Ok, I stated it in the summery (which I sucked at /). This story has very little/no sexual content, and is only rated for blood, language and such.

Parings: IzuGin – IzuOC – GinOC and a mess of other parings that just had to be there.

Realization

By: BlackWidow01

Chapter 1: Unexpected

The breeze gently tugged at Izuru's golden hair. He sighed, recalling all the times Renji had tried to coax him into cutting it.

"C'mon, Izuru! You look like a girl!"

"Abarai-kun, I'm fine the way I am…" Izuru replied quietly.

"You're hair was cute when it was short, Kira-kun" Matsumoto added cheerily. Izuru just gave her the 'Not you too…' look.

He sighed. "And plus, now isn't really the time. I'm leaving for the real world tomorrow… there is much I have yet to do." Renji had been visiting from the real world at the request of Byakuya.

Renji scoffed, "Excuses? Really Izuru-"

"Have you sunk as low as Renji?" Matsumoto chimed in.

Izuru let out a chuckle as the red-ish-haired girl grinned. Renji glared at Matsumoto, muttering incoherently to himself.

That was exactly two weeks before. Izuru was now 'settled' into a single apartment somewhere in Japan. He was attending the same school as Kurosaki and all of his friends, however, none of them had really noticed him yet. Not that it bothered Izuru, he never liked to draw unneeded attention to himself, and he was sure how things would go if her were to make his presence known at that school, especially if Rangiku had caught word. She still hadn't let him forget the pity part they had thrown after Aizen had left the Seireitei.

He sighed again, remembering why it was that they had thrown the party in the first place. A familiar, uncomfortable feeling arose in his stomach. He got it every time he thought about him.

Izuru toppled over from his sitting position in the grass, resting his forearm across his eyes to shield them from the sun. Why did he always feel like this? Do I hate him for leaving me… for betraying me? Izuru let his mind wonder for a while, before coming to a confusing realization. "Or do I miss him?"

Izuru floated down the hallways of the school. It was the last day of school, but he was the only one not in a hurry to get home. Renji stopped him in the halls outside their classroom.

"Hey, Izuru!" Renji all but shouted. Izuru cringed and looked up at his red haired companion. "It's the last day of school, aren't ya' in a hurry to get outta here?" he prodded the blondes shoulder.

He sighed, "I would be; only I don't have much to look forward to… I'm here on business, and that's all."

Renji grinned. "Maybe I can give you a few lessons on real world life." His grin grew wider, making Izuru shiver. "'Cause I'm a master at the real world now!"

Izuru rolled his eyes. "Oh, I'm so sure of that, Renji…" he mused, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Renji scowled. "Fine then, be that way… I'll call you later." And with that, he was gone.

Izuru continued to walk, not really looking forward to going back to his apartment just to sit alone. That was what he did with his spare time. He wasn't used to all this exposure. He was used to sitting alone in the 3rd division doing the piles of paperwork Gin had left as a present for him.

He sighed, running his hand through his hair as he walked through the park. He decided just to sit, facing the front of the school. Unlike on most days, there were no lingering students hanging around the school after hours. He set his things down, leaning his head back, sorting through his tangled thoughts.

He wasn't sure how long he sat there, nor did he care.

He heard some kids laughing near by, snapping him out of his daze. He looked up, examining the scene.

A girl was rushing to pick up her things. A small crowd of student stood a few feet away, laughing.

Izuru stood up just as the group walked away. He casually walked over to the girl and knelt down next to her. Her face was covered by her long black hair, but Izuru noted that she had an unusually pale complexion.

He hesitated at first, but decided to say something. "Um… excuse me, miss? Do you need any help?"

The girls head shot up, and she stared directly at him for a moment. Her eyes were a bright, emerald color, and there were obviously tears welling in them. She quickly reached up and wiped her eyes, trying to hide the tears. "H-hello…" she stuttered weakly.

He stared into her eyes for a moment, almost mesmerized by the intensity of them. She's crying…Izuru thought to himself, feeling a bit of sympathy. He looked at the papers scattered across the ground. "Here… let me help you with these."

She looked almost confused as he began to gather the papers. He eventually handed them back to her. "They look ok…" he added with a small, reassuring smile.

