Chapter 4

I would like you all to give a big round of applause to *drum roll* Krosso Heemskerk!!!

She is my new Beta and this chapter is dedicated to her because she made it not suck. YAY!!

Everyone who reviews this chapter get's a cookie.

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The Dungeon was a bar. It sat by a subway station and under a small secondhand dress store. All there was for an entrance was a door and a set of stairs that led to the basement of the dress shop. Inside sat an array of sordid characters drinking and watching the small TV that was stuck on ESPN. The place smelled of stale cigarette smoke and vomit.

Ichigo saw Ishida at a back table, sipping a bottle of ale while bobbing his head to the music that thrummed though his cheap MP3 player. When Ichigo sat across from him he did not seem overly surprised which meant Nnoitra told him about his earlier visit.

"Hey."

"Hey."

Ishida removed his headphones and tucked them into his jacket pocket.

"So what's up?" he asked.

"Uh...not much," Ichigo answered, a little unsure of himself. Why the hell was he so nervous?! "How 'bout you?"

"I'm doing as well as can be."

"That's good."

The two sat in companionable silence. Ichigo clicked his tongue as he absentmindedly swirled his high school class ring around his finger. Ishida watched the nervous man a moment before asking "Would you like a drink? You don't need an ID here."

"Sure." Ishida motioned for the bar tender to get them another round.

"Why are you here, Ichigo?" Ishida inquired once the beer had been set in front of him. It was not everyday a young man came to just chat with the prostitute he had almost lost his virginity to.

"I…I can't stop thinking about it, what you told me about your life. I want to help you, Ishida, in whatever way I can."

The prostitute blinked.

"I don't think you know what you're saying, Ichigo."

"But…"

"Ichigo, I'm a drug addict and belong to a psychopath. I screwed up my life. It's nice of you to offer, but I think it would be better for your sake if you didn't get involved." Ishida stood. "It was nice seeing you again." He walked towards the exit and up The Dungeon's steps to the outside world. Night had fallen on the city. He headed toward the subway entrance.

"Hey!" called an angry voice. Ishida turned to see one of his regular clients swaggering down the street towards him. There was a smear of cocaine below his nose.

"I'm not on duty tonight, Szayel." Ishida made to walk down the subway steps when a strong hand gripped him and pulled. He found himself in the unwanted grasp of the creepy man. Whiskey breath made him wrinkle his nose.

"How 'bout jus' a kiss then? A kiss for ya ol' buddy."

"You're not my buddy, Szayel." Ishida attempted to pull away but his arms were securely pinned to his sides. "Nnoitra's gonna kill you if you lay a hand on me," threatened Ishida.

"Who says I'll let you live long enough to tell 'im"

"How 'bout me?" Ichigo's fist smashed into Szayel's skull, throwing the drunk to the ground. Ishida grabbed his arm and pulled the college student into the subway. Ichigo instinctively ducked when he heard swearing and a gun shot go off. The two men leapt the gate and jumped on the train, ignoring the shouts from the security guard.

The train was mostly empty. An older woman and her daughter glanced up as they sat down across from them.

"Thanks," said Ishida.

"Don't mention it. So what now?"

"I'll call Nnoitra, tell him what happened. You can stay at my place for a while. Syazel might come after us."

Ichigo nodded as they plunged into the darkness of the tunnel.

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Ishida had a small apartment in Brooklyn. It was only three rooms: a toilet, a very small bedroom, and a living room/kitchen that was taken up mostly by a couch and TV.

"Have a seat. You hungry?" Ishida asked.

"I'm fine," Ichigo lied. He slumped into the couch and rested his face in his hands. Ishida called Nnoitra and told him what happened. He skillfully left out Ichigo's and his conversation before the fight. Rubbing his eyes tiredly, he sat down next to Ichigo and closed the cell phone. Ishida turned on the TV. Leno was chatting to some celebrity about her latest movie success.

"Ya know, this is the first time someone other than Nnoitra has sat on this couch," said Ishida.

"You should come visit my dorm sometime."

"Why?"

Ichigo shrugged. "I feel like you and my roommates would get along."

"What are your roommates like?"

"One is an albino emo and the other's a blue-haired, loud, masochist," described Ichigo.

"And how would we get along?" asked Ishida, raising an eyebrow in his direction.

"We're all misfits." Ishida pondered this before nodding.

They talked about Ichigo's past. He had grown up in a small town in upstate New York on the Massachusett border. His best friend was a mammoth called Chad. He and his family had moved up from Mexico when Ichigo was ten. He recalled how Chad barely spoke English when they had first met.

Ichigo's father was a doctor that enjoyed tackling him, and he had two younger sisters.

"What about your mom?" asked Ishida.

"She died a long time ago," Ichigo answered a little mournfully.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. She was a great mom," the red-head reminisced. "We were in the car coming home from my soccer practice. It was raining and an older woman lost control when she hit ice. We got into a crash that sent our car tumbling over the embankment. I don't remember much after that. I woke up a few days later with a broken leg and concussion to find out she hadn't survived."

"My mom got breast cancer when I was three," mentioned Ishida. The two men found comfort in having found someone that understood.

"So what music were you listening to when I came to the bar?" asked Ichigo, breaking their respectful quiet.

"Ever heard of Barenaked Ladies?"

"No." Ishida pulled out his MP3 player and fiddled with it before handing the headphones to Ichigo. He smiled as the alternative rock blasted into his ears.

