All In The Eyes Of A Boy
Warning: Contains yaoi, suggestive themes, language, possible violence, possible lemon(s), possible drug and alcohol usage, AU, OCs, OOC. Rating may change later.
This is the sequel to my first story, "Don't ask, Don't Tell". If you haven't already read it, you might not really understand what is going on.
*Spoiler to Don't Ask, Don't Tell* Basically what happens in the first story is that Chad and Ichigo are partners with three foster children: Ken'Ichi (12), Minoru (10), and Tetsuya (2). Ken'Ichi finds out that Chad had been having an affair with a bartender named Nova for two years. After a series of events, Ken'Ichi eventually tells Ichigo about the affair and Ichigo and Chad separate.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach
Please enjoy!
"Minoru, wake up!" Ichigo said.
"..."
"Minoru wake up!" Ichigo shouted, getting slightly impatient.
"..."
"Minoru, wake up now!" Ichigo shouted, growing increasingly impatient with his son and his laziness.
"..."
"GODDAMMIT, MINORU! GET YOUR ASS READY FOR SCHOOL!!" Ichigo shouted as he stood in the doorway of his sons' small and messy bedroom. The fourth attempt at waking up the 11- year old boy apparently succeeded, as Minoru finally woke up with a jolt and scrambled out of bed, only to remember that he slept on the top of a bunk bed and instead fell to the floor and landed on his side with a hard THUD with the comforter falling right behind him. Minoru winced in pain as he curled up on the floor in his comforter. Ichigo only smiled sympathetically at his slightly clumsy son and folded his arms.
"You alright?" Ichigo asked, half smirking.
"Yeah, I guess or whatever." Minoru blandly responded, slowly standing up and wrapping the comforter around his body like an oversized coat.
Ichigo looked around the room. A pig's den was cleaner than this. There were dirty clothes piled on top of each other and the half eaten food was lying on the floor. It made Ichigo's stomach churn slightly.
"This room is disgusting to look at. When are you gonna clean it?"
"I share the room with Ken'Ichi. How come this isn't bringing brought up with him?"
"I already told him about it. You need to clean this room."
Minoru rolled his eyes. "Whatever."
He went to a pile of dirty clothes and pulled his blue towel out from the bottom and walked out of the room with his blanket still covering his body like a cloak. Minoru suddenly remembered what he was supposed to have told Ichigo the previous night and rushed back to the room.
"Daddy, Dad is taking me to a baseball game tonight, so after school, I'll just take the bus over to-"
"What? Wait a minute. You can't go." Ichigo interrupted.
"What?!" Minoru angrily said. "Why not?"
"Because Grimmjow is coming over for dinner tonight." Ichigo replied, blushing slightly as he looked away. "I invited him earlier this morning."
"That's not fair, Dad!" Minoru replied. "Whenever something involves Dad, you always come up eith something to to at the last minute! You're ruining my life!"
"Baseball will always be there." Ichigo said in an almost dismissive chuckle.
"And so will Grimmjow." Minoru said in a huff as he walked back out the door. "Man this sucks."
Ichigo sighed at his son and looked at his watch. His eyes widened as he quickly made his way to Tetsuya's room. When he entered the 3- year old's bedroom, he saw the young toddler bouncing up and down on his bed. It was only recently that Tetsuya outgrew his baby crib and received a actual bed. Ichigo was a little concerned at first since he thought Tetsuya wouldn't want to sleep on a real bed, but was fairly surprised to see Tetsuya jumping up and down on the mattress the first night he got it.
"Dad!" Tetsuya happily shouted, holding out his small arms in-dictating for Ichigo to catch him. Ichigo smiled and picked the toddler up.
"Come on, its time for daycare, alright?" Ichigo said.
"Okay." Tetsuya said. "But I'm hungry."
Ichigo nodded and walked out of the room with Tetsuya. As Ichigo made his way to the kitchen with Tetsuya in hand, he overheard the cursing of a certain 13-year old boy who standing in front of the stove.
"Dammit!" Ken'Ichi shouted as he held his slightly burned fingers. He was bent over the stove and his face was scrunched up in pain. "I was about to make scrambled eggs. Or attempt to."
Ichigo looked at his eldest son with sympathy as he made his way to the refrigerator and let Tetsuya down. He opened the fridge and pulled out a bag of bread with salami and cheese slices and set them on the counter to make Tetsuya a sandwich. "I guess this would be a bad time to say that you guys are on your own for breakfast."
"And lunch and dinner and every meal after that." Ken'Ichi groaned as he opened the drawer and pulled out a box of bandages. "We count on you Ken. I count on you." Ichigo assured as he looked over his shoulder for a brief moment and resumed making Tetsuya a sandwich.
"And what a super job I'm doing." Ken'Ichi said in a sarcastic tone, wrapping the bandages around his burnt fingers.
"You are." Ichigo reassured his son as he picked up Tetsuya, who was happily enjoying his sandwich. "Look I gotta go or I'll be late for work and getting Tetsuya to daycare."
