Updates from now on will be very sporadic. I'm moving house and jobs - my new house is hundreds miles from my current house so it's a big move! I promise I'll update when I can but I'm going to be very, very busy until I settle in. This chapter is late because I've been too busy packing and panicking!
But to make up for it, I bring you fanservice.
Thank you to all my reviewers :) I really appreciate your comments. elvinapotter - I haven't planned for it and I'm not sure where abouts it would fit in since I know exactly what's happening in every chapter until the end. I'll see what I can do!
"It's not true! It can't be true! Chad! Do you know what's happened to Ichigo? Do you? How did this happen? I tried to educate him so many times as to the beauty of breasts and I thought he understood! How? How can things now be like this? How can Ichigo forsake boobies and soft female skin? How can he fall into the dark? How, Chad?"
"Um..."
"They were holding hands when they came through the school gates. Ichigo was holding hands with a freakin' guy! And not just any guy. The gloomy nerd that everyone is supposed to hate! It's a fundamental rule of the schoolyard and Ichigo has broken it in so many blasphemous ways! Boys of our age aren't gay! And if they are they at least have the decency to hide it until we've all graduated and then they become those shocking scandals that you hear about years later when we're discussing what happened to all the guys we hated at school around a bottle of sake in some bar surrounded by sexy women serving us even more sake. And it's never supposed to be your friend who is at the heart of a scandal!"
"Um. Being gay is hardly a scandal."
"Don't defend him, Chad! We need to do something! He's dating Ishida! I-shi-da! They spend enough time together as it is and now they'll be no stopping them and Ichigo will never have time for me! It's not fair! I've known Ichigo for years! How can he ditch me for a guy?"
"Um..."
"Chad! Do something, do something, DO SOMETHING!"
Keigo. He always overreacted to everything. Chad liked that about him. Keigo had a furious energy that was mesmerising to someone like Chad who had never really known what to say or do in social circles. But in addition, that energy was something that Chad had never been quite sure how to respond to.
"Um..."
Chad, Rukia and Orihime had just arrived at the school gates when Keigo came flying over in an erratic flurry of arms and legs. Chad had taken a detour this morning so that he could meet up with the girls outside Orihime's apartment. Though if the truth be told, with the sun finally showing itself and the fingers of a slight warmth slowly breaking through the season's chill, Chad would have liked to be alone to enjoy the morning in quiet contemplative thought. During stressful times, it was soothing to be quiet and to think of something completely superfluous to any of your current worries, like the beat for a new song or the beautiful sadness of golden, dying leaves being scattered across the pavement at this time of year.
But instead, the morning's walk with the girls had been a different sort of quiet; a tense silence interspersed with the odd nervous "but they're bound to understand..."
Aren't they?
"We have to save him!" said Keigo. "I told him to stop being so gay but he didn't even acknowledge that I existed!"
"Um, Keigo-"
"I hate him, I hate him!"
"You're just jealous because Ichigo is finally getting some action and you aren't," said Mizuiro, yawning as he played with the keys on his phone. "I told you ages ago he was going to turn out gay. I'm relieved he's finally admitted it to himself."
"He's not gay! He can't be gay! I hate him! And I hate that Ishida even more! He's done something weird to Ichigo. Never trust a four-eyed-"
"Keigo!" Rukia roared. She balled her fist, but just as she was about to slam it into the side of Keigo's head she stopped quickly, as if she suddenly remembered that Kuchiki Rukia, the transfer student, was the sweet kind of girl who wrapped everyone around her finger rather than bash them over the head like Kuchiki Rukia, the truth.
And even though Keigo knew who she really was now, she'd been reprising her old role anyway and Keigo, in turn, had been playing along, no doubt secretly grateful since he revelled in the simplicity of school life, which Chad knew had shattered for him after he'd discovered what had been happening right under his nose with Ichigo and the others.
"Oh Keigo, that sounds terrible!" Rukia said sweetly as she lowered her fist. "Where are they? We'll go and speak to them at once. I promise I'll make him see sense."
