So this idea would not leave me alone all summer, so I finally got around it actually writing it.

Same AU as 'Concerning the Cat', but reading it or it sequels are not necessary.

Thirty was a big milestone. So Naturally, Ichigo Kurosaki was freaking out. Every other person who was friends with him sidled up to him, nudged him in the ribs and grinned; 'welcome to 'true' adulthood'. What did that even mean? Was he supposed to just wake up on July 15th and have everything figured out? He was already paying bills and taxes, and he had a stable job... was he missing something? He had a house, a car, a decent amount in his savings account, a cat, a dog, and a boyfriend. He winced, thinking of what Toushiro would say if he heard him list both Ellie and Olaf before him. It wasn't as if he scared of turning thirty, but he couldn't believe how much pressure everyone was putting on him. As if he'd suddenly wake up with a plan and have everything put together. Well, he was frazzled even on the best of days. If Toushiro wasn't there he was sure that he would have lost half of his lesson plan every day. It would be nice to have everything put together, but it was not going to happen overnight.

But as his birthday drew nearer all the subtle jokes grew more and more annoying. What magical powers did thirty have? 'Cause he already saved the world before he was even twenty. How was he supposed to top that?

Then the terrible thought hit him. What if he had already reached his prime at fifteen, what if he was never going to do anything great ever again. He was a fading soul doomed to spend the rest of his life in boring mediocrity. He had always said that he wanted a quiet life with no hassle, but what good was reaching milestones when his heydays were back in the dust? He needed to do something to top himself; he would not slip away into nothingness.

But, whatever he was going to do he had to do it quickly. His birthday was in a week and he knew that his family was planning a huge party at some restaurant.

...

The night before his birthday, found him lying in bed thinking hard. He was staring at the ceiling hard enough that the white plaster was beginning to dance. He huffed deeply, causing Toushiro to look at him over the top of his book and gently run his hand through his hair. Ichigo paused, all his thoughts halting to a jarring stop as he turned to look at his boyfriend. He couldn't believe that the answer to his problems was sitting right beside him in a worn navy night shirt and tousled hair.

Aizen was sure as hell not going to destroy the world any time soon. But if he couldn't do anything to top his fifteen-year-old self, maybe he was thinking about it the wrong way. Sure, in the grand scheme of things, noting could top saving the world, but maybe this time he should focus on something personal. Maybe he should listen to all his friends and think about his personal accomplishments. He felt his face stretch into a grin as he rolled over to face Toushiro. The beside lamp illuminated his hair and outlined the slope of his nose and lips. Ichigo shuffled closer, and Toushiro only raise his book to allow Ichigo to fit himself next to him and throw an arm across his lap.

It made sense after all, Ichigo thought. They had been living together for the past six years. They were already practically married. They had talked about getting married on occasion. Neither was opposed to it, they just hadn't gotten around to actually doing it. Thirty was a good enough age to finally get hitched, he decided (or however old Toushiro was). Ichigo nodded his head; he could easily top saving the world by asking his boyfriend to marry him.

"What are you grinning about?" Toushiro asked as he set down his book, marking the page.

"Nothing." Ichigo smiled innocently.

Toushiro shook his head. "Okay then, weirdo." He leaned across to turn off the bedside lamp. "Oh, before I forget, Yuzu asked me to ask you what kind of cake you wanted-"

Ichigo groaned loudly. "No birthday talk," he grumbled, "The bedroom is a birthday-free zone, remember?"

Toushiro rolled his eyes as he snuggled under the covers, nudging Olaf as he readjusted himself at their feet. "Fine, just remember to tell me in the morning." He leaned over to peck Ichigo on the lips. "Good night."

"Night, babe."

Ichigo pulled the sheet up to his chin. He was taking the day off from work tomorrow anyway and could go look for a ring. There was a jeweller at the mall not too far away. He yawned deeply. Yeah, that's what he would do. Silver or titanium, maybe; Toushiro had cool-toned skin, either one of those would look best on him. He'd propose at the party – take the attention off of himself. They could share it; he didn't mind sharing. He rolled on to his side and threw an arm around Toushiro's waist, nuzzling into his neck and kissing it.

"Hmmm?" Toushiro hummed, already falling asleep.

"Nothing. I love you."

"Youtoo," he mumbled softly.

...

