'The modesty of certain ambitious persons consists in becoming great without making too much noise; it may be said that they advance in the world on tiptoe.'- Voltaire
"Grimmjow, how about you bring Ichigo over here so we can introduce him to the family properly." Both Grimmjow and Ichigo froze in place at the suggestion from Grimmjow's mother; Kim was a head strong woman who was the source of Grimmjow's brutal nature. She loved bio science, more precisely; how much physical pain a person could take. Her black eyes and midnight black hair made her little more then a shadow unless she wanted to be seen.
"No, we haven't been dating long enough to worry about it."
"You brought him home for Christmas Grimm, it must be serious." Grimmjow opened his mouth to retort but Ichigo cut in.
"Actually ma'am, Grimm's just saying no because he's protecting me. I'm not really one for crowds, hate them in all honesty." It was a lie, Ichigo did fabulous in front of crowds if he was in the mood for it. But he didn't feel like being a show pony.
"Oh, alright then. You can just mingle until the caroling starts." In all reality the woman loved Christmas, a split personality being a good trigger for Grimmjow's own unbalance.
Grimmjow groaned, headed for the kitchen with Ichigo to get something to drink, knowing that he'd be able to get some kind of alcohol. "What did she mean by caroling?"
"What's it fucking sound like Berry? We're going to gather around the damn piano as her dad plays and we're all gonna sing the fucking annoying as shit Christmas songs."
"You don't like Christmas I'm guessing." Grimmjow just scoffed as he grabbed a bottle of wine and head out onto the back deck.
"What gave you that idea?" Ichigo watched as his blue haired classmate fiddled with the foil cover and then popped the cork off of the drink, taking a swig right from the bottle. "It's not like I love my family and want nothing but to spend time with the fuckers. Seeing the old man and all the fucking cousins and shit I've beaten up over the years. The better question is why doesn't everyone else hate it?"
"I think it's kind of nice, knowing all these people wouldn't hate talking to you. Maybe even knowing that some of them miss seeing you the rest of the year. I used to love the holidays, we'd get off school and I'd go shopping with my mom, hear her playing the violin for us. Then we'd act like goofs in the snow with my dad and come inside to nice hot chocolate made perfectly by mom. Then when we lost her we did everything to keep it together.
"It's nice being in a big house like this with all these people. It's better then being alone with a single friend for my first Christmas without them all. It really sucks too, I had gifts bought for them all the way back in June for this Christmas. I wanted them to have the best so I wanted them to have what they really wanted." Ichigo stopped talking, leaning against the decks railing and crossing his arms over his chest to keep himself warm.
Grimmjow held the bottle out to Ichigo, his scowl pointed inside towards the house of people he didn't like at all. "I don't drink."
"A sip wont make you drunk." Ichigo didn't feel like arguing, he took the bottle and downed half of it, knowing that the amount of alcohol wasn't enough to make him drunk but enough to just make him glide through the night.
"If I start crying, promise to just put me out of my misery." Ichigo took another quick sip before Grimmjow took the bottle back with a growl.
"The only thing you'll be screaming tonight, is my fucking name." Ichigo just scoffed, no longer worrying about the touch from before as he straightened up and stretched out his spine.
"Sure thing Grimm, better be a promise." It was obvious fake flirting, forced out only by the quick reminder of Gin in the kitchen window that they were supposed to be dating.
"Even without lube?" Ichigo turned back to Grimmjow, his face turning red again despite having calmed down from that one slip up.
"Fuck you Grimm. God, I say one damn thing and now all of a sudden I can't say anything else."
"Grimmjow, Ichigo come inside now, we're starting the games!" Grimmjow groaned again while Ichigo just raised an eyebrow, watching Grimmjow finish the bottle of wine.
"You're in for a fun night Kurosaki. Pin the tail on the reindeer, Santas wish, and then don't forget All I Want for Christmas." Ichigo just nod his head and moved inside, waiting in the kitchen for Grimmjow.
