"You dropped me!" Soi Fon cried.
"You kissed me!" Adam retorted.
He was glad for something to do to get his mind off the fact that once again, she was in his arms and they were closer than ever. By some miracle, she'd managed to catch herself, only spraining her ankle in the process. The pain hadn't stopped her from bossing him around. She'd wanted to go to Urahara's. He'd taken her to his place instead, now dropping her on the couch. She was holding back words as he kneeled in front of her, studying her ankle.
"Ha! I was right, a sprain," he gloated.
She glared but said nothing. He couldn't blame her. If he'd sprained his ankle, he'd be a little pissy himself.
"You still owe me an explanation," she pointed out.
Adam froze. He'd wanted to avoid it, hoping she'd be a little distracted. No such luck, apparently. She was looking around, probably wondering how someone who'd recently been a Forbidden Child managed to snag a penthouse of such awesome caliber. He sighed, his shoulders heaving with the action.
"There was a time, when I was still a Forbidden Child, I ran away. I got pretty far when Jophiel appeared before me. Jophiel, he explained some things to me. I was his son. I was half angel but couldn't use that part of me so long as I was what I was. He tried to cure me, in the field."
Adam stopped, his grip on her ankle tightening a bit. It hurt a little but she kept her mouth shut.
"Yami came along, stopped him, saved me. When he realized he couldn't heal me of said taint, he swore to watch over me and then sealed himself away in my guitar, giving me orders not to free him until the end was near. And I didn't free him until the time before the last time we saw each other."
He dropped her ankle, standing.
"I thought that being free of the venom meant I'd be going with him but that wasn't the case. He did influence some of his wards to give me this place," Adam explained, waving at the house around them.
His gesture was dismissive, as if it wasn't enough.
"I haven't seen him in a while," he said. "If he'd given me an explanation, then maybe it would sit better with me. But he just abandoned me."
Soi Fon listened to him. He was like her. This Jophiel, they were close, if Adam's reaction was any indication. What he was feeling was how she'd felt when Yoruichi had left her. Soi Fon rose.
"Adam," she began.
He whirled on her.
"You. Sit," he ordered.
Her face went red.
"I am a captain!" she objected.
"Not up in here!" Adam retorted. "Now you will sit and rest that ankle or I will make you!"
She had no fear of him so she kept standing, paying him no mind even as he drew closer. Heck, she even smirked, looking up at him. He didn't tower over her but he was tall enough.
"What are you going to do?" she asked.
"Maybe I'll kiss you again," he threatened.
"Go ahead," she challenged.
Adam stooped a little, stopping inches from her face. Their eyes were locked.
"Lead me not into temptation," Adam mumbled.
Slowly, he backed away. Soi Fon was surprised to find herself disappointed.
"If you can walk on it, you should go," Adam suggested, eyes focused away from her.
"What really happened to your guitar?" she asked.
He didn't look at her.
"Angels don't fight. They don't need weapons. I may be a half blooded one, but maybe, it's enough."
His words surprised her but she said nothing, choosing instead to head for the door. As she opened it, she paused.
"Sometimes, no matter how much you want to be with someone, there's no way for you to join them," she said.
Adam didn't look at her even then but she refused to be discouraged.
"And sometimes they don't want you with them."
That made him glance back at her.
"Doesn't mean you can't try," he retorted.
"Doesn't mean you won't be disappointed," was what she said, leaving before he could argue any further.
"Hey, you're back!" Yami greeted.
Soi Fon ignored her, tugging off the boots she'd been wearing in her gegai form. She was exhausted and felt emotionally drained on top of it all.
"Everyone else is out," Yami reported as Soi Fon sat across from her.
Soi Fon eyed the girl. She'd blossomed now, showing far more emotion than she had before. She wasn't as showy with emotion as was the tenth squad's vice captain, but she was…different.
"I saw Adam," Soi Fon blurted.
Yami didn't seem surprised.
"I've seen him around too," she admitted. "I just left him alone."
"Why?" Soi Fon asked.
Yami shrugged.
"Adam's Adam. If he wanted people around him, he'd be here now," she said. "I can only assume that he intends to ignore us until whatever he's waiting for comes."
She gnawed on her lip.
"I know about Jophiel," Soi Fon admitted.
Yami shrugged.
"Adam may be part angel but he's part human. I've been inside Jophiel's head. Sealing himself in Adam's guitar, to stay nearby, it was all a pride thing," she said.
Soi Fon's mind flashed to Adam. Adam who was probably lazing around his apartment, waiting for a father who'd probably never come.
"Jophiel doesn't love Adam," Yami went on. "I don't think he ever did."
Soi Fon studied Yami.
"You knew all this but you let him wait for someone who has no intention of giving him what he wishes?"
"I won't hurt him by telling him that," Yami replied. "Adam's strong but his nothing-can-touch-me attitude is an act. I don't want to break his heart."
Adam stared out the window, watching the rain trickle down the glass. He was torn between sighing and passing out. The coffee table beneath him was comfortable. He leaned towards the latter. Of course, every time he closed his eyes, Soi Fon popped in to scold him. Which made him smirk and wish she was with him. And then his thoughts drifted to far more naughty places and he shook them away, standing. He missed it. His ability to see everything that lay ahead. Then he'd be able to see Jophiel. The angel, his own father, wouldn't just abandon him, would he? Save him, only to cast him aside? To leave him in a place where he had no one?