She nodded a bit, as she shyly took the papers. Her skin was pale; she had long, jet black hair, and bright green eyes. Izuru put the pieces together. "You're not from around her are you?"

She shook her head. "I-I'm from Romania…" she almost whispered. "But I was raised here…"

He nodded, and then sighed. "It's the last day of school… and they can't help but give someone a hard time." Izuru stood and offered the girl a hand.

She eyed his hand cautiously before taking it and standing up. She gave a small 'thank you…' and bowed politely.

She kept her head down, her lengthy black hair covering most of her face. It reminded him of all the times Momo and Renji had complained about his hair being in his face.

He noticed that, unlike normal, he was making most of the conversation. "Do they always pick on you like that?"

Her eyes met his for a split second, but she looked back down after nodding a bit.

Izuru thought he hit a soft spot. "I'm sorry, that's not any of my business…"

There was a short, awkward pause before anyone said anything. She smiled weakly. "My name is Sarah… nice to meet you…" she looked up at him.

Izuru nodded. "Izuru Kira… nice to meet you as well." he bowed.

"T-thank you for helping me…" she shook his hand. Izuru made another observation: she had scars on her wrists.

He didn't have the time to prod more into her private life, for she sped off after thanking him.

Renji was already at his apartment when he arrived. Izuru gave and exasperated sigh, "Abarai-kun, if you're such a master at the real world now, why are you here instead of out living the life of a normal, real world living person?" he asked, setting his things down in the corner.

The pineapple haired red head took a few large gulps of soda and flimsily set the can on the table next to Izuru's couch. "That Tesai guy is nuts!" Renji exclaimed, flailing his right arm. "Always cleaning… Every time I do something, he's just… there! And Urahara is no better… He has to be smoking something! I had to get outta there!"

Izuru walked over and picked the can up. "So you decided to come here?" he inquired, walking into the kitchen and throwing the can away. "You could have gone to see Ichigo… or something."

Renji laughed. "Yeah, like I would go to see him!" He hoisted himself up off the couch and followed Izuru into the kitchen.

"Well… he's currently housing Rukia; you could go to see her…" Renji opened the fridge and took another can of soda. Izuru narrowed his eyes. "You can just help your self, Abarai-kun…" he muttered.

Renji snorted. "It sounds like you're tryin' to get rid of me, Izuru…"

Izuru shook his head a bit, "No, it's not that. It's just… you're messy, loud…" and headache inducing he trailed off while fixing a glass himself a glass of water.

"I'm not loud!" Renji, ironically, shouted.

Izuru cringed, "Really?"

Renji rolled his eyes. "So what took ya' so long to get home anyway?"

The blonde walked back into the living room, and sat down. He leaned his head against the back of the couch, just like he had at the park earlier. "I stopped in the park on the way home…"

Renji grinned again. "Sound like your hidin' something, Izuru…" he poked the blonde in the side.

Izuru closed his eyes, "I ran into a girl who was being bullied… I helped her pick up her things, we exchanged greetings, and she bolted." He smirked. "But I suppose you want to here something more along the lines of: I was walking downtown looking for the nearest place to get laid." He mused sarcastically.

Renji laughed. "The first one is more believable!" Izuru nodded, and then sighed.

Renji looked at the blonde, giving him a confused look. "You ok, Blondie?"

There was a short silence before he nodded. "Just… thinking..." he replied.

Renji sighed, lying down on the floor. "You're thinkin' about him aren't you?" Izuru remained quiet. "You know, I'm not as oblivious you think I am…"

The blonde closed his eyes again, "Am I that easy to read, Abarai-kun?"

She sighed, walking in flow with the other people on the street. I hope he didn't see… She silently thought to herself. She tugged her sleeves down.

It's a bad habit of yours… you just have to see it don't you…

She whimpered. Shut up! I thought you were gone…

I'll never leave… I'm your voice of reason…

No! It's your fault that I've done these things! You're only here to torment me!

I merely introduced the concept…You've turned it into an art form. And the best part is... I know you enjoy it…

She ducked into her apartment, a few tears streaming down her face as she gently closed the door. She leaned against the wall, slowly sliding down it. I-I… I do…

So, what'd you think? This isn't my first story, but I'm still trying to hone my skill. Please… PLEASE tell me what I can fix for chapter 2. I LOVE constructive criticism!