"Ah, Kuchiki! You're an angeeeel! Ichigo has to see the merit of girls when he sees you. This can all be fixed, right? He doesn't really wanna take it up the butt, right? Him and Ishida-"
Well, at least they came to school, Chad thought, his mind wandering as Keigo babbled and grinned at Rukia. Uryu must be feeling better. Thank god.
Because Chad didn't like to see people upset. Especially Uryu. It was all the more painful to see someone who never gave a hint of breaking down crumple in front of you. And it was Chad's fault because he should have seen this coming. He'd always known that Uryu was more vulnerable than any of them.
He shook his head. I need to stop thinking like this.
Thinking of the past and what ifs solved nothing. The important thing was to remedy them, which meant apologising to Uryu and then discussing things more calmly.
Isshin had emphasised the latter part yesterday evening. Urahara had called Isshin to explain the situation, putting the phone on loudspeaker so that Chad and the others could join in the discussion.
"The most important thing is not to panic them," Isshin had said. "I've actually met a vampire once before. If they feel threatened, they will run and I guarantee that none of us will ever see them again. I'll go out and find them and bring them back home. I can keep an eye on them while we figure out what to do."
And then it had been agreed that that Ichigo's house should be a no-go area for the rest of them.
"They need a place of safety. And when they've calmed down, you'll be able to talk to them in a more ordinary fashion. I don't know what we should do. It's the right thing to fix them, of course. But... I'm not sure how any of us will cope with the aftermath. I don't know if I want to cope with the aftermath. Ichigo has been happy these past few days. It's been a long time since I've seen him free of worry."
Chad had lain awake all night thinking about it, even though it wasn't like him to let anything circle his head. Sleep and rest were necessary and it was important not to burden such activities with worries that could be faced during the day.
But despite that, Chad had stared for hours at the dark ceiling as the moonlight gradually altered its slender shape.
Ichigo and Uryu running away? And never being seen again?
And Chad had realised, with a cruel irony, that he understood some of their fear about being separated. Because just as they feared losing one another, Chad feared losing both of them.
They're friends who actually understand me.
As amusing as Keigo was (currently explaining to Rukia with exaggerated, voluptuous gestures which famous bikini models Ichigo should date to cure him of his gay nerd fetish), Keigo was Keigo. He constantly made Chad smile and drew him into the conversation, for which Chad would always be grateful for since he didn't know how to enter conversations by himself, but Keigo was not Uryu, who Chad could talk to about typical non-boy subjects like cooking or stuffed toy repairs, or Ichigo, who Chad could talk to about anything.
Chad wouldn't know what to do if the two of them disappeared.
I'm only trying to do what's best for them.
Even if it hurts.
Because we're all friends. And we'll help you to pick up the pieces.
And somehow Chad had a feeling that whatever happened, someone was going to fall to pieces before too long.
"Keigo, where did you say Ichigo and Ishida were?" asked Chad.
"They're outside of Ichigo's classroom making a right spectacle of themselves," said Tatsuki, suddenly appearing beside him. "Orihime, I've been trying to call you since morning practice ended at the dojo, but your phone is off again."
"Oh? Sorry, Tatsuki-chan. I forgot to charge it."
"You're so forgetful. I told you to charge it every night when I gave it to you. So, what's going on with Ichigo and Ishida? I mean, it doesn't surprise me in a way, but it seems a bit sudden. I didn't even know either of them had come out."
"It's a long story. They're just not acting like themselves at the moment." Orihime pressed her hands together tightly and Chad noted her face turning red as she desperately tried not to blurt out the entire story about vampires, blood and everything else that was probably better best kept between them.
"They've been brainwashed," said Chad. "By a monster."
"M-monster?" Keigo gasped. "Is it still around?"
"No."
"You're into weird stuff again aren't you?" said Tatsuki.
"They're always into weird stuff," Mizuiro added.
Tatsuki shot a look at Chad and Rukia. "You two had better look after Orihime! What exactly has happened? You're not in danger are you? There's no weird guys-"
Orihime smiled. "No, it's not like that this time. It's just a little something that happened to Kurosaki-kun and Ishida-kun. They're fine apart from... well... Anyway, we're trying to sort it out."
