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Chapter Seven: Tropical Colada

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Ulquiorra finished bathing just in time for dinner; he was already zipping up his jacket when three consecutive knocks came from a door a bit way off behind the TV set, which was directly opposite his bed. As he stood up to answer it, though, another series of knocks came, this time from a door that he'd never noticed before, located to the right side of the wall behind his bed.

Utterly confused, the lithe man answered the door beside the TV set first, opening it to find Nnoitra and Tesla waving at him from the adjoining room.

"Hey, Ulquiorra," the raven-haired man greeted as he stepped into the room without even waiting for an invitation from the owner.

The jade-eyed man's attention, however, was directed at the blonde. "I thought we had separate rooms?" he asked with a raised brow.

A faintest flush spread over Tesla's cheeks as he replied, "Well, I-I was just hanging around Nnoitra's room since I had nothing better to do… I find it quite lonely having a room all to oneself…"

"Right…" Ulquiorra replied as the mocha-eyed man stepped in and he closed the door behind him.

"What took you so long to open the door?" Cirucci's voice filled the room, and it didn't take the ebony-haired Ulquiorra two seconds to realize that she was the one knocking from the other door. It seems that Nnoitra had taken it upon himself to open the second adjoining door.

'So this room is between Cirucci's and Nnoitra's…' Ulquiorra noted as he went over to the woman.

"I'm sorry Cirucci, I was still dealing with Nnoitra and Tesla who came from the other side…" the jade-eyed man apologized.

"Well, whatever…" the amethyst-eyed woman replied with a casual wave of her hands, showing off her newly painted nails that had taken on a deep purple color. "I've checked with the management and here's our options for food: First, we have the room order but I doubt you guys would want that for dinner; Then, there's the Italian restaurant at the top floor but I hear that its quite costly; Next, is the Chinese cuisine on that ground floor restaurant; Last, is the resort's own buffet service… So what do you guys want?"

"Buffet." The three man said in unison.

Cirucci only rolled her eyes at her companions. 'Men…'

---

Dinner was an enjoyable treat since it appeared that the package that the Thunderwitch family had availed of had given them free meals during their whole stay. Naturally, all of them went back more than twice to the buffet table to sate their hungry selves.

Once they've raided the dessert table, the four friends merely sat back and relaxed. Their conversation turned to what they planned to do for the next couple of days.

"Well I for one want to go swimming…" Cirucci voiced out and nobody had any complaints to that so the swimming was immediately scheduled for the next day.

"Hey, hey, let's go trekking down that mountain side!" Nnoitra added in, looking very much excited.

"But it'll be covered in mud… and there'll be insects and that's just gross…" inky-haired Cirucci countered.

"We wouldn't be trekking all day, Cirucci…" Tesla replied in kind. "Let's say we'll go down the mountain side during the morning and then in the afternoon you can do whatever you want…"

"Well, I guess that's a fair deal…" the Thunderwitch heiress agreed thoughtfully.

"So what else do we have?" Nnoitra asked in general. "Ulquiorra, any suggestions?"

"Huh?" the jade-eyed man was caught in a bit of surprise at being questioned for stuff to do. "I don't know… anything's fine with me…"

A deadpanned expression came upon Nnoitra's face at this reply. "Seriously, we have got to get this kid out and about more often…" he said to the other two, Tesla and Cirucci only nodded fervently in agreement.

xxx

Wednesday afternoon…

They had just finished lunch at the Chinese restaurant and Ulquiorra could almost say that he was bloated. Their swimming plans yesterday were put on hold as a mighty rainstorm passed by, leaving them all stuck into their rooms. Thankfully, Tesla had brought a couple of DVDs to watch and they had spent a good part of yesterday watching suspense, comedy, and action movies.

This morning, the storm had let out, and they were able to pursue their trekking activity. Nnoitra led them down the mountain slope, using the one of the many stairways that looked as if they were carved from the mountainside itself. The earthy ground was slippery, and if it wasn't for the metal railings, they most probably would've slipped and fell down, all the way to the base of the mountain.