As the blue haired teen walked in Ichigo stopped him with a quick hand on his chest and raising up on his tiptoes to whisper in the others ear so it looked like he was nibbling it. "You should probably start calling me Ichigo while we're here. I'm sure you're family will start wondering why my boyfriend is using my last name."
"Ichigo, now leave Grimmy alone and come into the living room and join in." Kim walked into the kitchen and grabbed Ichigo's shoulders, pulling the orange haired teen away from her son and ushering him into the living room where pin the tail was starting amongst the guests.
Grimmjow followed the two into the living room, a glass of his fathers whisky in his hand as he leaned against the far wall beside his brother for at least a little company. "Underage drinking, tisk tisk Grimmy."
"Fuck off Gin. You're the fucker that gave me my first beer when I was fifteen." Grimmjow raised the glass and Gin took a drink of it before handing it back to his little brother.
"Maybe, but it was good fucking beer. At least I know you're tastes haven't slipped since then."
Grimmjow looked back up as Ichigo was handed the tail and the nose, having to pin both on a Rudolf that was set up beside the fire place. He followed Ichigo's movements as he took both pieces with a light, modest dust to his cheeks as his mother tired the blindfold around his head and started spinning him around. The room chanted to three with the number of spins Ichigo did and then Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer started blasting through the many speakers in the house.
Knowing the rules Grimmjow knew that Ichigo had until the song ended to pin both on the picture. The room started singing along with the tune and Grimmjow found himself laughing as Ichigo placed his hands on the wall, feeling along the picture with both the nose and tail pieces in one hand.
Ichigo proudly turned around from the wall, half way through the song with his hands free and a huge smile on his face. "I got it!" He reached up and took the blindfold off and as he stepped aside to reveal his work the room burst into joyous laughter seeing the nose on the butt and the tail on the face. "Oh, maybe I don't." Ichigo gave another one of those modest blushes before handing the blindfold back over to Grimmjow's mother.
As Ichigo settled himself beside Grimmjow on the side where Gin wasn't he squeaked as Grimmjow grabbed his waist and pulled Ichigo in front of himself so his chin could rest on the top of Ichigo's head. "You did that on purpose, didn't you?"
"I might have wanted to give the others something to beat. Plus why would I want your parents thinking I'm perfect?"
"Good thing your not perfect." Gin watched as Grimmjow rested his chin on top of Ichigo's head, a lazy smile crossing his face that Gin knew wasn't from the liquor. "After all, I'd hate for both of us to be perfect." Ichigo jabbed his elbow back into Grimmjow a little too roughly for being playful, but Grimmjow didn't seem to mind as he just laughed.
Half an hour passed of pin the tail before Kim set the tail and nose down and stood up with a big smile. "Alright everyone! Time for Santa Say's!"
"Common Ichigo, let's go get a drink." Grimmjow rolled his body to unhitch himself from the wall starting at the hips, forcing Ichigo's body into the same movement and getting another slight yelp from the carrot top.
"I told you to stop touching me like that Grimmjow."
"Sorry, wanted to get off the fucking wall." Grimmjow only shrugged as he grabbed the whisky again and poured a bit more into his glass. "Want some?"
"Nah, I cant hold liquor."
"Eh, at least ya know." Grimmjow took another sip and set the glass down before hopping up onto the counter and kicking his feet a bit.
"I'm guessing you don't like Santa Say's." Grimmjow only scoffed.
"Not unless you wanna kiss. Ma always ends her turn with kissing the person beside you; be you dating or not. It's like a big fucking room of mistletoe."
"Mistletoe is a cute tradition though, my parents used to put it up and they'd give us kisses on the cheeks or hugs. I always hated my sisters trying to give me kisses on my cheeks- well, Yuzu anyways. Karin never was one for mistletoe either." Grimmjow opened his mouth to say something but never got the chance as Nemu walked into the kitchen and grabbed both Ichigo and Grimmjow.
