A pale man stood all alone on the side of tall blue building, he was pacing back and forth restlessly, as if he had a problem that he simply couldn't solve.

"Hi! Yer hollow here… I jus' wanted to say sorry 'bout tryin' t' take over yer body... multiple times... Umm... But, yer welcome fer weakenin' tha' Kuchiki guy for ya... Not that ya couldn't have! Just..." Hichigo let out a long sigh.

"Why is it so tough for me to think about you?" Angrily, he whipped his fist around, causing it to collide painfully with the hard concrete building. "Why is it so tough to talk to him when he's not even here?!" The albino kicked the side of the building in frustration, creating a resounding 'crack' as the concrete was crushed under the force of the impact.

"Why?" Kick.

"Why?!" Punch.

"WHY?!" Head butt.

The teen fell to his knees, panting heavily as an unnoticed trickle of blood oozed down his pale forehead.

"Troubled young one?" The albino lifted his head up slightly in acknowledgment.

"Whadda ya want, Old man?" Hichigo was not in the mood for this, he never was.

"What is it you want, Hollow?" Here he goes again.. All full of wisdom and crap... Hichigo thought silently.

"Oh, knock it off, old man. I'm not in the mood for your shit." The teen grumbled back, rolling his eyes.

"You never are."

"Yeah well, ya don't seem to take a hint." He growled, scowling at the unshaven man before him.

"Something is different about you, Shirosaki..."

"Maybe a hair cut?" He shot back, voice dripping with sarcasm. Zangetsu gave him a quizzical look.

"No, I think it has something to do with Ichigo..."

"So, what if it does have something to do with King?" He snarled, baring his pointed teeth.

"He hates you." Hichigo flinched, wrapping his arms around his knees, head bowed. He knew that, he knew Ichigo hated him… It had been clear when they had fought Byakuya, Ichigo would never trust him…

"I know..." The hollow whispered solemnly.

"He thinks you're a monster." Zangetsu stated dryly.

"I know..." The pale teen gripped his head, willing himself to not hear what the zanpactou spirit was telling him.

"He doesn't know who you really are."

"I get it old man..." He could feel the anger bubbling up inside him, the urge to hurt, the urge to kill…

"He thinks he'd be better off without you…"

"ENOUGH!" Hichigo lunged at Zangetsu, clawed hands balled into fists as he lashed out at the tall man. But when he was sure his hand would make impact, it simply passed through thin air. "Dammit!" He cursed, hitting the ground with a dull thud.

"So answer me this Hichigo Shirosaki, if you know what Ichigo thinks of you, do you know what you think of Ichigo?"

"What the fuck does that mean?!" The hollow glared angrily at the zanpactou spirit.

"Hollow! Does Ichigo know how you feel about him?" His voice rumbled through the inner world, making Hichigo shiver unconsciously at just how ancient this man was. Far more so than himself, even if he was a hollow.

"If he did, do you think I'd be thinking up apology speeches?!" Hichigo screeched indignantly.

"Why doesn't he know?" Zangetsu questioned forcefully, anger fading.

"Because I haven't told him yet!" Hichigo replied, feeling pressured by the older man's continuous line of questions.

"Then what do you think of him?" The hollow glared at his feet, as if they were the cause of all his problems.

"I... I... I'm not sure!"

"HOLLOW!" Hichigo winced. "If you don't know what you think of him, how are you supposed to tell him?!"

"I think... I might... L-love him?" Hichigo squeaked. Zangetsu stopped ranting instantly. A long pause followed the almost confession.

"What?" The older man asked, dumbfounded.

"I might love him... Or I at least have a crush on him, a strong crush... maybe..." Hichigo blushed madly. The older man blinked, straightened himself up, cleared his throat and readjusted his shades.

"Well then... I'll hide this from Ichigo, and I presume you want no pity from me?"

"What do you think, Old man?" Hichigo asked with a scowl.

"Well, good luck then." And with that, Zangetsu left. Hichigo let out a sigh or relief and walked to the edge of one of the buildings.

He snickered at the thought of the poor, traumatized Zangetsu. With his 'shit eating grin' (as Ichigo put it) plastered across his face, he looked up at the sky and yelled, "Oi! King! Yer welcome! But next time, I want a thank you when I save yer ass!"

--

"Thank you..." Ichigo murmured under his breath.

"Eh? Did you say something, Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime asked.

"Huh? Um, no. Just talking to myself." Ichigo replied. Orihime, happy with this answer, resumed eating her questionable lunch. Letting out a sigh of relief, Ichigo leaned back against the concrete, brow furrowed in slight confusion. Who was I thanking?