There were cleared paths through the tall trees, and they certainly took their time exploring the area. Ulquiorra showing the most interest as they went deeper into the forest. It was only when Cirucci complained of 'the hundredth bug bite' that she received did they go back up to the resort and had their lunch.

After eating, Cirucci had insisted that she'd waste the rest of her afternoon in the spa, leaving the three men free to do as they wish. Nnoitra just shrugged at this and went into the gym just beside the spa without so much as a word to the other two.

Ulquiorra and Tesla stared at each other for a few seconds.

Half a minute.

One minute.

A minute and ten seconds.

"Wanna go to the café?"

"…Sure."

---

Three and a half hours of drinking mocha frappes and watching over Tesla as he surfs the internet on his laptop with the free Wi-Fi access that the café gives was not the vacation that Ulquiorra had signed up for. So with a resigned excuse of going back to his room, the ebony-haired man left the blonde and set out.

As he was passing by the lobby, he found it awfully crowded. Hordes of people were circled around something that he couldn't see properly and bright flashes came from the group every other split-second. There were also at least three filming cameras and he could easily make out around a dozen people with IDs that read 'MEDIA' amongst the crowd.

Not giving any second thought to the noisy crowd, Ulquiorra shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket and proceeded to move out of the building, completely unaware of a pair of sapphire irises that had locked onto his form.

The sky outside was already fading from orange to black; he didn't need to check his watch to know that it was already around half-past five. Jade eyes scanned the surroundings, a cool breeze passed by and the sounds of chirruping crickets filled the air. Without even pausing to think, Ulquiorra allowed his feet to drag him around. He made his way past the resort grounds, looking back once to see if anyone was following him and upon finding none, he descended the steps of the very same stairway that Nnoitra had led them down just that morning.

The leaves rustled in the wind, and he felt much at ease. His problems seemed to be light-years away, he had nothing to worry about for now… Cirucci was right; vacation was a time for relaxation… Too immersed in his thoughts, Ulquiorra wasn't able to see the small patch of mud on the step, he placed his foot directly in its midst, realizing his mistake only when he was already sliding down the rest of the stairs.

How could he have been so reckless?

This, however, wasn't the time to be blaming himself. Ulquiorra instinctively crossed his arms in front of his face, shielding himself, if only a bit, from the rough and sharp edges of the rocks, roots and whatever things there were on the muddy forest ground. He didn't know how far he'd slid, the trees seemed to be the same everywhere he chanced a glance. The jade-eyed man had just thought of shouting for help when his foot got caught in something, making his whole body lurch forward. He landed face first onto the ground, his head colliding with some hard surface that felt like a smooth stone. His foot was still stuck in what could be an extended tree root and he felt his ankle twist when he crashed onto the ground. A numbing pain around his ankle was all the pale man could remember before everything turned black.

xxx

"Sir, one last question!" a mousy-haired woman called from the crowd, holding up a microphone.

"Okay, okay… Let's be done with it…" an electric-blue haired celebrated muttered as a dozen or more cameras flashed.

"Is it true that you're currently dating that Russian supermodel–"

"Hell no. I ain't interested in anybody so shut yer traps about it…" Sapphire eyes gleamed with impatience.

"I think that's enough… Thank you for coming here but Grimmjow needs his rest…" a chocolate-skinned woman stepped in front of the celebrity, the tone of her voice making it quite clear that the interview-session was over.

In a span of ten seconds, the area had cleared leaving only four people in the middle of the resort lobby.

"Geez, ambushed already and we haven't even checked in yet…" came the airy voice of Szayel Aporro as he straightened his shirt.

"Ah well, that's showbiz…" the stylist's older brother replied, dragging his trunk over to the reception desk. "Ah yes, five rooms please, reserved under Il Forte Granz…"

The receptionist had a furious blush on her cheeks as she got out the room keys and handed them to the blonde. Her voice was small as she spoke, "F-Fifth f-floor, Mr. Granz… S-Shall I call for a busboy to c-carry your luggage?"