"This is really cool."

"You wanna borrow the CD?" offered Ishida. Ichigo looked up at the sincerity in Ishida's eyes. You only lent your things to friends and people you hoped to see again.

"I'd like that," he answered.

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Ichigo woke up on the couch. His muddled mind briefly wondered where he was before memories from the day before came flooding back. He wearily got up to go to the bathroom. On the way he glanced into the bedroom. It was still early, and Ishida was curled up under the covers of his bed. Ichigo stared at the beautiful face that was completely tranquil in sleep. Warmth settled in his stomach and his heart started to flutter. Shaking his head, Ichigo slipped into the bathroom. When he emerged slightly damp from a shower, Ishida was at the stove.

"How do you like your eggs?" asked the bespectacled young man.

"However."

"Scrambled it is. You drink coffee?"

"Nah. What time is it?"

"8:30ish." Ishida handed him a plate of eggs. His own had a generous glob of ketchup on it.

"You eat ketchup with your eggs?" Ichigo stuck out his tongue in a classic 'yuck' look. Ishida grinned and took a bite. "I eat ketchup with my eggs any style," he said laughing at Ichigo's grimace.

After breakfast, Ishida walked Ichigo to the subway.

"I'll see you later," said Ishida giving him a quick wave and turning to head back to his apartment.

"Hey…uh, did you wanna hang out again next Thursday?" Ichigo asked sheepishly.

"Yeah, um, I'll give you my number." They traded phones and added themselves into contacts.

"Bye!" The orange hair disappeared into the subway.

Ishida was starting to twitch nervously. He was somewhat glad Ichigo had left early. He didn't know how long he could have gone without a hit. He went back up into his apartment and dug into one of his kitchen drawers, finally finding the syringe Nnoitra had given him last night. Hands shaking from his body's anticipation to get the substance, he pulled the needle out and stuck it into his left arm.

He felt a rush of euphoria as the drug quickly spread through his veins. As his high lessened, he felt the familiar feeling of warm sleepiness take over. Slumping into the couch, he let the drug take him on a roller coaster ride that he hated and needed at the same time.

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Ichigo fidgeted in his seat impatiently. Only another hour or so and he would get to see Ishida.

The class ended and he bolted from the classroom. Ulquiorra and Grimmjow were still in class, so he put on Barenaked Ladies and let the music blast. Ichigo put on a new shirt and some cologne. He grabbed a comb he hardly ever used and began unsuccessfully to get his hair to behave.

"Hey Ichigoooo!" shouted Grimmjow as he slammed open the door. "Nice music. I can hear it all the way down the hall." The blue-haired man threw his signature 1970s Levi jacket against a chair before flopping onto his bed. He wrinkled his nose and glanced over to see Ichigo examining himself in the mirror.

"Are you wearing cologne?" Grimmjow said disbelievingly.

"Yup." Ichigo shrugged.

"You coming with us to the Halo party in the dorm next door. They're supposed to be setting up like five teams of ten. It's gonna be intense!"

"Can't. I have plans," Ichigo informed him.

"Doing what?"

Ichigo grappled with a quick lie. He didn't want Grimmjow to know he was going out with a prostitute, and, on top of that, the one he bought him a few weeks ago. Since Ishida was on his mind, he let the first thing he thought of fall from his lips.

"Sewing club."

"SEWING CLUB!! What the fuck Ichigo?! I knew you were bi, but not that kind of bi." His roommate stared at him. Suddenly, Grimm's eyes lit up as the light bulb turned on above his head.

"So who's the girl?" he asked.

"What?"

"You're wearing cologne and going to sewing club, so who's the girl in sewing you're trying to snag?"

"Oh…ah….no one," Ichigo replied, playing along with Grimm's assumption.

Ichigo left quickly before Grimm could get anymore ideas in his head. The college student didn't notice it, but there was a new bounce to his step. He had a warm smile threatening to spread at the corners of his lips. He dialed Ishida's number.

"Hello," Ichigo heard through the cell phone. He could instantly tell that Ishida's voice sounded slow and tired.

"You okay?"

"Yeah…yeah…fine. Listen could you come in like an hour from now?" Ishida pleaded. Ichigo got an idea of what the other was doing.

"I'll be over soon."

Ishida heard the click of the phone as Ichigo hung up. Fuck, he thought. He had not wanted Ichigo to see him like this. Maybe he could get out before Ichigo got here. That idea was short lived as the depressant in his system kept him rooted to the couch.

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The ride on the train seemed longer than usual, and he practically ran to Ishida's apartment. He knocked before entering. The bedroom door was shut and there was an empty needle sitting on the kitchen counter.

Ichigo opened the bedroom door to see Ishida slumped against the wall. He looked up at the intruder with bleary bloodshot eyes.

"I didn' wan' you ta see me like this," Ishida told him as Ichigo knelt down. He took Ishida's arm. Tiny puncture wounds, both old and new, decorated the pale skin. Ichigo knew Ishida had said he was an addict, but now that he saw it he felt his stomach sink.

"I missed you," admitted Ishida making Ichigo look up from his arm.

"I missed you too." He smoothed away a strand of hair. Seeing Ishida look like this made the reality of what a friendship with Ishida was. It was a constant struggle against addiction.

"I'm gonna help you stop, Ishida. I promise."