"Then huuuuurry up!" cried Keigo. "I can't bear that blatantly gay behaviour! What if it's contagious? What if I find myself uncontrollable drawn to guys? Bleurgh!" He paused. "Wait, wait." His eyes suddenly grew so wide that it looked as if they might pop out of his face. "Does it work the other way? You know? If girls are exposed to it then will they start touching each other -"
"Shut up." Tatsuki rapped him on the head with her knuckles. "Can you fix them?" she asked, looking between Chad, Orihime and Rukia. "I doubt being brainwashed is good for them."
"Not at the moment, but we're working on it," said Rukia. "And first things first, we need to talk to them and tell them to get a grip."
"Oh, they've got a grip on each other all right."
Chad didn't have a problem if Ichigo was gay. He really didn't. He'd suspected that Ichigo might be for a while so it wasn't even that big of a shock. It wasn't disgusting (though equally it wasn't something Chad wanted to experiment with himself. EVER) and it wasn't something people should be afraid of admitting.
But there were some things that you really, really shouldn't have to see. He froze as he reached the corridor outside Ichigo's classroom, where a small crowd of gasping students had gathered in a semi-circle around Ichigo and Uryu. Beside him, Orihime and Rukia's mouths dropped in unison.
"Told you," said Tatsuki, sucking on a juice pack. "They're making a spectacle. Chizuru almost died of happiness when she saw them."
Ichigo had picked Uryu up and had him pressed against the corridor wall, with Uryu's legs wrapped around his waist and his hands on Ichigo's face as they kissed. Not a light kiss either. There were definitely tongues involved.
And even though Chad had known they were a 'couple' and had told himself it was cool if they really were gay (it was just the vampire part he had issues with), he still felt a bit queasy. Because they were his best friends. And... just... Tongues. Tongue kisses. And accompanying wet noises.
He heard a click beside him. Slowly Chad looked down (a long way down). Rukia was holding her phone out. It flashed as she took another photograph.
"Kuchiki...?" he said.
"Yes, Sado?"
Don't ask. Just don't.
Actually, a lot of camera phones were out. The crowd was mostly female and lots of the girls were squeeing with that funny little noise that girls made sometimes when they saw something they liked.
"And Ishida-san looks really good with contact lenses!" someone said.
"Oh."
A small sound from Orihime. Chad could have kicked himself because he should have thought of some excuse for her to wait outside in the school yard because she shouldn't be seeing this. It made Chad feel weird, but for her the shock would be much more painful because the one she loved was pressed against someone else.
But now that Orihime had seen it, Chad didn't have a clue what to do and he felt useless as he watched her eyes growing wider and wider. "Kurosaki-kun and Ishida-kun...?" she whispered.
"Um, Inoue, why don't you..."
"Wow..." Orihime muttered. She puffed up her pink cheeks as she pressed her fingers to her mouth and started chewing on them. "Oh..." Her eyes grew wider still. "They..."
Chad paused. It wasn't a look of horror on her face (far from it, in fact). She moved closer to the front of the crowd, leaning forward as Uryu tangled his fingers in Ichigo's bleached hair.
"Tongues...!" Orihime whispered. She glanced at Rukia, who was taking another photo.
"Don't worry. I'll send them to you," said Rukia.
"Oh." Orihime's face looked like a beetroot. "Thank you (I want one to use for the screensaver on my phone)."
Girls are weird.
And Chad didn't get them at all. The crowd was growing and the people at the back were jumping up as they tried to see over everyone else's heads. Some boys tried yelling some rude comments in between making vomiting sounds, but their efforts were half hearted since everybody knew that Uryu and Ichigo were not to be messed with.
"Number two and number six?" Chad heard one girl mutter to her friend. "Is this for real? Someone must have put them up to it."
"Number two and number six?" Chad repeated.
"The girls have a top twenty rating of boys in the school," said Tatsuki. "Ishida shot to number two when he became president of the student council. I think the glasses type is in fashion at the moment, though I don't get it personally. Ichigo is number six. He used to be a bit higher but he's turned a bit apish in recent months."
"The girls think his hair is weird too," Rukia added. "He does look like a delinquent."
Oh. Chad wasn't sure he needed to know about the intricacies of high school girls...