"Ah yes, thank you…" Il Forte gave the girl a smile as he took the keys.

"Grimmjow where do you think you're going?" Stark's voice was crisp and it effectively brought the sapphire-eyed celebrity to a halt.

"Ju-Just gonna take a look around, Stark…" the innocent mien that Grimmjow put up did not deceive anyone.

"We've got a dinner meeting with the resort's managerial board at seven." Halibel informed the man in a flat tone.

"It's just quarter to six, Hali…" Grimmjow crossed his arms.

"Yes, it is just quarter to six but we have to be presentable when we meet up with them…" Szayel informed the celebrity.

"So what? It ain't gonna take us an hour to bathe and whatever shit you guys wanna do… There's just something I really have to see…"

The other four shot glances at each other, the looks on their faces saying 'Here he goes again…'.

Stark raked a hand through his wavy hair, the final decision was always up to him. "We'll give you thirty minutes to do your damn exploring… Il Forte, hand him his room keys. If you're not at your room by six-fifteen you do your own styling, understood?"

"Yeah, alright… Thanks a bunch, Stark!" Grimmjow was already halfway out the front doors before his statement was finished.

"What's with him?" Halibel turned her green eyes on the remaining three men.

Szayel, Il Forte and Stark merely shrugged.

Three busboys arrived and the quartet proceeded to take elevator up to their rooms.

xxx

He knew he'd seen him… He'd seen the guy from the club just now… There was no mistaking it… His Cuatro was here.

These thoughts spurred Grimmjow Jeagerjaques as he went out to the quickly darkening surroundings. Sapphire eyes raked the surrounding area, not a soul was in sight. Where could he have gone? Grimmjow walked around, eventually reaching the edge of the flattened mountain top where the resort was located. A short flicker of surprise crossed his face when he saw a flight of stairs going down the mountain side. Following his instincts, the celebrity descended the stairs, peering cautiously at every step he took with his right hand tightly grasping the paint-worn railings. Too-blue irises narrowed as he saw, with the help of the orange-hued light of the setting sun, what looked to be the marks of something being dragged across the muddied forest floor.

More than a bit curious as to what might've caused the peculiar tracks, Grimmjow followed the marks. It didn't even take the man two minutes to find the end, however, a mixture of indescribable emotion flooded him as he stared down at the figure before his eyes; if it wasn't for the outstretched porcelain hand, he wouldn't have even recognized him.

Lying there, with the right side of his face kissing the ground, was the jade-eyed man he'd met at the club. Even though mud was abundant on the man's clothes and skin, Grimmjow knew he wasn't mistaken. The electric-blue haired celebrity frowned as he realized that the guy was most likely out cold; why else would he be lying on the dirt-covered ground? His eyes raked the man's body, looking for any sign of what might've caused the man to become like that, narrowing when he spotted the guy's right foot latched onto a tree root protruding from the ground. He squatted beside the foot and gingerly removed it from its current lodging, the sapphire-eyed man almost jumped out of his skin as he heard a grunt of pain from the pale man as he was handling the appendage. Slowly, Grimmjow worked on rolling the unconscious man on his back, a grimace forming on his lips when he saw that the right half of the man's face was splattered with mud. The male model didn't think twice and quickly fished out the bandana he had from the back pocket of his jeans and used it to wipe off the offending substance from the pale face. Just as he was finishing his work, the dark-haired man began to stir.

Grimmjow was down on both knees as he watched the smaller man achieve consciousness. His eyes never strayed from the pale face as he watched in close proximity. Finally, jade eyes opened, the ebony-haired man blinked once, twice, the glaze of sleep from those too-green eyes diminishing until they found focus once more. Orbs of bright green stilled, a sliver of disbelief filling them as they met with a sapphire pair.

Tanned lips formed a smirk. "Rise and shine, sleeping beau–mph!"