"Dad called again." Ken'Ichi said.
"How nice for him." Ichigo replied in a sarcastic tone as he rolled his eyes and headed out the kitchen with Tetsuya in hand.
Ken'Ichi sighed heavily. That was the first time Ichigo had used Chad in a sentence without any curse words. It had been a year since his father, Chad, moved out and Ichigo still stubbornly refused to even talk about him, let alone to him. Ever since Chad left, the flow of their once happy home had changed for the worst; dishes were piled in the sink, clothes were laying all over the house, and Ichigo began to work more hours at the hospital and the kids would be left to fend for themselves for almost everything, food included. However, not all hope was lost, as there was a very slight progression in Ichigo feelings toward Chad; whenever Chad would call, Ichigo would look at the caller I.D and not bother to pick up the phone. More recently, however, Ichigo would pick up and hang up the phone. So it wasn't really progress, but at least it was something different.
"Guess who's coming to dinner?" Minoru said as he waltzed into the kitchen area, fully dressed and ready for school.
Ken'Ichi rubbed his head, hoping it wouldn't be who he thought it was. "Please, don't tell me it's-"
"Yep, it is." Minoru interrupted. "Grimmjow."
Grimmjow. That name pricked Ken'Ichi like a thorn puncturing through the most soft and delicate skin. In order to take his mind off of a certain someone (although he would never admit it), Ichigo began dating a mechanic by the name of Grimmjow Jeagerjaques after he fixed Ichigo's car one time when it broke down on the freeway a few months back. They had only known the man for five months, but from the moment they first saw him, they knew he was trouble. That creepy grin, disgusting teal hair, sadistic personality, the aura he would bring whenever he would walk into the room, everything about him they boys hated. They had no idea what Ichigo saw in that man, and they hoped that the man was just a rebound.
"How worried should I be?" Minoru said. "Is this some sort of strange rebound phase or what?"
"I guess so." Ken'Ichi said. "It's just a weird phase he's going through. We just need to be patient."
"Whatever." Minoru groaned as he rolled his eyes and left the kitchen area for the front door.
As the rowdy class were occupied throwing paper balls at each other, Ken'Ichi and Dan were sitting on the desk of their homeroom, waiting for class to start while eating potato chips with their other friends, Hiyori and Lilynette.
"So, Kurosaki-san still isn't coming to his senses, I presume?" Dan asked, taking a bite of a single chip.
"Nope." Ken'Ichi replied.
"I don't get it." Hiyori said. "How could Kurosaki-san replace Sado-san with some douchebag so quickly?"
"I don't know." Ken'Ichi replied. "It's just irresponsible the way he's acting. Ever since he kicked my Dad out, Daddy's been a little man-crazy. Bringing home random men from all four corners for almost a year. He's only known Grimmjow for five months and he acts as if my Dad never even existed."
"Cut Kurosaki-san some slack." Dan said as he took another bite of his potato chips. "He got his heart ripped out."
Ken'Ichishot Dan a warning glare and Dan silently apologized.
"Maybe he's trying to fill that void in his life right now with the next best thing." Lilynette said. "Its perfectly normal for someone going through a separation. Like a fat guy who's on a diet and uses carrots to replace chocolate pudding or whatever fatty foods fat people eat."
Ken'Ichi, Dan, and Hiyori all simply stared at her.
"What?! My father, Starrk, is a therapist and nutritionist!" Lilynette said. "It's the curse of being a therapist/nutritionist's daughter! Bad analogy or whatever, sorry!"
"After all, love the one your with when you can't be with the one you love." Hiyori added.
"Whatever man." Ken'Ichi said. "Either way, Grimmjow is just a rebound and rebounds never work out."
"And besides, Kurosaki-san doesn't 'love' him." Dan pointed said. "He's just looking for some good sex. Lover and sex partners: two different things."
Dan's remark was met with a book bag that met with his head. Dan fall off the desk and onto the floor and dropped the bag of chips.
"Ow! What the hell, Ken'Ichi?!" Dan asked, holding his head in pain.
"Actually, that was me." Hiyori corrected while holding the green book bag that was the demise for the blonde-haired boy.
The rowdy class was calmed down as Amegai-san walked into the room. The students all stopped what they were doing and took a seat in their seats. Ken'Ichi, Hiyori, and Lilynette and got off the desks and sat on the chairs while Dan hid the bag of chips in his book bag and sat down as well.
"Class, we have a new student today." Amegai-san said. "Toshiro-kun, you may come in now."
Everyone's head turned towards the door as they watched a young man step through the doorstep. Ken'Ichi's eyes were instantly locked on him. The boy had tan skin with glowed with luminescence when the sun's rays captured him. His eyes flashed a radiant color of turquoise, and his scowl had Ken'Ichi think of his father, Ichigo. His most distinct feature, however, was his hair, which was snowflake white; a brilliant contrast to his skin.
Dan leaned over next to Ken'Ichi to whisper to him. "And I thought Kurosaki-san's hair color was weird."