"Takeshi in 2-b is number one. And guess who's number three?" Rukia patted Chad's arm. "Girls dig that tanned skin and those toned muscles."
He really didn't need to know that (although actually, that was pretty useful information to a healthy, non-gay schoolboy).
And Chad was certain he wasn't gay. Uryu was nuts for turning down Kawada-san. And Iwata-san. And all the other girls he'd turned down, seemingly without even realising that they'd been asking him out. Though occasionally Chad had wondered if he should be gay. He knew most teenage boys didn't collect fluffy toys. Abuelo had collected teddy bears so Chad hadn't really thought it was a problem until Keigo had found out. "Chad, you know that's not normal for boys our age, right?"
Why not? Shining eyes and fluffy faces were somehow comforting in an empty apartment. And they reminded Chad of Abuelo and his collection.
"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" the girls in the corridor squealed as Ichigo pulled his mouth back from Uryu's and instead tilted his head as he aimed for Uryu's neck.
Chad froze. Surely not. Ichigo wouldn't do that here...
In a school corridor...
Though Ichigo isn't exactly himself right now.
Smiling, Uryu pressed his hand to the back of Ichigo's head to pull him closer. Ichigo opened his mouth and Chad could see teeth, larger than they should be, slowly closing around Uryu's skin.
"Ishegoingtobitehim? Shouldntwestopthem?" Rukia didn't seem to know whether to run in and thump both of them or take another picture with her camera phone.
Chad strode forward into the circle, quickly seizing the back of Ichigo's uniform to drag his mouth (and teeth) away from Uryu.
"Chad?" said Ichigo.
Now Chad was closer, he could see that Ichigo's neck was completely covered in badly concealed bruises and puncture marks.
Really didn't need to see that.
He really didn't need to know what type of person Uryu really was (apparently a bit violent and not like the quiet, prim, proper type he was supposed to be) and-
And I really don't want to think about any of that!
"This is not acceptable behaviour for school," said Chad.
They stared at him; Ichigo cautious and Uryu...
Uryu...
"Number three is getting involved!" a girl across the corridor whispered, her voice somehow managing to echo across the corridor. "It's going to be a threesome!"
"These girls are all screwed in the head," a boy somewhere muttered. "Always said that Ishida was a fucking gayboy."
"And should have known Kurosaki would be the first one he'd bum. They're always bunking off school together."
Chad had expected Uryu to still be wary and vulnerable, but instead the Quincy was glaring at him with tight blue eyes. If Uryu hadn't have been pinned between Ichigo and the wall, Chad suspected there would probably be a reiatsu bow in his hand aiming for Chad's head.
Well, at least he didn't seem so painfully frightened anymore. But that didn't mean that things were good. Because Uryu was definitely still not Uryu.
Chad pulled his hand back from Ichigio's school blazer and lowered his voice. "There's no need to think you're being attacked. I'm not trying to hurt you. Or slip you any tablets. It's just not acceptable behaviour and you know it." He glanced at Uryu. "We're sorry about yesterday. We didn't mean to upset you."
"I don't care about that anymore," said Uryu. "I've got more interesting things to think about now." He stroked Ichigo's cheek with a hand and then leaned forward and kissed him on the lips.
"He's probably right," Ichigo muttered, tilting his head away and looking around quickly at the crowd with reddened cheeks, as if he'd only just noticed everyone (though how he could have missed them was beyond Chad). "God, people are nosy." Reluctantly, he slid Uryu's legs one by one back to the floor, while Uryu glared at Chad. Chad had forgotten how good Uryu was when it came to cold looks like that.
Ishida, I'm not your enemy. I swear...
Ichigo smiled. "Ishida, don't look like that." He lowered his voice as he straightened Uryu's uniform for him. "I'll bite you later."
Chad didn't need to hear that. Or see Uryu's smile in return. Yes, it was nice to see Uryu smile for once but not in this slightly creepy way at creepy things involving blood and biting and Ichigo.
"Chad, let's have a little talk. Just you and me," said Ichigo. "Ishida, you have physics first, right? Your favourite? I don't want you to be late so I'll see you at break." Cupping Uryu's face, he kissed him on the mouth.