Before he knew what hit him, Grimmjow found himself on his ass, sitting on the muddy floor, sporting a burning red fist-mark on his left cheek.

"Don't you dare come near me!" a panicked voice stated as the pale man moved farther away from him, a cry of pain telling him that the guy had discovered his sprained foot.

"I ain't gonna be movin' if I were you…" Grimmjow mumbled as he wiped off the mud from his hands with his bandana before throwing the cloth away. He then massaged his left cheek, "What in the name of hell was that punch for, bitch?"

Ebony brows creased over narrowed jade eyes. "Don't you dare lay your filthy hands on me," the man threatened, his fist still raised in the air as he tried to shift away from his offender, wincing every now and then as he moved his wounded foot.

"Your damned right foot is injured," Grimmjow pointed out bluntly as he watched the other man wince in pain. "So unless you want it to be chopped off, better stay still…"

"Stay still?!" his sole companion all but shrieked. "So what? So you could have your goddamn way with me again?" The jade-eyed man was breathing hard, a fierce glare on his face. To his utter surprise, the celebrity let out a bark of laughter.

"Look, babe, if I'm gonna fuck you, it ain't gonna happen on some dirty forest floor…" Grimmjow replied with a snort, shooting the other guy an insinuative smirk that made the man blush bright red.

"What are you doing here?" the ebony-haired man demanded, fighting off the color from his cheeks.

"I've got business here… some promotional shit that I gotta do," the celebrity replied casually, "I saw you walk outside from the lobby and followed. What were you doing, rolling all over mud like that?"

Jade irises darted to the side. "That doesn't concern you," the man replied stiffly.

'How cute…' Grimmjow's subconscious noted as he pushed himself onto his feet. "Ah well," he spoke aloud as he went over to the other guy. "Let's get back to the resort, shall we? It's getting pretty dark and my crew's gonna throw a fit if I come back late."

"I don't need you to tell me – Hey! Wh-What are you up to?!" the ebony-haired man's statement became a cry of shock and outrage as the sapphire-eyed celebrity knelt by his side and made moves indicating that the guy would have him carried.

"You can't walk with that sprained foot of yours; it looked pretty bad to me. Would you rather have me leave you here?" an electric-blue eyebrow rose.

"I can walk by myself, thank you very much."

"Oh yeah?"

With a 'hmph!', the pale man stood up, using a tree trunk for support. He took a few tentative steps, wobbling a bit on his bad foot. Just as the look of smug triumph was about to fall on his face, a rock got in the way of his feet and he lost balance. He expected to meet with the muddy ground again, however, muscled arms surrounded his figure in the blink of an eye and he found himself being carried bridal-style by the blue-eyed man.

"You were saying?" The smirk plastered on the celebrity's face irritated the jade-eyed man to no end. Oh what wouldn't he have given just to wipe that damned smirk off of that infuriating face?

xxx

"I said put me down."

"No."

"People are staring."

"So?"

"Ugh… You are hopeless."

Jade-eyed Ulquiorra did the only thing that he could, given this beyond shameful situation; he buried his face in his hands.

"G-Grimmjow Jeagerjaques! I-I'm your biggest fan! C-Can I have your autograph?" what seemed to be the millionth girl came up to the celebrity, Ulquiorra didn't even bother to see who it was.

"Hey, sweet cakes, sorry but I'm busy right now…" He could feel the sapphire-eyed man swell with pride. Ugh, disgusting.

"Awww…" Again, the typical reply.

"But I'll be here 'til Friday, maybe your pretty face can catch me again some other time…"

"That would be so fabulous! I'll see you around then!"

"Yeah."

"Show off." Ulquiorra muttered under his breath. He was injured. He was covered in mud. He was being carried against his will. And he felt like a total idiot. Things just couldn't get any worse.

"So, what floor are you in?" Grimmjow's voice drawled once again.

"Fourth." The ebony-haired man replied stoically. The quicker that stuck-up celebrity takes him to his room, the faster he'd be rid of him.