"Ichigo, my sister Nemu. She doesn't talk much and does anything my dad says. Nemu, this is Ichigo."
"Hi, nice to meet you."
"You need to play the game." Nemu stopped them and moved back over to her boyfriend to continue playing the game; everyone else was jumping up and down.
"Cant we just get out by not following?"
"Not with mom's rules, if you don't do something you have a bonus round you have to complete or some shit."
"Santa Say's to spin around with the person beside you!" It was crowded so Grimmjow's chest was pressed against Ichigo's as they spun around, shuffling so they didn't hit anyone else.
"Here it comes." Grimmjow sounded extremely bored and Ichigo's face turned a light pink.
"Grimmjow, I don't wanna kiss you." He was looking down so Grimmjow couldn't see his face, concentrating more on his feet then the person he was pretty much entangled with.
"It's not like a kiss on the cheek wouldn't count. Some of the people spinning are father and daughter, others siblings." Grimmjow shrugged a bit, not phased that Ichigo didn't want to kiss but on the inside his pride had been shot. "I mean, it's not really like I'd want to kiss you either."
Ichigo spent a moment wondering if he was supposed to clear things up with Grimmjow but stopped, he didn't want the blue haired teen knowing of his small crush. "What I'm most pissed about is that party I had planned. Nnoitra and Starrk are gonna have to throw it without me. Fucking lucky bastards."
"Now stop spinning!" Everyone kept spinning, only a few people had a slight hiccup. "Very good, now. Santa Say's; kiss your partner!" Grimmjow heard his mom giggle for a moment before she stopped; presumably to find her husband and give him a quick kiss.
Reaching up Grimmjow tilted Ichigo's face up and couldn't help the smirk at how red he'd turned. Ichigo gave Grimmjow a bit of a glare before shutting his eyes tightly as Grimmjow leaned down, brushing his lips across Ichigo's left cheekbone for only a moment before pulling back. "Didn't kill ya now, did I?"
"Okay everyone! Now, how about we play Santa's wish."
"Basically it's like Santa Say's, but we take our tasks out of a hat and have to perform them before midnight tonight." Grimmjow answered Ichigo's question flawlessly, knowing Ichigo would have no idea what his mothers made-up game consisted of.
"What does it usually consist of?"
"Stupid shit." Ichigo nod his head and quickly took a step back from Grimmjow when he realized they were still pressed tightly together.
"Okay, guests first so; Ichigo!" Ichigo blanched noticeably as he walked towards Kim with tentative steps, his face still dusted with his actual blush from a few moments prior when Grimmjow had kissed him. "Awe, still frazzled from your Christmas kiss?"
"Um, yeah. I-I really don't know what to do here ma'am, think you could help me out?"
"Of course dear. You take a slip of paper containing one of 'Santa's Wishes' and you read it silently, then once it's all memorized you throw it into the fire so no one else can read it. Then you have until midnight to make the wish come true." Ichigo nod his head at the bubbly woman, wondering for a moment how Grimmjow ever became so stern and blunt with a mother like her.
"Okay. Thank you." Ichigo reached into the offered Santa hat and dug around for a few minutes, hoping it could be something really easy and simple.
"Did I mention that they're tailored to the people inside the house?" Ichigo's eyes suddenly went very large, he wanted anything but something to do with Grimmjow.
'Anyone but Grimmjow, Anyone but Grimmjow, Anyone but Grimm…' The thought quickly trailed off as Ichigo pulled out the paper and saw 'Grimmjow' written on the back of the paper.
On the front side of the paper it read in elegant script; 'Make this person truly smile' in a font that just fit down the length of the strip of paper.
'But he never fucking smiles unless he's beating me up! What the hell am I supposed to do for that?!' With his eyes tightly shut Ichigo tossed the small paper into the fire, watching as it fluttered until it was caught and consumed.
Ichigo moved back to Grimmjow and watched until he was called, watching as Grimmjow walked up and stuffed his hand into the hat before pulling a piece of paper at and quickly reading; 'give this person a hug' and 'Gin' on the back. It wasn't something Grimmjow wanted to do but he figured he might as well get his over with.
