- Chapter Eight -


Author's Note: Hey guys, new chapter! Ichigo and Grimmjow should be meeting up for the party next chapter... haha... should be fun. ;)


- T Minus 17 Hours -


Two hours. Ichigo glanced down at his phone, the screen open to his texts, an unassigned number monopolizing his thoughts. It was five o'clock, and his party started at seven... His bachelor party, because he was getting married.

Copper eyes fell shut with a sigh, and Ichigo leaned back, shoving his phone into his front pocket, ignoring the urge to text a certain blue-haired guy again. He hadn't talked to him in three years, and now he couldn't seem to go three hours. Although, to be fair, he'd only ever stopped trying to talk to his once best friend because he'd thought that was what Grimmjow'd wanted. But then he'd said he could've visited, and he kinda had known that he supposed, but not really. Fuck. He was really confused.

"You good?"

Ichigo looked over to meet Ikkaku's too aware gaze. "Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" he asked gruffly.

Ikkaku shrugged, grinning like a shark, as he put his car into park. He'd been oddly quiet the entire trip from Rukia's condo to the liquor store across town and only a couple blocks from their childhood homes. His only words having been a 'yo' when Ichigo had let him in, and then when Ikkaku had seen Byakuya there too: 'that's fucking weird.' His shaved friend unbuckled, clearly over his oath of silence. "Just thought since Grimmjow's back in the picture you might be having second thoughts about all this."

Ichigo scowled, unbuckling and pushing his door open harder than necessary. "He's not 'back in the picture,' he's just coming to the party."

"Why'd you go to his place then?" Ikkaku laughed, getting out of his silver Hyundai, and he shot Ichigo a chastising look over the hood of it. "I saw you go that way, and Yumichika said that you two met up."

"How does Yumichika know anything?" Ichigo asked, agitated, still not willing to admit it. Word got around fast in his group of friends, and he didn't need Rukia any angrier that people were talking, and he didn't want everyone talking about his and Grimmjow's meet-up either; it was private. "And when'd you see Yumichika?"

"Because he knows one of Grimmjow's friends, and she told him," Ikkaku said, his shoes crunching over gravel, as he began to walk towards the small liquor shop he and Ichigo had gotten beer from on many occasions through high school, well, after they'd acquired fake ID's. He sniffed then. "And Yumichika and I are together."

Ichigo blinked, stopping short just outside the small shop. "You two are... together?"

Ikkaku lifted his chin as he pushed the door open. "Yeah, we're engaged," he said and then went in, leaving a shocked Ichigo behind.

Ichigo gave himself a mental shake and then he walked in too, a cool blast of air hitting him, and his eyes slowly adjusted to the darker space. He saw Ikkaku by the front counter going over the order Renji had placed a couple weeks back with a worker he didn't recognize, and the orange-haired guy began down one of the long aisles, scanning bottles of liquor as he tried to gather himself.

Ikkaku had never told him he was gay, or bi, or whatever he was. Although, thinking back he never seemed to date as far as Ichigo knew. He and Ichigo hung out after school—Ikkaku's parents having sent him to a private Catholic school that some of their other friends had also attended—usually whenever Grimmjow wasn't around. And Ichigo wasn't the type to press about personal stuff, he'd just assumed he dated and whatever. Which he probably had, but maybe not with girls...

He picked up a bottle of Amaretto, the caramel-looking liquid reminding him of a time he and Ikkaku had gotten really drunk, doing shots of the sweet liquor down by the river, their favorite drinking spot. All those times they'd hung out. Why hadn't he told him?

"Yo, Ichigo, you want that too?"

Ichigo looked up, setting the bottle back down quickly as he eyed his old friend looking at him from the end of the aisle. "Oh, no, just looking. We good?"

"Yeah," the guy said, and then he held up a tall brown bag and smiled wickedly. "Got us something for the river. We have two hours before the party, and Renji said to keep you busy, so I got a small bottle."

Ichigo let out a groan as he walked back towards his friend. "You gotta be joking, I'm gonna be so fucking sick tonight," he said, not even trying to refuse. The biology graduate student was just happy to be on summer break. Ikkaku didn't take no for an answer. He'd just have to pace himself.


- T Minus 16 Hours -


"He's too fast, what am I gonna do, Grimm?"

Grimmjow leaned down, planting his hands on his knees as he met worried, light-brown eyes up close, the afternoon sun prickling at his already burnt skin just below blue locks. "Listen. You're gonna be fine, all you gotta do is..."—he glanced around, making sure no one else would hear—"kick it straight at him."

The little girl with seafoam-green hair named Nelliel nodded slowly. "Right at him?" she asked, unsure.

Grimmjow nodded back firmly, blue brows lifting. "Yeah, that kid's terrified of you. Just kick it straight and hard, like you wanna kill him, and he'll get out of the way. Do it right though, because it'll only work once."

The nine year old girl nodded stoically, and then a small grin pulled at her lips. "Okay. Thanks Grimm."

"No problem, Munchkin." Grimmjow stood back up then, and he strolled back to stand in front of the group of nine and ten year olds dressed in all white with black lettering. He glanced down at his watch, his arms crossed, as he chewed on a stick of mint gum, Nnoitra's swiped phone in his left shorts' pocket. He still had an hour before the party, and the game was almost over. They were tied 2-2, but Nelliel had the best chance at winning it for them. She was little but surprisingly tough. He watched as she made her way towards the goalie, her expression fierce—

The tall, blue-haired man broke out into a laugh as the kids behind him began to cheer, Nelliel jumping up and down at the far end of the field as the other team's goalie pushed himself off the ground slowly, looking shaken and embarrassed at having jumped away from the soccer ball that had hit the back of the goal's net without any trouble.

"Espadas win!" was called out. Grimmjow grinned widely at the stuck-up brunet coach on the opposite side of the field, as a group of rich kids dressed in black jerseys and shorts with white trim filed into a depressing line. He felt a buzz in his pocket.

"Hey, really good work guys," he said to the kids crowding around, ruffling a few heads of hair as they began to line up to tell the losing team a good job.

He gave a happily smiling Nelliel a wink and then took a seat on the empty bench, leaning over to avoid flirtatious glances from several of the other team's players' moms. He fished out his friend's phone, and cobalt eyes widened in disbelief, and then Grimmjow started laughing as he typed back, a sly grin pulling at his lips. Ichigo was drunk.

Please leave a few words (or more) so I know what you thought.

Also, I'm going to try to post again very soon!