"Yes, my lady…" a snicker accompanied the snide remark that came from the taller man as they entered an empty elevator. The silver doors shut before them and Grimmjow shifted the man in his arms so that he could press the number four button, and finally, the elevator began its ascent.

'Just a few more seconds… a few more measly seconds and this whole ordeal will be over… Hang in there…' Ulquiorra thought to himself as the elevator doors swung open again.

"Left." He directed automatically, even before the man carrying him could ask. "Room 420." Right now, Ulquiorra didn't care that he was giving the damned celebrity his exact location. He just wanted this to end as quickly as possible. He was already hoping that Tesla and the others were–

"Are you sure he's not in his room?" A female's voice came from the corner.

"Nnoitra and I checked, it was empty. His phone was lying on the bedside table so there's not much use in calling him…" a leveled voice replied.

Jade eyes widened behind pale fingertips. 'No way.'

"Well where could he be?" the woman's voice returned, this time sounding testy.

"He might be getting dinner." A different man's voice answered.

"If something bad happens to him, you two are dead meat." Malice laced the woman's tone.

"Hey! Why do we have to account for him? He went to explore around on his own–"

"Yes, and you two didn't even think of going with him! What if he got in trouble and–"

"Cirucci, Ulquiorra's a tough guy. If anything did happen to him, I'm sure he'll be able to handle it." A calm voice cut through the bantering pair.

If there ever was a time that Ulquiorra wished to disappear, this was it. He was covered in mud, carried bridal style by no less than Grimmjow Jeagerjaques and his friends were just around the corner. This was surely one thing that he was never going to live down.

"Well, let's go, he might be waiting for us at that Chinese restaurant we – OH MY GOD! ULQUIORRA? Is that you?!"

The shriek from Cirucci told Ulquiorra that he had been discovered and his last hopes of saving his pride were crushed to bits.

With a heavy sigh, pale hands were removed from the porcelain face; jade green eyes looked most wearily on the three stunned faces looking at him. "Hey…"

"T-Th-You! You're that celebrity on TV! Grimmjow Jeagerjaques!" a flustered Tesla exclaimed, his mocha eyes wide.

From the corners of his eyes, Ulquiorra could see that a smirk had grown on Grimmjow's lips once more. Another sigh escaped pale lips. Hell would be breaking in three, two, one…

"Hey, so you're friends of my Cuatro, here…" Sapphire eyes glistened as the celebrity eyed the three people before him, at the same time securing a firm hold on the pale man in his arms.

"Er, yeah…" For some unknown reason, Nnoitra was eyeing the muscular man with great distaste.

"For the last time, put me down." Ulquiorra stated in a dead serious tone, his eyes meeting neither Grimmjow's nor his friends'.

"If you wish…" Grimmjow's light voice did not deceive the dark-haired man. Nonetheless, he lowered the pale man with great care, setting him down directly in front of the door with a brass number 420 on it.

"I am not thanking you for all the humiliation you put me through." Ulquiorra spat as he held onto the wall for support. His free hand took out his room keys from his pocket and he immediately went inside the room, not even glancing in his friends' direction.

With a slam, the door swung shut, denying access to the four people standing outside.

For once in his life, Grimmjow felt uneasy with the stares he received; not to mention that there were only three people looking at him. There was a knowing look in the inky-haired woman's eyes as she surveyed him through her mascara eyes, the extremely tall and thin man was glaring daggers at him for no known reason and the blonde man was looking at him with reverence as though a halo was shining atop his head.

Suddenly, heavy techno drum beats filled the air and Grimmjow was suddenly thankful for Szayel's calls. He got out his silver and blue phone and was just placing it against his ear to answer the phone call.

"Hel–"

"Grimmjow you son of a – Argh! Get your ass up here right now! I mean it!"

The shrill voice was cut along with the end of the call.

Eerie sounds of crickets filled the hall.

"I've… gotta go…" With a gust of wind, Grimmjow was out of sight.

xxx

A/N: so Grimm-Grimm finally gets back in the scenes… :D