there; Kiba grinned softly without really realising it. He loved his dog. Hauling his and Haku's bags across the threshold, he dumped them carefully next to the couch - oh god, that did not look comfortable; what was with his fucking luck lately?! - and ran his gaze around this dump. Tch. Well, it was a roof and four walls out of the snow. Slightly more comfortable than his car, too. "You can have the bed," he murmured quietly to Haku, with a brief (but not unfriendly) glance before heading over to the fridge. "Aww, man! Not even a fuckin' minibar!"

Haku had never quite gotten the hang of sleeping in cars. He'd never had a chance to regret that. Until now. The lack of conversation had done nothing to improve his mood. It gave him far too much time to think about the situation, to worry at it, and get himself worked up. Kiba seemed to be trying to ignore him, which was alternately a sore spot and a relief. He knew, he knew, he was the one making Kiba uncomfortable, and while it irritated Haku to no end, he couldn't exactly bring himself to blame Kiba.

Okay, so maybe he could, but he knew he really shouldn't.

No, Kiba wasn't the real problem. The problem was that Haku was mortified. He'd never been too concerned about how others saw him, not in regards to the crossdressing, anyway. But this had made itself into such a big deal, and he couldn't help but feel like he'd been deliberately misleading Kiba. He knew full well he hadn't done any of it on purpose, but the thought kept creeping back into his brain. Thankfully, if Kiba wasn't looking at him, Kiba couldn't noticed the fierce blush that came and went across his cheeks.

He hung outside the motel just a minute longer than was strictly necessary, using the wind and snow to try to snap himself out of his worrying mindset, then followed Kiba in. He wasn't thrilled with the idea of sharing a room. Never mind that they were roommates, technically, a dorm room on campus and a seedy motel in a snowstorm were two entirely different prospects. Arriving at the room did little to raise his expectations. The place smelled stale, and immediately he felt claustrophobic. He nodded in response to Kiba's offer of the bed, tugging at a lock of hair in a sudden fit of nerves. The creak of the bedsprings as he sat down made him wince, but it had to be better than the couch.

The dog seemed to feel the need to come wash Haku's hands - again - with his tongue. "He's... very friendly," he commented to Kiba's backside. Haku wouldn't have thought to look for a minibar, but now that it had been brought up, he decided it would have been a welcome addition.

Kiba's head turned to frown at the white 'Shepard. "Oi, mutt! Leave he-- him alone," he barked - and, damn, he done it again! Akamaru made woeful eyes at both of them, curling up into an obedient heap by Haku's feet. His owner grunted approvingly and closed the fridge again, moving to play with a faucet. Tch. "Pipes're frozen, too," he sighed. "Looks like we got snow, snow, and snow to drink tonight." Joy. He sauntered over to seat himself on the floor, back against he couch, legs stretching out gratefully after being cramped up in the car for the past five hours. Five hours. And they weren't even halfway there yet. This was gonna be a helluva roadtrip, that was for sure. Kiba cracked his back with expert precision, toeing his boots off to scratch Akamaru's winter-furred ruff with one foot. He'd have to go and grab some snow in a bowl for the dog soon.

Now that he was out of driving-concentration-mode, Kiba was restless. He'd never been good at being cooped up, and repressed energy demanded to be released right now, despite the fact that he was exhausted, and that it was close to midnight. And fucking cold. Akamaru rumbled ecstatically at his rough caress, and Kiba smiled again. "If he annoys you, just tell him to fuck off an' he'll behave," he instructed Haku, covering a yawn. "But he likes you, so I can guarantee he'll be back again. Wontcha, mutt? Yeah. Atta boy." He yawned again, blinking in consternation as he did so before tucking both hands comfortably behind his head and regarding his roommate. "Mmm. Y'reckon this is gonna let up by mornin'?"

Did he still have that vodka in the car? Kiba couldn't remember. He resolved to check when he went to get snow to melt into water.

Haku kept a carefully neutral expression. "He's fine. I just haven't been around animals very often." He patted Akamaru gingerly on the head, as if to prove he didn't mind, but couldn't stop himself being irked with Kiba. Why did he have to keep correcting himself? It only made things more awkward, and besides, if Haku'd cared to begin with he would have brought it up with him a long time ago. But Kiba was trying to be nice, putting up a good front, which only served to turn Haku's irritation back on himself. I'm being an idiot, Haku decided, kicking his own shoes off and hopping lightly over the dog.