After tossing his paper back into the fire Grimmjow turned to where Gin and Ichigo were standing chatting lightly about Gin's recent trip to Paris and Ichigo's interest in the Mona Lisa. Grimmjow grabbed Gin's shoulder and pulled his white haired brother into an awkward hug that lasted five quick seconds before he pushed him away.
"Done."
"Wow Grimm, I'd hate to have been picked by another person. Maybe one that would've given me a hug without pulling half ma hair out." Gin rubbed the back of his head before going up and getting his slip of paper.
"So Ichigo, you need help finding out who you got?"
"No, I'm sure I know who it is." Grimmjow just shrugged his shoulders, not willing to attempt to pry with his mothers stupid game.
"Well, I got my person. I probably got the best damn wish of the night." Gin walked back with his wide smile in place as he stood beside Grimmjow, the two of them making a wall in front of Ichigo.
"And what would that be Gin? Screwing your new girlfriend?"
"Nah, she couldn't make it too busy with work. My wish from Santa is a pretty fucking good one, but I cant tell ya just yet." Ichigo set his back against the wall again, his arms loosely crossed over his chest as he closed his eyes for a moment, wishing to stave off the headache he felt coming on.
"I'm pretty sure I got yer wish Grimmy."
"Oh yeah, and why is that?"
"Because, this is it." Gin swooped forwards and cupped the back of Ichigo's head with his hand before pressing his lips firmly against the other teens for only a moment before a knee shot up and collided with his crotch.
"The fuck Gin!?"
"Oh my god I'm sorry!" Ichigo put his hands over his mouth, sorry that he'd hit another guys member out of pure reflex even thought he felt like doing it again for stealing his first male kiss.
"Don't fucking apologize Ichigo, he's the fucker who-" Grimmjow cut himself off as soon as I realized he was really attached to Ichigo. It was an honest reaction to his brother kissing Ichigo.
"Grimmjow, what's the meaning of this."
"It's not Grimm mom. I kissed Berry." Gin picked himself up gently cradling himself "My ticket said to embarrass the Berry, so I did."
"Stop calling me that."
"It's not exactly like I expected to get a knee to the junk, but Berry has quick-"
"Stop calling me Berry you stupid snake-face. That's it, I'm so freaking done." Ichigo left the room with a glare, completely and utterly pissed off and embarrassed at both his fist kiss from a guy being stolen and having everyone looking at him like he was insane.
Grimmjow's glare was boring into Gin as Ichigo rushed out of the room trying to hide the blush, knowing no where to go but Grimmjow's room. "There is no way Ma and Pop's would write a wish like that you fucker."
"You're right. I made it up. But the original was so boring, it told me to make him happy. How was I supposed to know I couldn't do both at once?"
Ignoring his brother to the best of his ability Grimmjow started to climb the stairs, following Ichigo so he could see if his roommate was alright. He could feel all the eyes on his form as he vanished up to the first floor and passed it by until the second floor. Then he crossed the long hallway to the final staircase that lead up to his floor.
All the lights were shut off and Grimmjow moved right to his bedroom door and opened it up. Ichigo was sitting on Grimmjow's bed, his large bedroom window thrown wide open and his arms against his knees with his head down. "Go away Grimmjow."
"I can punch him if you want."
"Drop the fucking act Grimmjow. Go ahead and laugh your fucking ass off." Ichigo no longer felt like he was having a good Christmas, being in the big house with the many people had been nice and had let him forget. However as soon as he'd felt those lips against his everything crashed around him and it made him remember the fact that he wasn't with his family having fun and that he shouldn't be having fun on Christmas without them.
"It's not an act you fucker. Are you going to be alright?"
"No I'm not. I'm here having fun with you and your family and I should be alone just thinking about my family."
"Kurosaki. You know you're allowed to have fun, right?"
