The sun dipped below the horizon. A pink sky tinted with hints of gold slowly started to fade into deep purples and blues. The once bustling streets crept to a silence with the clumps of people flocking toward their appropriate apartments.

Despite the long-awaited nightfall, Kurosaki Ichigo gathered his thoughts and continued to fiddle his fingers away on the keyboard. His posture was hunched over, a slight ache began to tingle the muscles of his neck.

Rolling his head to produce a soft 'pop,' Ichigo gave a soft groan. Without the possession of a mirror nearby to confirm his assumption, he imagined his eyes had to be bloodshot red with how much time had elapsed. Ichigo's amber eyes had been trained to the computer's screen all day long and his retinas felt strained. Being the son of a doctor, he knew the light emanating off the screen would not be enough to make him blind but it sure hurt like hell.

One hand slipped through orange strands of hair, the male gripped the edge of the desk with his other hand to roll himself away from it— quite effortlessly because of the swivel chair.

No one informed him that being the head assistant to a lawyer would cause the death of his free time. If Ichigo wasn't cooped up in his office at the law firm then he was definitely locked inside of his apartment finishing his work, which should have been finished at the firm but that was wishful thinking. Some days he would happily determine the end of his workload to be approaching fast, but, just as fast, his assumption would quickly be shattered with more work.

Raising his line of sight to the tiled ceiling, Ichigo massaged his temples in hopes of calming the oncoming headache. He muttered a short list of groceries to himself. He was running low on food— fridge as empty as a desert with no sign of water in any direction. Luckily it wasn't as hot as a desert since that would be a pain to repair.

A soft buzz rang out through the room, pulling Ichigo from his chair to fish his cell phone from his discarded pants on the floor. After a long day of work, Ichigo had created a ritual of removing his work clothes haphazardly and then replacing them with sleep clothes before he returned to his desk to finish whatever he had left.

A small look of confusion flashed across his face as he answered the call. "Hello…" he said with a bit of question raising the last syllable.

"Why hello, Ichigo! I hope I am not disturbing you at such an hour." Ichigo flicked his eyes from the wall to his desk. The clock glowed "11:02 PM" in neon red. He began to scowl and tried to piece together where the time had gone. Didn't the sun set not too long ago? Work was taking a toll on his better senses.

"Nah, it's alright. What's up, Szayel?" The two were coworkers but had formed a decent relationship, decent enough to drop the formal honorifics at least.

"We are all quite aware of Grimmjow's patience," the pink-haired male said with an air of playful sarcasm coloring his voice. "He asked me to call and see how the case write-up was coming along. Remember, the press release is this Saturday." He chimed the last statement, words guided by a smile.

With a shake of his head, Ichigo wondered why their boss couldn't have called instead— or even send an email. Jeez, the man was ridiculous. Grimmjow was a straight-forward brute but often liked to play the run around to complicate the simplest of tasks. It was why Ichigo was buried in work twenty-four seven. As Ichigo sat on his bed, his gaze wandered to the screen of his computer placed directly across from his bed on the desk.

"Yeah, it's finished. Just have to edit the rough bits." He hated the designated job of editing. It meant if the document didn't sound clear, formal and prestigious enough then his ass would be on the line. The slightest mistake would send his boss into a tirade of curses and obscene tantrums.

Szayel chuckled knowingly. "Would you like me to edit it?"

Without a second of hesitation, Ichigo gripped the phone tightly and nodded. Szayel wasn't able to see, but he did it anyway. "Yes, yes," he urged through the receiver. "Please." He remembered to add.

"Absolutely, Ichigo. Email me the document and then remember to buy me lunch tomorrow."

"My pleasure," Ichigo said before a laugh. It was a relief to be free of the editing part— especially with this particular case. It had been the talk of Japan for a week now. The case was centered on the murder of a teenage boy in Ikebukuro. There was a money trail left after the murder, which led to a businessman, suspected to be a Yakuza leader and rightfully so. The case resulted in the favor of the defendant, found not guilty. All signs pointed to the businessman, and yet he was sent scot-free without a single smudge on his record. It took the entire nation by storm.

To add more fuel to the fire, the lead defense attorney was none other than Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez— deemed as the nation's "mysterious and exotic-looking" lawyer with a "fiery tongue" by the news. And Grimmjow was pretty damn satisfied. This would be the case which would sky rocket his already lavish career. So, simply put, this case write-up meant everything to the coverage and reputation of the Jaquez & Ruma law firm.

Ichigo was not about to get his head chopped off by a wild man on account of one silly grammar mistake. Szayel could have that duty and Ichigo would smile the whole time he emailed him the write-up. He would continue to smile even after it sent.

x x x

Ichigo trudged through the hallway, which led to the office of Grimmjow. His boss had the secretary phone him and request Ichigo's much needed presence. He would bet it was more work since Grimmjow was a sadistic bastard. Grabbing the metal doorknob without a knock, Ichigo passed over the threshold and entered the room with a snarky look on his face.

