Most of you have probably seen that I've continued this as another story. It's a rougher rated 'M' story 'I, Myself and Me' which features Kon, Ichigo and Hichigo. I like the three of them together, but I'm going to continue this one with just Kon and Ichigo (no inner hollow at all) and keep it light and fluffy. Think of it as a single starting point with two alternate story lines.

Raicheru

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I, Myself and Me- Chapter 1- Let me Help You

By: Raicheru

Rated: T (And I'll do my best to keep it that way. These two are better when they're sweet and fluffy.)

Pairing: Kon x Ichigo

Kon didn't bother to look up from his book when he heard the soft knock on the window. He could imagine Ichigo glaring at him from the other side of the glass. It hadn't been locked when he left. Serves the bastard right to be left outside all night, Kon thought. After unceremoniously being shoved into the teenager's body he was left to himself with the warning that he wasn't to do anything while the soul reaper was gone. The Mod soul had had enough. He refused to be pushed around.

Several quiet minutes passed before Kon looked up to see if Ichigo was still there. What he saw had him jumping out of the desk chair and racing to the window. Fumbling with the lock, he pulled the window open and caught Ichigo before he fell to the floor.

"Holy crap, what happened?" The soul reaper robes were ripped nearly beyond recognition. Orange hair was matted and blood dripped steadily from a hidden scalp wound.

"Doesn't matter. I got 'em." Ichigo pulled away from Kon. Resting the tip of his Zanpaku-to on the floor, he leaned against it for a moment. He looked around the room as if trying to find something.

"Are you okay?" Kon, who had been willing to leave the him outside all night a minute before, suddenly wanted nothing more than to help. But he knew Ichigo wouldn't want that. He hated relying on anyone. Ichigo reached for the badge that would knock Kon's soul pill from his current body. He frowned at the hand that grasped his wrist firmly and took it away from him. He peered up through disheveled bangs.

"Kon, what are you. . ?"

"Just wait a minute. You're a mess. Do you really want to get back into your body and feel every wound all over again?" Ichigo considered it for a moment.

"I'm fine."

"And I'm a captain in the Thirteen Court Guard. Get a grip." He put one of Ichigo's arms across his own shoulders and took the sword from him. Looking for a place to put it, he compromised by leaning it against the end of the bed. "Let's get you cleaned up." He led a surprisingly docile Ichigo towards the bathroom.

"What about. . ."

"Your dad's at a conference, and the girls are a at friend's house remember? There's no one else here right now, so don't worry about it."

"Oh, alright," Ichigo murmured. Kon had expected to have to fight Ichigo to get him to go along. His easy surrender was worrisome. I wonder if I should take him to that strange guy with the hat. As if hearing Kon's thoughts, Ichigo stood a little straighter as they headed down the hall.

Pushing the door open with his foot, Kon set Ichigo down and ran a hot bath. When he turned and reached for the white cloth belt, Ichigo slapped his hands away.

"I can do it myself. Go away." Kon immediately felt relieved when he saw the irritable scowl. Ichigo didn't seem to be as badly hurt as he thought. He'd been worried that he'd had some sort of concussion.

"No." Ichigo looked up and frowned at the mod soul that was wearing his body.

"What?"

"I'm tired of being pushed around."

"Kon, I'm too tired to fight with you right now. Just leave me alone." Ichigo stood and moved to push Kon out the door.

"Well that's just too damn bad." Identical sets of orange eyebrows rose in mirrored expressions of surprise. Kon hadn't really meant to say it like that, and Ichigo didn't expect to hear it. Kon took a deep breath and continued before he lost his resolve. "I mean it. You look like crap, and you're barely standing. Drop the damned 'I'm stronger than everybody and I can take care of myself' attitude. I'm taking care of you even if I have to beat you senseless to do it."

Ichigo just stared. Kon had never been shy about sharing his thoughts before, but this was different. They held each other's gaze for a few moments. Kon looked away first. Ichigo's protest died on his lips as he heard the soft whisper.

"Please, let me help you." At a loss for words, Ichigo felt the weight of fatigue pulling him. He leaned back against the wall and sighed.

"Okay." Kon looked back up in surprise. Part of him hadn't really expected to win. But looking closer, he could see how hurt and tired Ichigo was. It constantly amazed Kon how far Ichigo would go to protect what he cared about. That he was suddenly allowed to help the one who went out of his way to help others pleased him greatly. His musings were cut short by the wave of warm water that sloshed over his bare feet as the tub overflowed.

"Crap!" He scrambled to turn off the tap and grabbed some extra towels to soak up the worst of the flood.