The radiator was placed directly under their only window - Haku didn't bother to hide his disapproval with that - and somehow managed to look older than the building could possibly be. He cranked the thing open, muttering that the "damned windows aren't even double-paned..." The spread of warmth from the decrepit piece of equipment was instant, but unfortunately accompanied with a loud belch and a metallic rattling. Haku stood back with his hands on his hips, watching it for a minute. That was going to drive him crazy. He fished around the little room, eventually finding a grimy soapdish in the bathroom to wedge under the radiator. That fixed the rattling; they'd just have to live with the groaning sound coming from the pipes. Haku reminded himself testily that he loved Winter. He really did.

"I think it'll stop in a few hours." Haku hoped it wasn't just wishful thinking. "And it's not like we're completely out in the middle of nowhere. They'll have the snowplows out pretty early. We'll be on our way first thing in the morning." Knock on particle board. He wiped at the window with his sleeve, peering out into the parking lot. He could just make out the silhouette of the Impala through the snow flurries. Uncomfortable though this was, it was better than being stuck on a bus, by a long shot. I should count my blessings. Turning back to Kiba, he managed a smile - a far easier task than Haku was willing to admit. "Thanks again for driving me out here. It's real good of you."

"Hey, no problem," Kiba dismissed easily. Except, maybe it was? Why had he kept to this little adventure? Kiba wasn't sure. No...he knew why. Haku had been so excited about seeing his crazy uncle for Christmas, and Kiba was a big softie. Besides, Hana was still totally pissed at him for all that shit he'd pulled before he left for school, so even being stuck in an awkward situation like this was better than letting his big sister hang him on a coathook by his underpants. Not that Kiba wore underpants. Which would only make things worse.

God, this was so fucking weird. The main problem here, really, was that he liked Haku. Sh- He was fun. They got along well; or, at least, they had before...everything. And he sort of missed that. Now it was all with the awkward and the silence and the tension. Raarrgh. He was so fucking confused. It wasn't Haku's fault, either. It was him. But he just couldn't help it. Akamaru whimpered slightly, and Kiba blinked. "Mmm? Oh! Right. You need some water, huh, buddy?" With a theatrical groan he stood back up, stomping into his boots again. "You need anythin' else from the car while I'm out there?" he asked with a small yawn, searching the cabinets in the shitty kitchenette for a bowl of some sort. Vodka. There was vodka in the trunk, he was sure of it. And maybe a spare blanket...Kiba's brain was a bit fuzzy around the edges. He wrinkled his nose. "God, I love snowploughs. Shoveling snow ain't real high on my priority list."

Now Haku turned around to fully face him. Kiba didn't sound convinced. He opened his mouth to say... what? There was no one statement that would clear up the whole mess. Instead, he shook his head and shrugged. "Thanks." He gingerly stepped back over Akamaru - braving a slobbery lick aimed at his ankle - and plopped down on the bed again. He really just wanted to be there, already, to get to their destination, but would that do either of them any good? His uncle wasn't likely to be of any help. Zabuza'd probably sail through any awkwardness like a shark through water, then smack the both of them when they got on his nerves. Haku could feel a bruise coming on just thinking about it. But even a bruise would be welcome about now. Haku liked knowing exactly where he stood with people, and his uncle was nothing if not clear about his intentions.

Kiba's sudden movement caught his attention. "Huh? No, I'd..." he started. What had Kiba asked? Oh, the car. "No, I don't need anything." He flopped down and curled up on his side at the foot of the bed, wishing he felt sleepy. If they could both spend the remainder of the storm unconscious, it would save them a whole lot of grief. Unfortunately, the moment he was down he was itching to be up again. Watching Kiba poke around the kitchenette from the corner of his eye did little to curb Haku's urge to fidget. He wanted to warn Kiba to bundle up, to be quick about his trip out to the car, he didn't want Kiba to catch a cold. But he couldn't think of a way to put it that wouldn't sound too obvious or flat out annoying. Kiba wasn't that stupid. All Haku had to do was stay put and make sure the radiator didn't crap out on them in the meantime. He rolled over to glare at the piece of shoddy equipment, as though it was threatening even now to do just that. "Hate shoveling," he mumbled.