Ichigo's phone went off while he was elbow deep in soap suds as he washed the dishes. He swore and rushed to the bedroom, pulling off his rubber gloves. Who could be calling now? Everyone was supposed to be at work and his party wasn't until seven. He scanned the room for his phone; he usually kept it on the dresser, but unless the cat was sitting on it, it wasn't there. Either way the call ended. He grumbled, venturing into the room to see who was calling. His found his phone on the carpet by the base of the dresser and he looked to Ellie in annoyance.

"Stop knocking shit over, Ellie," he grumbled.

She blinked a blue eye and her tail twitched. Ichigo shook his head. She had starting doing this recently, batting things off counter tops for no reason. She had broken at least three of Toushiro's tea cups and a plant pot in the past two weeks alone. He gathered up his keys, wallet, and one of Toushiro's books. As he made his way to the opposite side of the bed, he noticed that Olaf was holding something between his front paws and vigorously chewing. He did a mental checklist of what had been on top of the dresser and a tiny ball of dread formed in his stomach.

"What are you eating, boy?" he asked. The dog paused mid-chew to look at him. When he pulled his ears back and refused to meet Ichigo's gaze, the redhead knew that it was something that he wasn't supposed to have. He groaned loudly as he picked up a well-chewed, black, suede box.

"Shit," he shouted, "No no no no no no no no no!" He frantically began searching the carpet, dropping to his hands and knees. Olaf whined softly as Ichigo pushed him away. There were pieces of cardboard and fabric all over the carpet, but there was no sign of the ring he had bought earlier. He ran a hand through his hair, feeling himself start to panic.

"Why, Olaf?" he groaned, "You have a million chew toys! Why this?"

Olaf whined again as he stood up and guiltily backed out of the bedroom. Ichigo sat on his knees yanking his hair. This was the first time that his pets had ganged up on him; usually they would create their messes separately. Of course when they worked together it would be catastrophic. Ellie began to purr when he looked up at her, happily swishing her bushy tail back and forth. If Olaf had eaten the ring then that could end up badly in many ways. He'd vacuum the room, just to make sure, but he was already dialling the vet's number. This would only ever happen to him. He was sure that no one else in Japan had to deal with their dog eating their engagement ring, hours before they planned to propose.

Olaf had been ecstatic when Ichigo had brought him to the car. He was the only dog that Ichigo knew that wasn't afraid of the vet. He tried to make friends with the vet. He tried to make friends with everyone, in fact, but Ichigo wasn't in the mood to explain to anyone that Olaf wasn't as dangerous as he looked, so he kept him on a short leash. After an emergency x-ray scan the vet determined that Olaf had eaten the ring. They wouldn't need to operate, thankfully. The vet had clapped Ichigo's shoulder, trying not to laugh, and told him that Olaf should poop it out in a few days – if he still wanted to propose then. He told him that if he didn't poop it out they would have to operate, but since it was smooth and round it should pass through just fine. This was somewhat bittersweet news. Ichigo was happy that Olaf wasn't in any danger, but he was not looking forward to sifting through dog poo for the next few days. But, the thing was that the party was tonight and less than an hour away.

...

"I know you didn't want a huge party, but try to act like it," Toushiro said, watching as Ichigo buttoned his shirt.

Ichigo sighed softly, "It's not the party I'm worried about."

Toushiro tilted his head and hopped off the edge of the bed. "What is it then?"

Ichigo opened his arms when Toushiro slipped in for a hug, resting his chin on the top of his head. "It's... I'll tell you later."

"Thirty isn't that old. Three decades is next to nothing, you know."

Ichigo smiled, breathing in Toushiro's damp hair. He'd gotten home and showered before Ichigo had returned from the vet. He hadn't asked where he had taken Olaf, probably assuming that they had gone to the dog park for Ichigo's day off. "I know. But now I can't use my age as an excuse when I fuck up. I'm supposed to have my shit together now."

Toushiro pulled back slightly, to look up at him. "You're scatterbrained, that's for sure, but you're had your life together for a while now. I have no idea what you're worrying about."

"I don't feel put together."

"I don't think anyone ever does."

"What are you talking about? You're perfection incarnate."

Toushiro smirked. "I'm the exception, of course."

"Of course." Ichigo leaned down to capture his lips. Toushiro met him just as eagerly, stretching onto his toes to wrap his arms around Ichigo's neck. They shared a kiss for a few moments, just a few gentle pecks, not wanting to get into anything right before they had to leave.