"Yeah and he also gives Kurosaki-san's scowl a run for its money." Lilynette whispered.
Ken'Ichi shushed at the two of them as Toshiro walked over next to Amegai-san and began to speak.
"My name is Hitsugaya Toshiro." Toshiro said flatly and unenthusiastic.
Hiyori rolled her eyes and leaned in close to Ken'Ichi. "Great. Another emo freak."
"Ken'Ichi- kun? Can you please stand up?" Amegai-san asked. Ken'Ichi nodded and stood up from his desk.
"Toshiro-kun, the seat next to Ken'Ichi-kun is yours." Amegai said as Ken'Ichi sat back down. Toshiro nodded and walked over to the empty chair that stood next to Ken'Ichi and sat down. When the two boys' eyes met for a brief second, Ken'Ichi awkwardly moved his eyes back to the front of the classroom. However, out of the corner of his eye, he could see that Toshiro was smiling as he looked away as well. Why was that?
Minoru's keys unlocked the door lock to his apartment and with a twist of the doorknob, the 11- year old waltzed into his home after another long day at school. When he put down his book bag and unzipped it to pull out his homework, he stopped abruptly when he heard the sound of lips smacking against each other. He quietly made his way to the kitchen area only to find his father, Ichigo's lips locked with a certain teal-haired man. Minoru felt like gagging. Ichigo's hands were wrapped around Grimmjow's neck while Grimmjow had his arms wrapped around Ichigo's waist as he pinned him next to the stove.
Minoru scowled at the sight and walked back to the door. He opened the door and closed it loudly.
"I'm home!" Minoru shouted.
"In here!" Ichigo said. Minoru walked back to the kitchen area and saw the two now sitting down.
"Hey Minoru, say hi to Grimmjow." Ichigo said.
"Hey man." Grimmjow said, flashing his infamous creepy psychotic grin. Minoru stared angrily at him. There was something about that weird smile that made Minoru want to vomit. Whenever Grimmjow smiled like that, Minoru would feel as if the man had just committed a murder. Or was about to.
Minoru responded to Grimmjow with the suck of his teeth, the roll of his eyes and the footsteps that trailed off to the hallway.
Ichigo growled in frustration and anger and stood up from his chair.
"MINORU, GET BACK HERE AND I MEAN NOW!" Ichigo shouted.
After a few minutes of silence, Ichigo heard footsteps fill the area as Minoru walked back to the kitchen area.
"What?" Minoru rudely asked.
Ichigo glared at the boy briefly before he sat back down with his arms crossed.
"Fine. Get out of this kitchen." Ichigo dismissively smirked, his voice like stone. Minoru did as he was told walked away.
Ichigo buried his face in his hands in frustration. "I'm sorry. I'm so embarrassed. I swear, if he only got to know you better-"
"It's okay." Grimmjow said, putting his hand on his Ichigo's leg. "I was 11 with a step-father too."
Ichigo smiled and leaned in and kissed Grimmjow softly on the lips.
"Go talk to him." Grimmjow suggested.
Ichigo nodded and walked out of the kitchen and to Minoru's room. He knocked on the door three times before he heard the sound of the door unlock. Ichigo slowly turned the doorknob and opened the doorknob. Minoru was sitting in his beanie bag chair watching TV and had his back to Ichigo, although he was well aware Ichigo was in the room.
"So, how was school?" Ichigo said as he sat down on the bottom bunk bed.
"Fine."
"Where's Ken'Ichi?"
"On a date with his girlfriend, Loly. Where's Tetsuya?"
"Asleep in his room." Ichigo inhaled almost absent-minded before he continued. "You know, the bathroom? I wanted it cleaned. I told you about it four days ago."
"You can just hire people to do that. Or tell Ken'Ichi. Or Grimmjow."
"No, son. I asked you."
"... This isn't even about the bathroom, isn't it?" Minoru said, turning his twisting his neck to look at his father.
"Well Minoru, I don't really give a shit what you think this is about!" Ichigo's voice raised in anger as he stood up. "I just want you to do the things I ask of you!"
Minoru didn't respond.
"And one more thing. Did you have to be rude to Grimmjow?!"
"Man, who gives a shit about him?!" Minoru shouted as he stood up from his beanie bag chair and spun around to face his father, furious glares clashing with each other.
"Hey I do!!" Ichigo shouted. "What's your problem?!"
Minoru didn't respond. He held his glare at his father briefly before he sighed in defeat.
"I know you've upset with me for kicking your father out, and that gives you some sort of charge to challenge me, but I'm still your father and better start treating me like it." Ichigo warned as he headed to the door and opened.
"I wish Dad was here." Minoru muttered under his breath.
"No you don't." Ichigo said as he walked out of the room and shut the door behind him.
"This blows." Minoru said as he slumped back into his beanie bag chair. "You and dad are my parents; Grimmjow will never be."
I feel kinda bad for Minoru. Poor guy misses Chad. Please read and review and chapter 2 will be up soon!