He nodded absently, aiming a sharp whistle in Aka's direction. "C'mon, mutt. You can stretch your legs a bit, too," he ordered, opening the door and disappearing outside, dog faithfully at his heels. It was freezing outside, although he'd been stuck in worse, and the wan light radiating pitifully from the motel sign did little to alleviate the pervading greyed-out blackness of the night. Kiba headed out to the car doggedly while Akamaru took the opportunity to do some business, romping through the increasing snowdrifts with disgusting cheer. Tch.

There was a spare blanket in the trunk of the car; Kiba seized it gratefully, tucking it under his jacket to keep it from getting snowy and damp. A bit more searching provided him with the longed-for mostly-full Absolut bottle, which was possibly even more welcome than the blanket. It'd keep him just as warm, at any rate. He kissed it dramatically and slammed the trunk closed, locking it. "Oi, dog!! C'mon, you crazy thing. Back inside." Last stop was to find some cleanish snow; hopefully the water pipes here were just snap-frozen and would thaw in the morning. If he couldn't shower before they left, Kiba was going to be pissed. And probably smelly.

Opening the door awkwardly with an elbow, he knocked snow off his boots and kicked them off. Akamaru's bowl went by the radiator for the moment; he tossed the blanket at Haku's somewhat-pouty form with a ghost of a smirk. "Present~!" he declared, claiming the couch and wrestling the cap off his own prize. Oooh, yeah. That was the good stuff. He could feel it burning down his throat already. "Mmm." There was enough vodka left to knock him out, if he needed it to. Which he just might, all things considered. It occurred to him that getting drunk by himself might be a tad on the rude side; he cocked his head at Haku in a manner eerily reminiscent of Akamaru's own 'curious face'. "Want some?"

Haku sat up long enough to see the door close behind Kiba, then flopped back down onto the bed, on his back this time. He was being silly, letting all this get to him so easily. "Stop whinin', kid, yer killin' me," he told himself, trying to make his voice sound rough and gravelly, instead conjuring up his father's thickly-accented baritone. He hated that voice, hated more that he could sound like that, nevermind that he had to try to make it come out so low, it was there. Still, it put things in perspective. As uncomfortable as he may be right at this moment, it could always be a hell of a lot worse. But it was exactly this kind of situation that brought on troubled sleep. He squeezed his eyes shut, wondering if he should take an extra pill tonight...

Hearing Kiba fumbling with the doorknob, he cracked his eyes open just in time for the world to go dark again. A bit of wrestling, and the blanket was safely off his face. It seemed clean enough, but that distinct car trunk smell was not something Haku would ever care to be smothered with. Kiba was already planted on the couch; he looked upside down from Haku's angle, and it took him a second to figure out what was he being offered. Vodka. Ick. Getting buzzed sounded like a lovely idea right about now, but vodka had never been Haku's thing. "Think I'll pass, thanks." He eyed the bottle with a curious look of his own. "You always keep a stash on you?"

"Only by accident," Kiba drawled, taking another swig. Aaaaah, yes. That felt so much better already. Kiba ♥ vodka. Akamaru prowled around the room a bit longer before wandering over to jump into Kiba's lap - heavily. He sputtered, eyes crossing faintly. "OUCH! Damnit, mutt, watch where you're jumpin'!!" he whined, resisting the urge to cradle his nether regions protectively. The dog ignored him with years of practice, shifting Kiba's legs out of his way, head resting on his owner's stomach contentedly. Kiba tried to glare at him, but gave up. Damn thing was just too cute! Even when he was crushing his balls. "Drool and I neuter you..." It was a totally empty threat, of course. He'd never be able to do that; neutering Aka would be like neutering his twin.