Tongues. Definitely tongues. The girls were squeeing again. Chad stared patiently at the ceiling.
"OK everybody, show's over," said Tatsuki, striding into the circle and clapping her hands.
"Next show starts at break and there will be a spectator fee of two hundred and fifty yen each?" said Rukia.
"Eeeeeehh?" squealed the girls in protest.
"Hoi! Don't sell tickets!" Ichigo snapped.
"Then maybe you shouldn't turn your relationship into a sideshow!" Tatsuki roared as she slammed her fist into Ichigo's stomach.
"Arisawa-san..."
Tatsuki froze. Chad froze too. Uryu was standing right behind her.
Hirenkyaku. He must have used hirenkyaku to get behind her so quickly. In school. In front of everybody.
"When did he move?" Chad heard someone muttered.
If he used it just once he could get away with it, but if this became commonplace...
"It's my job to manhandle him, Arisawa-san. I'll be angry if you damage him," said Uryu.
Tatsuki looked as if she was holding her breath and Chad could see her silently considering her options. She could beat anybody up. But actually, Uryu was an unknown power to her and with just one movement he'd made her feel completely outdone. And that knowledge made her furious because Tatsuki was not the type of person to feel inferior to anybody.
"Ishida, go to class before you're late. Or before the teachers realise how the president of the student council is acting," said Chad.
"I don't really care about any of that," Uryu answered, his eyes holding that icy, impenetrable look of his. "Whatever. See you later, Kurosaki."
Chad watched Uryu until he'd disappeared into his classroom. Beside him, Tatsuki balled her hand into a trembling fist. She swung her bag over her shoulder. "Get them back to normal," she whispered. "Or I'll break every bone in Ishida's body. I don't care if he has weird powers. I'll kill that arrogant twat if he ever dares speak to me like that again. And then I'll use his arms to bludgeon Ichigo to death. And if anything happens to Orihime, I'll do the same to you!" She raised her voice. "Orihime, let's go!"
"Um. OK." Orihime glanced between Chad and Ichigo, who was leaning against the wall, silencing any gay jibes or backside jokes from the boys with a glare that promised to kick their heads in if they didn't shut up.
"I'll fill you in later, Inoue," said Chad. He glanced at Rukia, who was staring down the corridor towards Uryu's classroom. "You too, Kuchiki."
She nodded as she lowered her voice. "We need to get this sorted as quickly as possible."
A lot of the girls were still staring, reluctant to head to class in case anything else 'exciting' happened. Chad gestured to Ichigo to follow him down the corridor to the boys' toilets, as this conversation wasn't anything he'd like to be overheard. Opening the door, he checked that all the cubicles were empty and that they were alone before speaking. "Ichigo-"
"Chad, I don't want to argue with you. We've been through a lot. Even before Hollows and everything else, we were friends and I don't want anything to change."
"How can it not change? You're human. You're not supposed to be a vampire."
"I can't help what happened to me. I know you're uneasy, but I'm still the same person. And I won't be biting anyone else. It's only Ishida, as weird as that may seem." Ichigo smiled. A small, intimate happy smile that Chad had never seen on Ichigo's face before. "It's weird, but it kinda works somehow. I guess that must be so bizarre for you and the others."
"Not really. It doesn't bother me if you're gay. I always thought you liked guys."
"EH?! Wha...t? You...?" Ichigo shook his head frantically. "I'm not gay! I just like Ishida. It's different!" He paused. "Even though Ishida can be an annoying prat at times. But anyway, it works."
"I don't mind if you like Ishida. Or if Ishida likes you, but you're not the same, Ichigo. Little things about you are different. And Ishida is behaving nothing like his usual self. He used-"
"Hirenkyaku? I'll tell him not to use it. It was out of order."
"It's not just about that. Ichigo..."
It was hard. Ichigo looked like Ichigo. Only happier in a way that Chad had never seen before. And it would be all right...
Except for the fact that a vampire raped you and forced this whole thing onto you.
Chad sighed. There was no right answer. "Ichigo, he's a wreck. Yesterday he was crying and now he seems to have no regard for anything. If the teachers had seen you both earlier, he'd lose his position on the student council. He worked so hard to get that, remember?"