"We should get going," Toushiro mumbled, but didn't make any move to go. Instead he pressed his lips to Ichigo's again.

Ichigo hummed, "Do we have to?"

Toushiro chuckled. "Yes. You'll get your present when we get back, don't worry."

"Can we leave early?"

"Absolutely not. You'll stay until the last minute."

"But, it's my birthday."

"Which is precisely why you have to. Now come on, finish up so we can leave."

Ichigo grumbled playfully, but yanked a tie from the closet and fastened it around his neck. "How do I look?"

Toushiro eyed him up and down appreciatively. "Good."

"Just good?"

"I'm not complimenting you if you're fishing, Kurosaki."

Yuzu had booked a small bar, there was a buffet table, music, free drinks, and even a chocolate fountain. Ichigo was impressed, nothing was too gaudily decorated, except for the huge '30' shaped candle on top of the five layer chocolate cake, and there wasn't a balloon in sight. He made a mental note to buy his sister a thank-you gift. He grinned as he guided Toushiro to the bar. The shinigami made a face when Ichigo ordered him a drink, but took it without complaint.

"Ichigoooo, you're here!" His father slingshotted out of nowhere, nearly knocking Ichigo's drink from his hands in his eagerness to hug him. "Happy birthday, son!"

"Thanks, dad," he sighed, waiting for him to let go.

"Thirty," he exclaimed pulled back slightly, "has it already been that long? I was changing your diapers just yesterday."

Ichigo shook his head. "Yeah, and now I have my own house."

He grabbed Ichigo's drink and took a sip. "When can I expect grandkids?"

Ichigo glanced to Toushiro, whose face had frozen, amused mixed with uncomfortable. "You'll have to wait a while longer for that one, old man."

Isshin shrugged and wondered off with Ichigo's drink, shouting, "I need to try the chocolate fountain."

"He's a special one..." Toushiro muttered, passing his drink to his boyfriend and hoping off the bar stool as he surveyed the crowd. "I didn't know how many people were coming. You really must be popular."

Ichigo looked out to see a mixture of friends and family, co-workers, drinking buddies, old classmates, and, of course, shinigami. Yuzu must have hijacked his facebook to get into contact with some many people. He didn't mind at all, he was on speaking terms with everyone here and they all seemed to be having a good time. He finished Toushiro's drink and ordered another one, slipping a thin manila folder across the bar when Toushiro wasn't looking and asking the bartender to keep an eye on it. After saying hi to most of the guests and asking if they were enjoying themselves he tried to track down his younger sister. Yuzu was elusive, running around behind the scenes, and making sure that everything was running well. Karin was helping her, he assumed since she hadn't appeared to drag Toushiro away. But he thought that she had done enough and should enjoy the party as well. He found her fretting about a tray of coconut shrimp and clamped his hands on her shoulders and dragged her away from the buffet table.

"You hired staff, let them take care of that," he said when she tried to pull away. "Thanks Yuzu, this is amazing."

She smiled as she hugged him tightly. "You like it?"

"Yeah, can't wait to try that cake, it's yours right?"

She nodded proudly as he led her into the crowd, looking to pass her off to Rangiku or someone else who would stop her from fretting around. The shinigami, usually a rowdy bunch, were easy to find. Rangiku was double fisting a pair of brightly coloured margaritas, but somehow managed to throw her arms around his neck when she saw him without spilling a drop.

"Happy birthday, Ichigo!" she sang loudly into his ear.

Rukia and Orihime both hugged him as well. Renji clapped him on his back and shoved a beer into his hand, despite the fact that he already had a drink. Uryuu and Chad quietly wished him happy birthday, and Tatsuki nearly drop-kicked him when he took a while to notice her. Ikkaku and Yumichika were also there and he spied a few captains and lieutenants throughout the crowd, as well as some of his high school classmates. Kyoraku was never one to miss out on free drinks, so seeing him was no surprise. Byakuya was there thanks to Rukia, and looked as though he'd rather not be. Ukitake was happily talking to him, but as responsive as the Kuchiki was he might as well have been taking to the wall. Ichigo chuckled as he slipped into easy conversation with Renji and Ikkaku. Momo and Yuzu had become quick friends a few years earlier, bonding by sharing embarrassing stories of their brothers, and were chatting animatedly – well that was that problem solved.