"Don't do this to me, father," he whispered.
It was why he hadn't gone to see Yami. He knew what she'd say. He knew she'd make him acknowledge his doubts. And he didn't want to. He wanted to live in the delusion for as long as possible. The knock on the door didn't surprise him and he sighed as it opened, letting in Yami. Why was her habit to appear when he thought of her?
"How long have you known where I was?" he asked.
"That depends. How long did you think I didn't know?"
There was her teasing. She sat beside him, silent now.
"Go ahead, say it," he ordered.
"Say what?" she asked.
Adam sighed.
"Are you telling me you came here because you suddenly felt some belated sibling bond?'
Yami shrugged.
"Perhaps I came to be supportive."
Adam looked at her. Truly looked as if he couldn't believe her words.
"The only time 'Yami' and 'supportive' are in the same sentence are when the words 'is not' is between them," Adam announced.
"I came because Soi Fon won't," Yami said. "Even she knows you're wasting your time. It has to be obvious to you."
Adam was silent, absorbing her words.
"Well?" Yami asked.
"What happened to being supportive?" Adam inquired.
"Stop running," Yami said. "Jophiel's not coming back. And the only reason you keep holding out for him is because you're afraid to be alone."
She stood.
"You count as a soul so there may be a place for you in the Soul Society. And Soi Fon goes home tomorrow. Make your choice," she ordered.
Their eyes met.
"An angel who was no father to you even before you became a Forbidden Child or a woman who bothered to remember your name."
She was waiting for his answer, staring down at him as if she couldn't believe he hadn't already answered. Adam kept his gaze focused on straight ahead.
"Goodbye Yami," was all he said.
She let out an exasperated sigh, stomping her foot but trying to pass it off as a footstep.
"I think I liked you better as the Watcher. You made decisions a lot faster then."
With that, she stormed out, slamming the door. Right on cue, a loud clap of thunder echoed across the sky, making Adam smile a bit. It seemed Yami had Mother Nature on her side.
He'd called her back. The Head Captain had ordered her back after a week off. Then again, he probably felt assured her head was clear after her report of how she dispatched the rest of the Forbidden Children. She'd taken pains to keep Adam's name out of the report while making sure not all the credit went to her. Despite that, she was excited to be returning to the Soul Society. It put space between herself and Urahara's bustling shop. How Yami managed to stand the place was a miracle in itself. Soi Fon cleared her thoughts, putting away the stack of clothes she used to clothe her gegai. She was content to shed the gegai for the night and sleep as she was, despite the fact that her captain's robes would be a mess of wrinkles in the morning. The storm outside had picked up momentum but she paid it no mind. Despite the noise of it, all was quiet, everyone having found another way to spend their late evening. She closed the draw, letting out a deep sigh. She no longer yearned for silence. It only made her retreat into her own thoughts which was dangerous territory because it involved Adam and this Jophiel. There relationship was probably not as intimate as the one she had shared with Lady Yoruichi but it was something she could relate to. She could not blame Adam for his dedication, though she could still hope that maybe he wouldn't waste his time yearning for a man who would never return.
"He's a fool, she sighed.
"Who is?"
The voice made her jump and she turned to find him. Water dripped onto the floor at his feet as he watched her.
"How long have you been there?" she demanded.
"Long enough," he said, dodging the question.
"Why are you here?" she asked.
"Yami stopped by. Few minutes ago. Annoyed me greatly. I think she's trying to set us up," he answered.
"I do hope she's not made you feel obligated to do anything," Soi Fon snapped.
She kept her eyes off him. This, she and he, couldn't happen. He was an angel's son, something that was probably off limits, having never been explored. And she was not going against orders. Against laws.
"How's your ankle?"
His words caught her off guard and she stole a glance at him. He had moved closer and she could feel his body heat.
"I don't want you to go back," he admitted.
"I have no choice," Soi Fon said.
A part of her brain was yelling at her, telling her to move away. To put some distance between them before things got out of her control. Adam leaned close and she lurched back.
"NO!" she hissed, throwing her hand up to ward him off.
Adam stared at her in surprise.
"Did I do something wrong?" he asked.
"This cannot happen!" she declared. "I'm a captain. I must be an example for my subordinates."
Adam sat back, saying nothing.
"As you wish," he said.
He sounded disappointed but didn't oversell it.
"Let's talk instead."
"I don't want to talk," Soi Fon declared.
Adam sighed.
"Why are you so intent on being difficult?" he asked.
"Why are you so intent on getting close to me? Why all of a sudden?" Soi Fon demanded to know.
"If I answered that honestly, I'd be breaking the fourth wall," Adam replied.
Soi Fon's hands tightened into fists.
"Why can you never give me an answer I want?" she asked.
"Because I'm Adam. And I was the Watcher. And I'm not anymore. It's the equivalent of being blind," he explained.
Soi Fon turned away.
"Excuses. That's all you have," she snapped as she rose to her feet. "Get out."
Adam rose as well.
"As you wish."
His tone was cold which told her that anger motivated his words as he turned away from her.
"You can visit," she offered. "In the Soul Society."
"Why?" Adam asked.
"You might like it," she started. "And-"
"Excuses. They're all you have. The true insult is that you don't even have the decency to tell me the real reason you even want me to visit."
He opened the door.
"Rest assured, this will be the last time we see each other."
With that, he was gone, vanishing into the night, leaving her feeling empty and alone.