Flicking a glance towards the clock, he pulled a face. And had another drink. The more he drank, the sooner he'd pass out. That was some appealing math, right there. Why was there nothing to do?! Why was this so awkward?! It was stressing him out, and Kiba didn't deal with stress very well. He tried to think of something to strike up a conversation with, but somehow he got the feeling that 'So, why do you live your uncle' wasn't going to go over well. "We need, like, buttons or somethin'," he mused absently, not even aware that he was saying it out loud, stroking Akamaru's head in a rhythmic, almost trance-like fashion. Damn mutt was almost asleep already! That was bogus. Kiba pouted slightly.

And took another swig.

Haku rolled over onto his stomach, watching with one raised eyebrow as the vodka began to disappear. He was somewhat impressed at how quickly Kiba was swilling it down. "...'buttons?'" His expression turned quizzical - okay, maybe he shouldn't be that impressed just yet. Sure, Kiba was still conscious and speaking clearly, but it didn't require a whole lot of sobriety to lie on a couch and spout what just might be utter nonsense. On the other hand, Haku found himself needing a good mental boot to the head once he realized his traitorous thoughts were starting to whisper that Kiba was really being rather cute. "What do we need buttons for?" He hoped the answer was at least a little entertaining. He needed a laugh.

He chewed on a thumbnail for a moment. "You sure you'll be okay on the couch? I'm sure Akamaru can keep you plenty warm over there," that just had to be uncomfortable, Haku thought, "but there's more than enough room on the bed." Nevermind that the sleeping arrangements had been Kiba's idea; Haku still felt simply awful at the thought that Kiba might wake up with some nasty kink in his back. He didn't bother to keep his concern off his face. "I really, really don't bite."

"Yeah. Like, to turn us off and on." Kiba re-listened to that sentence as it snuck out of his mouth, and rolled his eyes. "Awake. Sleep. That sort of thing. How much time d'you think we waste tryin' to get to sleep, or wakin' up in the morning?" he mused, listening to the sound the vodka made as he gently wobbled the bottle. Mostly it was 'swish!' but if you got enough turbulence up on the liquid's surface, it was almost like a smacking sound. Weird. But kinda cool. Haku prob'ly thought that he was drunk or something, but he was actually still a fair way from it. He just got into these weird, contemplative moods when he'd been in a bad headspace. 'Breathing room'. Almost like he was trying to block out reality and focus on something abstract until Life had blown over. And this whole thing with Haku and...everything...had definitely put him in a bad headspace, which he was actually a little ashamed of.

It didn't help that he was sincerely a sweetheart - Haku, that was. Kiba knew, fairly definitely, that he was not much of a nice guy. He'd done some horrible things in his short life, and now it was like he was finally getting the bill. Fuckin' typical. "Nah, you don't wanna sleep with me," he drawled in reply. And rolled his eyes, again. "...I'm a violent sleeper. Or so I'm told." Which was a total lie, and he'd only just managed to change the sentence from 'I'm violent in bed' as it came out of his mouth. With an internal grimace, Kiba focused on the next drag from his friendly, friendly bottle and Akamaru's head, hoping for the oblivion of unconsciousness to end all this semi-awkward...whatever. Vibe.

And soon, please...

Haku's eyes followed the vodka bottle; the sloshing movements of the liquor was oddly soothing. He felt somewhat left behind by Kiba's train of thought. He'd never been in the habit of worrying about What If's or If Only's, unless a direct threat to his person was involved. Perhaps a year's worth of nights spent counting cracks in a ceiling or picking out tunes in a complete stranger's snores had cured him of such things. Unfortunately, his focus on the here and now left him painfully ill-equipped to follow Kiba's reasoning at the moment.

"But wouldn't you, um... Miss out on things?" Haku pillowed his head in his arms. He found Kiba's idea of buttons a little unsettling, and he was having a hard time pinning down a reason why. "I mean, falling asleep and waking up, it's not always so bad, right? Besides, if it's too easy, why bother?" That wasn't even close to the point his mind was trying to make, but he'd feel a bit petty declaring to Kiba that using up energy thinking about things so intangible irritated him. Especially since he was pretty sure Kiba didn't mean much by it.