He found that talking to Renji and the others did not come with all the questions about what he was going to do next. He made the mistake of talking to one of his older relatives on his mother's side and was bombarded with questions about settling down, retirement plans, college funds for future kids, and what not. He was still paying off the mortgage on the house, and that was certainly not what he wanted to be thinking of that night. He sidled away, directly to the bar, needing another drink to forget all the nagging problems he'd soon be facing.

Time wasn't a concern for shinigami. They lived for thousands of years, so thirty was not a big deal to them. Not once had he been asked by Renji what he was going to do next, or had Rukia asked when he was going to have kids. It was a relief, though his plan to top his fifteenth birthday still sat at the back of his mind. He glanced over to Toushiro, who had been eventually stolen away by Karin, and found himself smiling. Karin made a face at him when she caught him staring and whispered something to Toushiro. Toushiro graced him with a small smile of his own and continued on with his conversation with Karin. Renji was giving Ichigo an amused look when he turned back.

"What?" he asked, taking a sip of his bourbon.

"Nothing," Renji said, shaking his head. "You must really love him."

Ichigo nodded unable to keep a smile off his face.

Yuzu herded him to food table when it was time to cut the cake. The music stopped and suddenly he was surrounded by all of his eager guests. But of course before anything could be cut there were speeches. While Isshin was blubbering into a microphone he asked one of the wait staff to get his manila folder from the bar. Yuzu eventually took the mic from her father and ushered him away from the cake when he began singing and dancing – and he wasn't even drunk. He was shaking his head at his father's antics when Yuzu thrust the mic into his hands and gave him a pointed stare. He groaned loudly, earning a few chuckles, and tucked the envelope under his arm and scratched the back of his neck. Well at least this way, he was bound to take most of the attention off of himself with a proposal. Toushiro was going to hate him for it, but not really. He grinned.

"Okay," he cleared his throat, "I wanna thank you all for coming here, and shout out to my sister, Yuzu, for planning and making all of this come together-" everyone started to clap for some reason, "That's her in the yellow dress, make sure to thank her. Uhh, so speeches aren't really my thing and I'd rather not make a fool of myself up here. Thanks to all you guys for sticking with me for thirty years," he shook his head, "that sounds so wrong; I honestly thought I'd be dead long before, but yeah, I'm thirty today-"more laughter, he waited for it to die down. "There is one thing I wanna do while I have everyone's attention, though..." he scanned the crowd for his boyfriend, and spied him next to Rangiku with a drink – probably soda – in one of his hands. He caught his eye and grinned mischievously. Toushiro's eyes widened and he turned to hide in the crowd.

"Shiro, come up here for a second," Ichigo called, smirking when Rangiku grabbed his arm, shoved him over to the table, and plucked his drink from his hand in one smooth motion. Ichigo wrapped his free arm around his waist, pulling him tightly against his side. Even in the dim lights he could tell that Toushiro was blushing deeply. "For those of you who don't know, this guy has been with me for the better part of the last fifteen years. He saw what a mess I was and still decided to stay with me-"

"I don't need an introduction to cut cake, Ichigo," Toushiro grumbled, "get on it with it."

The crowd laughed again and Ichigo smiled fondly down at him.

"Patience, Shiro." Toushiro rolled his eyes and was quiet, but Ichigo didn't miss the way he picked up the knife and fingered the edge. Ichigo swallowed, not because of Toushiro's veiled threat, but because of what he was going to do next. He felt his heart start to flutter, as cheesy as that sounded, and his palms grew hot and sweaty. He shifted from one foot to the other, but as nervous as he was, there was a little ball of excitement that was rolling around in his stomach. "So, uh, I wanted to tell you, no ask you..." he paused to take a deep breath and to switch off the mic and place it on the table. Toushiro raised an eyebrow as Ichigo pulled away and sunk down to one knee.

The crowd gasped and cooed. He heard Rangiku squeal loudly and his father burst into a new episode of bawling. Rukia whipped out her cell phone and Yuzu and Momo clasped hands and began to bounce up and down in excitement. Toushiro, though, had gone beet red once he realised where this was heading to. He shielded his face with a hand while the other was wrapped tightly around his stomach, but he was smiling widely. Ichigo felt himself flush, honestly, he hadn't really realised just how much attention he would be putting on both himself and Toushiro, and for a split second wished he had chosen to propose somewhere a bit more secluded. But he was already down here so,

"Shiro... Toushiro Hitsugaya," he un-tucked the envelope from under his arm and held it up, "will you do me the honour of becoming my husband?"