The blue-haired man had his head cast down, cerulean eyes scanning over a few papers which probably arrived in those manila envelopes underneath his elbow on the desk. Thin lips pursed and then Grimmjow gave an abrupt huff before smacking the papers down. His eyes fell upon Ichigo which caused his frown to grow deeper.

"Take a seat, Kurosaki," he ordered in a gruff tone, motioning to the chair with his chin.

Taking a seat in the leather chair across from Grimmjow, Ichigo quirked his head to the side and observed the man's posture through calculating amber orbs. Grimmjow was always in a bad mood but something was different. The crease between his eyebrows was tighter and his frown lines deeper. His cerulean irises were a few shades darker as well, if that was humanly possible.

"Is it about the report, sir?" He asked with true curiosity. Ichigo would be shocked if the write-up was faulty. Szayel was not one to make errors— ever. The pink-haired man was too much of a perfectionist to allow silly mistakes to infiltrate his radar. It was like he had state-of-the-art technology implanted to replace his mind.

Grimmjow shook his head one time as his hand roughly ran through blue locks of hair, pushing away the strays from his forehead. "Just lost a client on account of a money issue. Who the fuck in their right mind has the audacity to send it in writin' though?" He rolled his eyes angrily. "Fuckin' pick up a phone or email it. This is a fuckin' joke." He stabbed the top of the paper with his finger. There was that fiery tongue the media was boasting about. Grimmjow only spoke with a drawl when he was severely pissed.

"That has to do with me because…" Ichigo questioned the man with a confused stare.

The man finally realized he was taking his anger out on Ichigo and replied with a soft "sorry" before moving onto the real reason Ichigo was there. "It ain't anything bad really." He cleared his throat in an attempt to remove the roughness of his voice. "Actually called you in here for a good reason. I sent your report to Muguruma and he loved it." The blue-haired man placed his hand on the mouse, clicking through a few screens until he landed on the right page. "And I quote, we will treat him to dinner and I don't want to hear any excuses, unquote." Grimmjow moved his eyes back to Ichigo's face.

There were no words spilling from Ichigo's mouth. He was quite taken aback and thoroughly proud that he became speechless. Never before had be been invited to dinner with his bosses. His other reports were good but clearly the most recent one came to par with Muguruma Kensei's tastes. Ichigo didn't really care for Grimmjow's approval, but Muguruma was a different story. He respected the man and looked to him as a role-model— a lawyer anyone in the field would aspire to be. He was charismatic and witty and, not to mention, handsome. On a few occasions, he had a temper that could easily match Grimmjow's, but he was so passionate rather than belligerent. Yes, Ichigo wanted to have the reputation and admiration Kensei had as a lawyer one day.

"When are you free? The man ain't taking 'no' for an answer and neither am I." Grimmjow opened a small planner and clicked the pen in his hand to prepare to jot down a date.

Ichigo gave a light 'uhm' and then decided Saturday was the best time for him. "How's Saturday night? I mean the report will be released to the press that morning, it'll give you something more to celebrate." He cracked a small smile and watched Grimmjow add the dinner to his busy schedule.

"Saturday's good, kid." Ichigo glared at the nickname and Grimmjow flashed a smirk. "He said to bring a date if you want. He's bringing one."

"I'm single." Ichigo muttered. Thanks to his job, his social life had died long ago and was buried underneath miles of old, rotting soil. There was no use digging it back up.

Grimmjow laughed with his rough baritone, absentmindedly scratching the corner of his pointed nose. "You're not alone. So that means you'll be my date then?" He wore a shit-eating grin, teeth gleaming and catching light from the window.

Ichigo exasperatedly groaned at the senselessness that was his boss. "No, I'm not going to be your date." With a click of his tongue, Ichigo leant back into the leather and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Don't be like that, Ichigo. I'm a good date. I'll wine and dine ya so then ya won't be able to refuse by the end of the night." The blue-haired man perversely wiggled his eyebrows and sent a wink Ichigo's way. "Guaranteed."

Ichigo scoffed, raising his irritated eyes to the ceiling for a moment and then placing them back on Grimmjow. "One, I'm not going as your date. Two, do I look that easy? I don't put out on the first date or the second and probably not even the third."

The brute man laughed, comically wiping the corners of his eyes as if there were actual tears— and there weren't, Ichigo would like to point out. "Aw, Ichigo, you're killing my goal of fucking everything cute here."

"What the- I don't care about some stupid goal," he stammered. "Continue whatever you're doing, but you better scratch me off that list."

