Tatsuki blinked slowly, taking in the unfamiliar setting in which she had fallen asleep. A light snoring seemed to be coming from above her as the raven-haired girl stretched slowly, back sore from her brief nap on the unforgiving floor. Getting to her feet unsteadily, the karate captain looked down at the girl she had saved hours before.

Chizuru looked, for lack of a better adjective, peaceful. Sure, her face was streaked with grim, apparel beyond stitching help, and the bruises and scrapes she would sport were unlikely to be classified as pretty, but under all of the wear and tear of the day, the older girl's facial features seemed to soften with sleep. Tatsuki perched upon the soft chair she had sat on earlier, contemplating what to do next as she studied the shorter girl's expression.

She needed to get home, shower and pass out. The ache from a long day had set deep into Tatsuki's bones. But what about the redhead in front of her?

The cuts would need to be disinfected, and she would need to wash up with caution. The worry and drama of the day seemed gone in the sleeping girl's serene state; Tatsuki padded over to the bed and shook her gently.

"Chizuru... Chizuru-chan wake up."

Eyelids fluttered before a low grumbling sound erupted from her chest; Tatsuki's grin took on a Cheshire-like appearance.

"Oh Chizu-chan," she called out, sickly sweet, "time to wake up."

More mumbling was the muted reply.

Tatsuki slowly slid off the pouting girl's socks and shoes, reaching up for what remained of her shirt.

"If you don't get up," the grin threatened to split her face, "I'll have to shower you myself."

With a face as scarlet as her hair, Chizuru shot up from the bed, body aching in disapproval at the action, and jumped to the opposite side of the bed.

"Do you need any help?"

"It's not anything I haven't done before, Jock-chan."

Tatsuki's eyes cut sharply over to her; The injured girl winced at her major slip-up.

"How many times? How close has he gotten?"

The taller girl strode across the room in a series of quick paces until she was face to face with Chizuru.

"It isn't important."

"Of course it's important. No one is going to treat my friends like-"

"Since when were we friends?" was the quiet reply.

Tatsuki merely stared at her before turning, making her way to the bathroom and violently throwing open the door.

"Bathroom. I'll go call you a cab Chizuru-san." Her tone was cold and biting, matching the stiff posture and glassy eyes her appearance had taken. Chizuru silently limped into the dimly lit room, flipping on the switch as she pushed the door back towards closed.

Tatsuki grit her teeth and sit down, frustration clouding her mind. Chizuru had posed a reasonable question. Where the two truly friends? She had thought so. Besides the agitated blows thrown at Chizuru for her lewd advances at Orihime, Tatsuki thought they had been getting on remarkably well for the past two months. It was true, the subject matter they had talked about was mostly superficial, but they two enjoyed one another's company, and were never hostile or bitter.

The young girl sighed, running her hands through her spiky, jagged locks. She was not stupid, Tatsuki knew and heard of the rumors of Ichigo's apparent "circle". They were seen as untouchable and snobbish; the elite social group of the school who rarely associated with anyone else. But this was hardly the case.

Rukia, Ichigo, Chad, Ishida and even Orihime had been hiding something from her, and she knew that as well. They were the real group, confidants within each other. The secret lingered in the air whenever Tatsuki would unknowingly walk into a room or private conversation. They were all keeping something from her, because she could not help, or perhaps it was too big of a concept to be within her grasp. Tatsuki had no idea to know what or why or how. All she knew was that she was the only one out of the loop her closest friends seemed to be connected by.

Not that Tatsuki judged them. They were her friends, and she would stand by the decision to keep her ignorant, no matter how much it bothered her. But what did that leave her with?

"Am I a selfish person?" she asked the back of a karate trophy, cracking her knuckles in a subconscious method of thinking.

She would like to think the answer was no. So wasn't she allowed to make new friends, to treat as equals, free from the secrets and gossip-poisioning circles which surrounded her?

Chizuru wouldn't use her for status or benefits, she knew that. But she also knew there was something missing from the girl, something that remained deep beneath the cheery exterior that was Honsho Chizuru. It was whether or not she wanted to find out what that was.

Tatsuki stared at her own bathroom door. As strong as the red-haired girl was, Tatsuki could still hear the stifled sobs of pain leaking under the doors. She wanted answers; she wanted to help her new friend.

Friend, she thought firmly, Chizuru is my friend. And with that she set down the phone in her hand and eased open the bathroom door.

--

It burned, but then again it always burned. An exasperated sigh escaped Chizuru's slightly cracked lips as she felt the sting rip through the wound on her head. The Ichigo-wannabe had done a number on her this time. And it would only get worse. It always got worse.

The injured girl hissed as she continued to scrub at her newest aquirements. She looked up through teary eyes as Tatsuki's prying eyes gently slid open the door.

Tatsuki.

As if her being physically beaten enough, the mental anguish was nearly crippling. Chizuru was at a loss for words. Her mind replayed the intense kiss over and over again, before she passed out. It was too good to be true, she realized. Must have been part of that great imagination I possess.

But it seemed so real. The insistent pressure of soft, yet chapped, lips against her own. The submissive urging when a warm, thick tongue explored her mouth possessively. The soft scent of vanilla and sweat which should have been replusive but just seemed to make up... Tatsuki.

For one of the first times in her life, Chizuru had no idea what to do about a girl in her life. She had fessed up to her feelings earlier, with her hands-on technique learning it was hard to ignore. But the thought scared the life out of Chizuru.

Tatsuki was the only person she had connected with in years. Tatsuki made her feel carefree and young, and all of the other cheesy cliches that teenage girls were always talking about. Tatsuki made her happy, and made her yearn for more. Tatsuki was straight.

She had no idea what to say, and was content to sit in the awkward silence she had created with her savior.

--

It was maddening really. I wanted answers. I have never been the type of person to wait or beat around the bush.

"How many times has this happened?"

Silence. Chizuru seemed to be inspecting the roof for a teleportation device to save her.

"This didn't start this year, did it?"

More silence was the response.

Tatsuki lifted her hand to turn Chizuru's head back down, glaring at her intently. Tears remained on the edge of the battered girl's eyelashes, waiting to fall, as if she was expecting another blow to rain down upon her head. The karate champion flinched.

"Why didn't you tell me?" The last question came out as a whisper, painful enough to make Tatsuki turn her head while waiting for an answer.

"What would you have done?" Chizuru's words were drawn out and weak.

Tatsuki's face morphed into outrage.

"Do you honestly think we would have ignored what was going on?"

A heavy pause filled between the questioning.

"What if you had? What if Ichigo's Circle had been sanctioning the actions? What if you had encouraged him to-"

The last word was cut off by a hug.

"No one deserves that, Chizuru-chan. Nobody. Now why don't we start from the beginning?"

"But I-"

"The beginning."

----------

Ugh, it's been awhile, eh guys? Sorry for the late update D: I really really am. I'm also sorry with the short length and diologue heavy scenes, but it's time to flesh some stuff out. Who knows what next chapter will hold? Dun Dun Dun!

Hang in there guys, I'm not abandoning anything, Life's just getting in the way a bit.