"Nice move dumbass." Kon just smiled. The insult held no malice since the one giving it was fighting not to laugh.

"Whatever." He went back to help peel off the ruined black robes and let them drop in a heap. Ichigo blushed suddenly realizing he was naked in the same room with another boy even if technically both bodies were his own. It seemed too intimate somehow. "Relax. I've seen it all before. Literally." Ichigo frowned and then climbed into the tub.

"Really. And what have you been doing when I'm not around?" Kon just grinned in response. "Tch. Right now I really don't care." The hot water felt good on his sore muscles.

"None of these seem to be too bad," Kon muttered as he examined a few wounds closely.

"Nah. It looked worse than it was. I'm mostly just tired." Ichigo submerged for a moment and surfaced again causing ripples on the water's surface. Closing his eyes, he lay back and let the heat soak in. They sat in silence for a while with only the occasional sound of dripping water from the flooded tub. Ichigo opened an eye slightly as he felt Kon rub soap into his hair and start massaging his scalp, but he didn't say anything. It was kind of nice. He'd been pushing everyone away for so long, he'd forgotten what it felt like to be taken care of. He drifted pleasantly.

Long past when his fingers and toes wrinkled in the water, Ichigo felt a hand shake his shoulder. "Wake up Ichigo. Your bed'll be a lot more comfortable." Ichigo blinked sleepily and got out of the tub, stepping into the towel Kon held out for him. Fumbling it around his waist, he took another and started rubbing his hair dry.

"Hey Kon." Ichigo paused and turned to watch the other boy drain the tub and clean up the last of the spilled water. "Thanks." Kon stood drying his own hands.

"Your welcome." They stared at each other for a moment letting the quiet linger into an awkward silence. Kon scratched his head nonchalantly. "Yeah well, if you'd stuffed me back into that plush body, you'd have done everything yourself, I'd be a sopping heap on the floor and you probably would have drowned. Then where would we be?"

A damp towel hit him in the face.

Ichigo wandered back to his room with Kon trailing behind him. He was so damn tired. The bath had helped, but now all he wanted to do was sleep. Hardly noticing Kon's presence, he pulled on a pair of pajama bottoms and a clean tank. It occurred to Kon that Ichigo seemed to have forgotten that he was still in his Konpaku body, but he was in no hurry to remind him. Instead, he watched the weary teenager fall gracelessly into bed and bury his head in the pillow turning his face to the wall. He seemed to have forgotten that the mod soul was still in the room with him.

Taking advantage of that but careful not to disrupt the mood, Kon knelt down on the edge of the bed. Ichigo felt the mattress dip and shifted a little to look back over his shoulder. They stared at each other quietly for a moment. Kon could see the realization dawn in the warm brown eyes that something wasn't quite normal. But instead of reaching for his badge, Ichigo huffed out a mildly irritated sigh and snuggled back down into the mattress.

Kon let out the breath he hadn't realized that he'd been holding. Apparently it would be too much effort to switch bodies. Good enough. Reaching out a tentative hand, Kon started to gently rub the muscles of Ichigo's shoulders.

"Hnnn. Now what're you doing?" The fatigue slurred words were barely audible. Since his hands had yet to be slapped away, Kon continued.

"Just relax,"

"Don't get any ideas." Kon couldn't help chuckling.

"Like what?"

"You know. . .ideas." He waved a hand vaguely in Kon's direction. "Just because I haven't kicked you out of my body yet, doesn't mean I've forgottenhmmmmm. . ." The complaint degenerated into a groan as Kon's fingers dug into the muscles along the length of Ichigo's spine.

"You were saying?"

"Mnnn. Nothing. Just. . want. . .to sleep. ." Ichigo's words trailed off as his consciousness faded into a deep sleep. Kon finished by trailing his fingers slowly down, stopping at the bottom edge of the tank top. He had a sudden urge to go lower, but he knew that would be taking things too far. For now. The last thought startled him so much he nearly snatched his hands away completely.

But sitting there he realized that he'd never taken the time to look at Ichigo closely. His eyes roamed over the curves of Ichigo's back and shoulders. Damp orange spikes clean from the bath. He could see the boy's profile where his face lay against the pillow, his lips parted slightly. Breaths deep and even. He really was quite beautiful. Kon smirked knowing that Ichigo would be irritated and mildly insulted if he ever said so.

Stripping down to his boxers, he slid under the covers next to Ichigo. He was so deeply asleep that he didn't react at all when Kon snuggled up behind him. It felt so good to be this close to another person. As he drifted off to sleep himself, he couldn't help hoping that this wouldn't be the last time he was allowed to do this.