"No I'm not. It's my first Christmas without my family and your brother just stole my first male kiss and there's a part of me that just wants to leave so I don't have to fucking see him again." Grimmjow moved over to the window and closed the window before sitting down beside Ichigo on the bed before throwing himself back so he was laying down.
"I don't understand Grimm, how can you hate your family so much? You have a family that's at least nice."
"It's their charade. My family is nothing you should envy Kurosaki."
"And why's that? At least they're here Grimmjow."
"Yeah they're here. They've always been here. You know this big ugly scar I've got?" Ichigo nod his head, still not looking at Grimmjow. "Gin's the fucking reason I've got it. Nine summers ago Gin and I got into a fight. It ended with him throwing me out one of the windows and into the snow. I got a big ass piece of glass that ripped up my chest and then I got dirt in the wound. Took dad almost an hour to get me to the fucking hospital because he and mom were too fucking busy asking me questions about the goddamn pain. How's that for a great family?"
Ichigo chanced a glance down at Grimmjow, looking at his classmates form and seeing the top most corner of the thick car that ran down his chest like it had been a jagged, shredding blade. "What was the fight about?"
"He called me a homo. Now he pulls this shit by kissing you and probably will swear on his own grave that he's straight. Fucking jackass."
"Sorry to hear that Grimm." Grimmjow peaked an eye open and looked up at Ichigo.
"Don't be. You're not him." Grimmjow turned onto his side and looked up out the still open window.
"Why are you so different from when we met?"
"Because my house makes me fucked up. Now get your ass off the bed and come downstairs with me. The mushy shit of everyone saying their Christmas wishes to the room should be done and we'll be able to jump right into the ear-splitting caroling."
"Is your family religious?"
"Ha, hardly. I'm pretty sure religion runs away from my family."
"Would it make singing carols easier if I used my violin?" Ichigo was thinking about his 'task' again, wanting to make Grimmjow smile to get his mind off of his family and that kiss Gin had given him.
"I doubt it, but you can if you want. I'm sure if you play loud enough it'll drown everyone else out." Grimmjow smirked a bit as he got up, pulling Ichigo with him.
"Thanks, I guess I can brave that room full of people again. I mean, how many are there, fifteen?"
"Fifty actually, but you can pretend it's however many you want."
"Gee, thanks Grimm."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
The night had dwindled into low conversations and relaxed mingling as the clock neared ten-thirty Ichigo was up in Grimmjow's room, applying resin to his bow and making sure that all his strings were perfectly tuned.
Grimmjow was lazing on his bed, his arms crossed behind his head as he took the opportunity to escape the world below between the time the children went to bed and the adults. "Whacha gonna play?" Grimmjow rolled onto his side, pleasantly drunk on his nights worth of wine, whisky and rum.
"I don't know yet Grimm. Any requests?" Ichigo's playful flirting had gone from acting to reality over the course of the night as Grimmjow gave him sip after sip of his drinks.
"Not sure. Let me get back to you later Ichi." Ichigo couldn't help but scoff as Grimmjow just rolled over onto his back again and started humming along to his radio that was playing softly as background.
With a roll of his eyes Ichigo threw the window open further and sat himself down on the ledge, pulling his phone out and setting it across from him so he could see the time.
"Hey Ichi, what would you do if you were in a different time-zone?"
"I'd play according to this time-zone." His phone clicked passed another minute and he pulled the bow across the D string, forcing a sound out of the instrument Grimmjow couldn't help but smile for.
Even though it was a drunken smile Ichigo still took it as an actual smile. Grimmjow's face didn't have a huge goofy smile on it, but a gentle pull at his lips as he closed his eyes and started to doze off to what was being missed in the down town district.
Everyone down on the first floor of the mansion stopped their conversations and turned the music off as Ichigo's melody took command of all their attention.
"I've heard rumors of this in Karakura town… it's the Weeping Angel." One of the guests put their hands together and gave a quick prayer after he spoke while Grimmjows immediate family just looked around, trying to figure out which of them set a CD player to start up.