He managed to bite his tongue at Kiba's assurance that Haku wouldn't want to sleep with him. In the dim light, with his face half-buried in the blankets, he was fairly certain Kiba couldn't see the faint flush that made it's way across Haku's cheeks. So what if he did want to? It was just one more thought to irritate him; one more What If that just wasn't likely to happen any time soon. He cleared his throat and attempted to shrug. His current position on the bed made the gesture more awkward than it already would have been. "Once I'm asleep, a herd of elephants couldn't wake me. But if you really don't-" don't want to... He cut himself off. Kiba didn't need to listen to him whine. "Whatever you want to do."

Akamaru made a strange sound, almost a half-whine, one white ear flicking towards the bed. With a smothered sigh, Kiba nursed Haku's reply and eye-raped the ceiling some more. "Yeah. I know." And that bothered him, the whole heavy medication thing, actually. It bothered him that someone as seemingly-innocent and pure as a cross-dressing guitarist Haku had hidden secrets, or hidden horrors, that he needed to drug away. That never ended well. Drugs were most definitely bad. He knew that all too well. "I was sort of more worried about the bruises," he added eventually, nearly forgetting that there wouldn't be any bruises because A) Kiba was pretty stationery when he slept and B) he would not be sleeping with Haku. Or in the same bed as Haku. Maybe he was using bruises as a metaphor? Kiba hoped not. That could be messy.

More vodka disappeared to maul his liver gleefully, and suddenly it was too hot in their shitty motel room. "All right, mutt, up. I don't need a fuckin' fur coat." Akamaru whined petulantly but heaved his furry behind off his out-of-sorts owner and paced around. "C'mon, don't gimme that look. Settle down," Kiba ordered him, hating how tired and grumpy he sounded. Like his mother, or Hana, when one of the dogs was sick and they'd been up all night worrying.

Suddenly he was homesick. In a way he'd never been even stuck in Alaska. Akamaru was still slinking around, ever-sensitive to Kiba's moods. He sighed and sat up, taking another swig. "Akamaru. Settle." Why was everything turning to shit now? It was Christmas, for God's sake. Everything should have been about the happy and the love and the family...instead he was spending it with the roommate he'd previously made out with, and said roomie's possibly-psychotic uncle. Yep. Great. "Remind me again why I bought you with me?"

Haku's head jerked up at the change in Kiba's tone of voice. They'd both been sounded more than a little strained, lately, especially this evening, but suddenly Kiba seemed... annoyed? Angry? Haku couldn't tell which, but either was unbearable. Nevermind that Kiba had been talking to Akamaru; the dog wasn't the one prancing about in drag and making a royal mess of things. He maneuvered himself into a sitting position, trying to think what to do with his hands that didn't involved hugging himself. "You sure you don't want the bed?" he offered again. "I could take the couch if you want. Or the car..." he trailed off. Kiba wasn't likely to jump on any of that, but Haku honestly couldn't think what else he had to offer here. He tugged on a lock of hair, knowing he couldn't fix his roommate's mood by snapping his fingers, but there had to be something he could do. "I could go find more booze or something?"

"Haku. You're takin' the bed. No arguments. Okay?" Kiba fixed he- him, right, him with a steady gaze, still absently swilling the vodka around in the bottle. "I've slept in worse places than this couch. It's not a problem." And, truthfully, it wasn't. The problem was that...well, there were a few problems, Kiba admitted to himself, but his sleeping on the couch wasn't one of them. Rolling his head about until his neck cracked, he suddenly surged to his feet, capping his booze bottle and tossing it carelessly onto the bed. "Help yourself if you want it," he offered again, slightly distantly, and stepped over the sulking dog to make his way to the bathroom. He didn't particular need to drain himself of excess waste fluid, but hell, it was something to do. Something that took him out of the room for a minute or two, which - with any luck - would be enough time to let the alcohol really kick in and fuzzy-up all the bleeding edges until things were slightly rosier.

Damn, he'd forgotten about the frozen pipes; luckily there was enough water backed up in the faucet to rinse his hands off. Kiba wasn't a huge clean freak, but some things were just nasty. Akamaru raised his head off his paws beseechingly as Kiba slouched back in; with an exaggerated sigh, he perched on the edge of the bed and leant over to scratch the damned mutt's ears. "Damn it. Why do you always gotta pull that look on me, huh?" Stupid dog, knew all his weaknesses. Tch.