Stay with Ichigo? For a second elation filled Toushirou's heart at the thought, but then his stomach clenched. Wasn't this running away? Ms. Mastumoto had told him over and over again not to run away from his problems. Running away only made the problem worse when it came time for him to face it.
"I can't stay with you Ichi," Toushirou whispered. He felt the strawberry's arm tighten around him.
"Why not?" Ichigo asked. Toushirou swallowed and refused to meet his boyfriends eyes.
"If I stay here with you then it will be like I'm running away and I can't do that. Besides, its not fair to you or your family for me to impose myself on you."
Toushirou let out a startled squeak as Ichigo suddenly swept him off his lap and onto the bed, pinning Toushirou's wrists against the pillow above Toushirou's head. Situating himself so that Toushirou's legs were between his knees and he leaned over the small boy.
"Ichigo what . . ." Toushirou began as he looked up at Toushirou in surprise. Ichigo smiled, an odd look in his eyes as he spoke.
" You're a complete and utter idiot sometimes, you know? It's okay if you're not ready to face this, it's okay if you don't know how to handle any of this, it's okay for you to be a bit selfish at times. What you've gone through is something that's not going to heal over night, so, it's okay for you to need more time to heal."
Tears glistened in Toushirou's eyes as he listened to Ichigo. Ichigo placed one of his large hands on his cheek, gently brushing away the tears that had begun to fall down his face.
"Shh, it's okay if you need to cry."
Stupid, stupid Ichigo. He wasn't going to cry, he truly wasn't but that stupid strawberry had to go and say something that would completely undo him.
With a weak sob Toushirou raised up his now free hand and pounded weakly on Ichigo's chest, tears now pouring down his face.
"You . . . stupid . . . baka . . ." Toushirou sob incoherently. Ichigo just smiled.
"Yeah, I know, I'm an idiot for making you cry."
Toushirou nodded at his sentiment, tears still pouring down his face.
"But that's okay, because I'm here, I'll always be here for you. I'll never leave you no matter what."
"You'd better be," Toushirou spat angrily, or tried to, "because I don't know what I'd do with out you."
Ichigo just smiled that same infurating, gentle, loving smile. Toushirou felt the dam holding back his tears break.
It was early when Toushirou woke up, six o'clock to be exact, which was early on a Saturday according to Ichigo. Smiling softly he looked over at his orange haired idiot. Ichigo was dead to the world, he looked particularly funny with his thumb in his mouth.
Toushioru smiled at him, leaning forward he kissed Ichigo's forehead gently. Carefully, so as not to wake him, Toushirou slid out of bed. He tiptoed across the room to Ichigo's desk, quickly wrote out a message on a piece of paper, then got dressed.
Silently he left Ichigo's room and went down the steps. He was almost to the door when a voice called him back.
"I never took you for someone that would leave a person alone in the morning Toushirou."
He jumped, startled by the Isshin's sudden appearance. For a few seconds he just stood there, trying to get his heart rate back to normal. Only once he had calmed down did he speak.
"I'm not leaving him, Isshin, there's just something I have to do on my own."
"And this is something that can't wait until Ichigo is a wake so that he at least knows where you're going?"
Toushirou shook his head, and turned to face Isshin.
"No, it can't you see if I tell Ichigo where I'm going he'll try to change my mind. But this is something I have to do on my own."
Toushirou looked directly into Isshin's eyes letting the man see his determination, his resolve. Isshin sighed and Toushirou knew that he's won.
He turned back to the door, slide his shoes on and grab his coat. As he reached for the door, Isshin called out to him again.
"What should I tell him when he wakes up?"
Toushirou paused, hand on the door knob.
"Tell him I've gone to face my fears."
"I hope you know what you're doing."
Toushirou sighed as he opened the door.
"So do I."
Then he stepped out into the street and closed the door.
Author's note
Owwww, my head hurts, I'm going to go do something that doesn't involve thinking. Hope you enjoyed the update. Thank you to all who have reviewed!