Grimmjow sighed dramatically, shoulders slouching a bit for effect. "Unfortunately the list ain't that long. So far I've only slept with that kid at the front desk." Grimmjow's visage scrunched a little trying to remember his name.

"Tesla?" Ichigo asked incuriously. The redhead had no intentions of wanting to know the many conquests of his boss. He lifted from the seat and began his journey back to his office, stopping with his back to the door. He knew not to leave without being dismissed but Grimmjow would understand his position.

Grimmjow had another smirk on his lips, leaning back into his massive leather chair, the swivel creaking to bend with the force. "Yeah, him. Kid's loud as fuck, but a little too needy for my tastes. I like needy, but not without a challenge first. Cat-and-mouse games are more my style."

"Did I ask?" Ichigo's voice was laced with irritation.

"No, but I thought you'd like to know how I go about things," he replied nonchalantly. "Since I will get what I want, Ichigo."

The redhead stiffened by the door, looking at his boss with the most incredulous expression plastered on his features. When the hell did Grimmjow start to notice Ichigo? He had been working at the law firm for a little over a year now and Grimmjow never once bat an eyelash in his direction. Suddenly the brute was acting all kinds of lewd and perverse— suggesting wicked, wicked things and going against the sensible job code of conduct, which states no romantic fraternization.

I guess rules don't apply to the bosses, huh?

"Can I go now?" He swallowed a growl but it didn't go unnoticed by Grimmjow. He smiled wildly and, thankfully, nodded his head a few times.

Without another word, Ichigo was out of there in a bolt.

x x x

The rush of the water drummed nicely across his skin, leaving not a single surface dry as it glided down his body and drained back into the bath. He ran the soapy cloth over his body as he rubbed thoroughly over the bumps and dips of his toned abdomen. A disheveled electric blue flashed over his vision, disrupting his thoughts.

This wasn't right. He never thought about his boss when he showered. That was wrong on so many levels.

However, the prospect of a good fuck was nice. It meant Ichigo was still sexy as ever, he still had it in him. It had been a really long time since his last fuck and his last fuck was break-up sex. So it was more bittersweet than enjoyable.

Despite how flattered he was, Ichigo wasn't going to sleep with Grimmjow. The blue-haired man may have been attractive. He could admit that…

Actually, attractive did not do Grimmjow justice. His body was ripped, well-defined and his suit did nothing to hide that. Some might argue the man was shaped like an Adonis god. Ichigo wouldn't doubt that either. Then there were those unruly blue locks that cupped his face, which gave off this animalistic vibe. It must be nice to just grab those locks and pull, Grimmjow seemed like the type to be into that kind of stuff.

Ichigo could go on defining how ungodly hot this man was, but he ceased his thoughts.

It was his boss. That sounded messy. If it ended badly, which all signs foreshadowed it would, then Ichigo would be out of a job. He may have hated the workload, but he was so close to becoming a lawyer and it was a dream to work underneath such a well-known establishment.

Or, by the gods, if it did turn out to be something good, Ichigo would constantly wonder if any pay raise or promotion was due to sleeping with his boss. He didn't want an unfair advantage. He was raised better than that. He was taught to never cheat and to nobly earn what you desire most. Ichigo would only work his way up the fair way— the hard way and he didn't need to sleep with anyone to get there.

Switching off the water, shaking his short hair like a mad dog, he stepped out of the tub and wrapped a white towel around his midsection. He swiped his hand over the misty mirror and stared into the reflection. "No giving in," he chanted lowly. He shot himself a curt nod through the foggy glass. "Still hot though," he mumbled with a smirk.

Saturday was simply going to be a dinner for their achievements as a team. It was not a date. It was not the time for Grimmjow to pursue him either. Ichigo would enjoy the time spent with his bosses and then return to his home, alone, with his stomach full and happy.

See, nothing to it! Ichigo was stubborn as a mule so it wouldn't be hard to accomplish this. He could only hope his blue-haired boss played fair and wasn't devious enough to start something. It would be okay if he made suggestive comments, but if he physically backed Ichigo into a corner then that would put a strain on their boss-employee relationship. It would be so awkward, at least for Ichigo.

Feet padding over the tile floor, he exited the bathroom, warm body hit with the chill of the rest of his apartment, as he entered his bedroom. He settled on the bed and dropped the towel to the floor. Normally he wouldn't sleep naked but tonight he was too tired to bother.

Just gotta wait 'til Saturday, he mused. The sooner it was over with, the better.

The lawyer-employee relationship has been written by Patd06 at AO3, which you can find here: /works/1065353

I would like to give her credit for that.

For my other stories, I've got my chapters finished, just need to edit them, so no worries there.

If you'd like to see more of this, please read and review. Makes a happy writer : - )