"It's louder outside." Nemu turned inside to her family and boyfriend, motioning for them to all come to the back deck, listening to the sound carry out over the snow and mingle with the sounds the wind made with the trees branches.
Everyone listened to the song that played for twenty-one minutes, none of them even realizing that so many seconds of their lives were ticking by because as soon as the song ended they felt energetic and alive once again.
Ichigo set his violin back into it's case and curled up onto the memory foam mattress he'd gotten Grimmjow to lay out on the floor for him, he was already wearing his pajama pants with no shirt as he closed his eyes. Grimmjow rolled into his side, already sleeping as deeply as he would be, making the bed creak and moan in protest to his shift in weight.
Tossing and turning for two hours was all Ichigo could take before he let out an annoyed huff and stood up, looking at Grimmjow and the bed. The blanket was tossed haphazardly over Grimmjows hips as he lay on his back, one arm tucked under his head and the pillow and the other resting over his stomach.
Ichigo couldn't help the blush as he moved forwards and gingerly sat himself down on the edge to see if Grimmjow would notice and wake up. When Grimmjow made no indication of noticing, Ichigo took a moment to look at his messy hair and his slightly scowling face that hadn't been there when Ichigo had been playing.
Taking a deep breath Ichigo raised the blanket slightly and slid himself into the bed, keeping his back to Ichigo as he fought off the blush that was threatening on his cheeks. The bed made little noise as he got himself comfortable, the bed dipping and bouncing ever so slightly as he tried to find a groove in the old mattress he found comfortable as he set his head down on one of the pillows.
Ichigo stopped breathing again as he felt Grimmjow move, the blue haired teen rolled towards him and threw his arm over Ichigo's waist in the process. He didn't know if he should breathe, if Grimmjow was awake and going to chuckle something into his ear before rolling away from him or what was going on.
After a minute Ichigo let his breath out in a shaking shudder, taking another breath in right away as Grimmjow pulled him back so their bodies were flushed with each other. 'Oh fuck Grimmjow. The fuck are you doing you dumbass? How the hell am I going to sleep like this?' With a content sigh Grimmjow buried his nose in the crook of Ichigo's neck, thinking he was having a really damn good dream.
Ichigo moaned as he tilted his head back, his hips gyrating to the steady rhythm behind him as the strong grip on his hip stopped him from moving away. Every fiber and cell in his body was on fire as he pushed back, the hand on his hip reaching around and starting to palm him through his pajama bottoms to the same steady rhythm.
Reaching behind his head Ichigo's fingers met hair he knew wasn't his own and when he felt a pair of strong lips press themselves against his neck he closed his fingers on the hair. He heard a grunt and couldn't help but push back harder, trying to hear a moan.
Biting his bottom lip Ichigo slowly opened his eyes, trying as hard as he could to see his surroundings through the pleasure of the grinding and hand only to have his eyes fly wide open when he realized that it was Grimmjow and he was with the blue haired teen on his bed, in the others house with his family.
"Holly no!" Ichigo scrambled out of the bed, hearing a whine from Grimmjow as the heat and pleasure-giving body left, his hand that had been palming Ichigo moving to the front of his own boxers in his sleep.
Ichigo stood awkwardly in the room, unsure of what to do about everything including his newest problem concerning the blue haired teen. "Fuck Grimmjow." Closing his eyes and turning around Ichigo decided to think about what to do next in the bathroom, maybe over the course of a shower.
AN: Yeah, this fic is M rated for a reason. I don't know how far that M rating is going to go just yet, but there will certainly be a little more like the above bit.
I'm aware that I have once again lost Grimmjow's character in this chapter but it's Christmas, I'm not up for writing a moody-broody Grimm-kitty right now.
I would really like to know what you think though, so just drop a review down in the bottom. Let me know if I suck or if it was alright, or if you just like the story. Until next time, have a good time and enjoy life!
