A/N: A oneshot to get my mind off of things. Plus, I wanted to take a break from working on Here We Are. In this oneshot Ichigo and Hitsugaya's relationship has already been established. Although they will not admit to being boyfriends or in love or anything like that. No! Before I write such things there will have to be small moments to build up to it. XD! They are just 'going out' in this fanfic. Yuup. Enjoy.
Disclaimer: I do not own Tite Kubo's Bleach. But I do admire it so.
"Is this blindfold really necessary?" Hitsugaya asked as he stumbled blindly into what he assumed was the Kurosaki home. His hands groped for an object or a wall to steady himself on. Feeling his feet bump into something he instinctively took a step back to avoid tripping but ended up running into Ichigo who had come up from behind him. "Oh, sorry." His irritated and slightly sarcastic voice earned a hearty chuckle from Ichigo.
"Yeees." Ichigo answered, dragging out the word. "Be patient, we're almost there. Hey!" Ichigo lightly slapped away Hitsugaya's hand just in time. The young taichou had made a move to take off the blindfold. "No peeking. You'll ruin the surprise." Ichigo placed his hands on the fumbling boy's shoulders to guide him into the living room.
"I can't believe I agreed to this." Hitsugaya growled, not liking the fact that he had to rely on Ichigo to lead him to their destination safely without himself falling over anything.
"But you did! What can you do about it?" Ichigo steered the pouting taichou to the couch and grinned from ear to ear. "Okay, wait. Let me get it ready."
"I was half-asleep when you asked, Ichigo." Hitsugaya grumbled and sat down impatiently on the couch. His eyes glared at the thin but properly working blindfold. He couldn't see anything. But he still had his hearing. Ichigo was making a loud racket. There was the sound of bags rustling, something was knocked over and Ichigo cursed, and then… was that the sound of metal?
He felt Ichigo's hands at the back of his head as they skillfully untied the knot that held the blindfold in place. And with a dramatic flourish he tossed the item aside and stepped away to allow Hitsugaya to see the surprise Ichigo had prepared for him.
"…"
"Well?" Ichigo asked. His voice was filled with excitement. "What do you think?"
Hitsugaya leaned forward on the couch to get a better view but was careful not to press his nose against the wire cage. The smell kept him back, along with the initial surprise. His eyebrows rose as he stared at the two creatures in front of him. "Rabbits?" He looked up to Ichigo and then back down to the furry animals. "This is your surprise?"
Ichigo was unfazed by Hitsugaya's lack of enthusiasm. "Yeah! I got them both for half-price at the local pet shop." The orange haired boy stuck his index finger through one of the openings in the wire to tap the white and smaller rabbit's nose. "Aren't they cute? I even named them." Ichigo pulled his finger out of the cage and stared triumphantly down at the cage. "The light brown one is little Ichi and the white one is little, little Toushi." Oh, Ichigo. Blessed with his creativity and his superb sense to come up with names no one would have expected.
A vein throbbed in Hitsugaya's forehead. "Little, little Toushi?" He crossed his arms over his chest and glowered at Ichigo. "Why does Toushi have two little's in his name?"
Ichigo sheepishly shrugged and raised his hands to surrender. "Okay, alright. Just little Toushi then." He made his way over to the steaming Hitsugaya and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. The shorter boy frowned but leaned against Ichigo, staring at the two rabbits that had begun to sniff each other.
Taking this as an approval Ichigo bent his head down to place a small kiss on the boy's cheek. "They're just like us." He murmured cheerfully.
"Hmm." Hitsugaya replied, his turquoise eyes still watching the rabbits. "Not exactly. I don't recall… doing that to you."
Ichigo tilted his head questioningly before following Hitsugaya's gaze. "Doing wha- oh, shit!" He practically threw himself onto the cage but paused and gaped at the scene. "But the pet shop said they were both guys! Argh! Hey, hey stop that, little Toushi!"
The white rabbit had crawled on top of the brown one and had begun to… Well, let's just say they had begun the process of making new life. Ichigo smacked his forehead with the palm of his hand and turned away, not wanting to watch and not wanting to interrupt either. "This is great! Just wonderful!" He sighed in exasperation and sat down on the couch, his head buried in his hands. "Tell me when they're done, Toushirou." His voice was muffled.
Hitsugaya shook his head slowly and sighed. But his expression looked purely amused. "You should have made sure." He sat down beside Ichigo and tried to pry the teen's hands from his face. "Come on, Ichigo. Another six or seven rabbits won't kill you."
"Easy for you to say!" Ichigo cried out suddenly, throwing his hands up in the air in what would seem to be an over dramatic gesture. "You aren't the one taking care of them. Oh damn. What's my family going to say? Two is fine but imagine nine!" He breathed out slowly before pulling Hitsugaya closer to him and placing his chin on top of the taichou's head, that feeling of soft white hair was welcome any day. Ichigo's eyes stared at the wall before him. That's what he felt like hitting his head on. A frickin' wall.
Hitsugaya didn't mind being held as long as no one was there to see. But the silence, which was normally fine to the young taichou, now bothered him. "You could always give the offspring away." He suggested, shrugging his small shoulders.
At this Ichigo straightened up and looked thoughtful. "Does anyone in Seireitei want rabbits?"
Hitsugaya shot Ichigo a look as if the orange haired human had gone crazy. "Is there a reason why you aren't recommending rabbits to people in the living world?" His voice was full of suspicion. Ichigo laughed a little too loudly and hastily looked away.
"Of course not! Why would you think that? I was just wondering…" But his voice faltered when he glanced back at Hitsugaya and saw the look of disbelief all over his face. His shoulders slumped in defeat. "The reason why I got little Toushi and little Ichi for half-price was because no one in Karakura Town wanted them." Ichigo looked down at his hands.
Hitsugaya was silent for a moment, obviously thinking. "What about Urahara?"
"Huh? What about him?"
"Can he really refuse baby rabbits? Doesn't he have children working with him? Would they be able to resist?" Hitsugaya's eyes gleamed mischievously.
Ichigo stared at the sly looking boy. That plan made sense. It made a lot of sense. Hitsugaya wasn't the boy genius for nothing. "That's a great idea, Toushirou! It'll totally work." He could picture it now. Once the young rabbits were weaned he would go over to Urahara's shop, find one of those kids, preferably the girl, and drop off the rabbits.
"Then it's settled." Beep beep. Beep beep. Beep beep. At the sound Hitsugaya fished around in the pocket of his jeans and drew out a cell phone. Flipping it open he stared at the screen. "A hollow." He informed Ichigo as he snapped the phone shut. "I'll be back later." With that he ran out of the living room and back outside. Ichigo watched him leave and frowned. Darn hollows and how they took up Hitsugaya's time. Ichigo leaned back against the couch and stared down at the cage. At least the two rabbits had finished their love making.
"Man, little Toushi. You aren't supposed to top little Ichi." He muttered, a small smile on his face. Ichigo then closed his eyes, counting baby rabbits in his mind and waiting for the moment when Hitsugaya would return.