Toushiro took a deep breath and let his hand fall from his face. He looked like he was having trouble to form his reply. He opened and closed his mouth several times, licked his lips, and ran his hands through his hair. Ichigo wasn't nervous at all, he knew what Toushiro's answer was going to be, and he understood that the shinigami was likely more than a little stunned. Still, he held his breath as he looked up expectantly. Eventually, after what felt like hours but was only half a minute or so, Toushiro's smile widened and shook his head slowly from side to side.

"I can't say no, can I? It's your birthday after all."

The crowd erupted into loud cheers and whistles as Toushiro took the envelope from Ichigo and gently tugged him to stand up. Ichigo wrapped his arms around Toushiro's waist and bent down to kiss him. Normally Toushiro would have pulled away because of the crowd watching them, but tonight he wound his arms around Ichigo's neck and pressed his lips against his. For a moment they didn't hear the cheers or applause and it was just them, newly engaged, promising to spend the rest of eternity with each another. Their mouths moved against one another, Toushiro tangled his fingers in Ichigo's hair, and Ichigo cupped Toushiro's cheek. When they broke apart the crowd was deafening and they were both blushing heavily, but Toushiro's eyes were sparkling and Ichigo knew that he looked the same.

...

The party was beginning to wind down; it was past midnight and most of the guests had left. Ichigo was leaning against the bar with Toushiro tucked into his side, clutching the manila envelope to his chest. They were swarmed by their sisters, Rangiku, Rukia, and a grudgingly eager Renji. Isshin had made himself a permanent fixture on Ichigo's other side since the proposal. Orihime, Uyruu, and Chad also looked on in interest, but were much less intrusive than the shinigami.

"So, Ichigo, where's the ring?" the question came for Yuzu, surprisingly. "I get that you two are progressive and all-"

"Yeah, they're probably gonna hyphenate their names," Karin chimed in.

"But, you're too hung up on tradition not to get one."

"Yeah," Rangiku pouted, "No ring?"

Toushiro rolled his eyes and huffed, "It doesn't matter to me. I don't need one." He patted the envelope. Ichigo tilted his head, wondering exactly what he thought was inside. He had expected him to open it as soon as he got the chance, but instead he had held it tightly to his chest for the remainder of the night.

"Well... actually," Ichigo scratched the back of his neck, "There was a ring."

"Was?" Toushiro echoed.

"What happened to it?" Orihime asked.

"... I had an accident... well," he sighed, "Just open the envelope, Shiro."

Toushiro's eyebrow's dipped minutely as he undid the metal clasp and pulled out the contents. He frowned at what appeared to be pictures or scans of some sort for a minute before his eyes widened and he began to chuckle.

"What? What is it?" Yuzu asked peering around Toushiro's shoulder to see what was so funny. "Are those x-ray photographs?"

A puzzled look was exchanged from person to person.

"Olaf... the dog, ate the ring," Ichigo explained, "I only got it this morning, but the vet said he'd poop it out, so..."

Toushiro's chuckle deepened and his shoulders began to shake. He covered his mouth in an attempt to stop laughing, but it seemed like he couldn't. It was rare that Toushiro ever laughed this hard, sure he chuckled now and then, more so around Ichigo than anyone else. But this laugh, deep from the bottom of his stomach, bubbling over and causing his entire body to shake and tears to stream from his eyes, was one that even Ichigo had only seen once or twice before. Rangiku snapped out her phone and was recording him none too discreetly. Toushiro was too far gone to care. He clung onto Ichigo's elbow to keep from falling over.

"Seriously, Ichigo?" Rukia asked, shaking her head with a grin. "This would only happen to you. How did he even get it? Didn't you put it somewhere safe?"

"I thought I did," he muttered, "but the cat-" Toushiro began to laugh even louder, Ichigo sent him a withering glance, but he was in too much of a good mood to mean it. "The cat knocked it down."

Hope you guys enjoyed it!

Olaf and Ellie really want you to leave a review :)

-Mymomomo