Ichigo leaned against the cubicle wall, staring at the floor, his smile fading into a deeper, more furrowed expression. And Chad knew him well enough to know exactly what that expression meant.
Ichigo, you're worried about him too.
"Chad, I'll speak to him," Ichigo promised. "He'll calm down. I get that you're worried, but can we compromise? Can we see how this pans out? Stand back and watch. And maybe there won't be any need for you to find a cure. Chad, I can't lose him. And I can't let him lose me. Do you know what that would do to him? For the first time in his entire life he's happy. I don't want him to lose that."
That wasn't true. Uryu had been happy at other times but he just hadn't showed it. He was happy when he hung out with Chad, Ichigo and Orihime, even though he pretended it was a chore. Though Uryu was so complicated that he probably didn't even know what he feeling emotionally most of the time anyway.
But that was Uryu's problem. And problems could only be dealt with by dealing with them. Surrendering to a vampire's hormones wasn't a solution.
And I think Ishida has really started to understand himself better this last twelve months and he's facing up to his own complex nature.
What was happening now though could destroy him.
Chad took a deep breath. What was the best action? Isshin had said he didn't know what to do. And he'd admitted that he was a coward for wanting to leave Ichigo and Uryu be. Because they're happy and they'll definitely be unhappy if we get involved. And it'll be stressful for all of us.
There was one question though that could reveal the right course of action.
"Answer me honestly, Ichigo. Did you talk to Ishida before you turned him into a vampire? Did he consent? Or was there an argument or a fight of some kind? What happened between you both?"
He was phrasing it politely using those words because he really didn't want to speak the 'r' word aloud.
Ichigo rubbed his neck; the same thing he always did when he felt awkward about something. He stared at the floor for a second and then met Chad's gaze directly. "No."
Chad paused as Ichigo's honest brown gaze drilled into him. "To which part? Consent or a fight?"
A pause.
"Consent."
Chad had already known that would be the case. But actually hearing it out loud still made him ball his fist up and smash it into the nearest cubicle door, splintering the wood and sending a bruise rippling under the skin of his knuckles. "Damn it, Ichigo!" he roared.
He punched the door again and then swung round and hit the wall. Because he remembered that hitting something as solid and as relentless as stone had always felt useful in his unruly days. And even though it wasn't useful, it simply felt good to hit something, especially as Chad didn't let himself hit things anymore (unless they were Hollows or other enemies, of course), or admit that it was something he still enjoyed.
And the dark side of himself that he'd been repressing for many years cackled at the split in his composure.
"Chad..." Ichigo stared dumbly in shock. "You hands..."
Chad took a deep breath as he wiped the blood from his knuckles on his uniform. "No problem. Sorry."
Leaning over a sink, Chad rinsed the stone and splinters from his hands in the warm water. Ichigo handed him a hand towel. "I let you down, Chad."
Chad splashed water over his face. "It's not your fault."
Why didn't I keep an eye on you?
"I don't think vampires can regret. I don't feel bad about what happened. I know that's not normal but all that seems to matter to me is that we're happy. I'm sorry, Chad. I don't want to fight you, but Ishida is happy and I'll do anything to protect him."
Chad forced himself to smile. "At least I know Ishida is being looked after." He took a deep breath. But this solved everything. They had to find a cure. And I'm sorry if that means the two of you have to face some things you'd rather forget about.
"Ichigo, we should get to class."
I hated life before this.
Before being bitten, Uryu hadn't thought he'd hated everything. If someone had asked him if he was happy he might even have said yes since the vague contentment before being a vampire had classified as happiness to someone like Uryu. And besides that, you should never admit to someone that you weren't happy because it might either make them uncomfortable or make them feel compelled to make you happy (certainly, an idiot like Ichigo would never have let the matter drop).
But I must have hated it.
Because whenever Uryu looked back now, all he remembered was how miserable it had been to sit alone in his damp apartment every evening surrounding by the smell of Hollow blood that seemed to permanently stick to his clothes no matter how much he soaked them.
And even if he hadn't thought it a problem at the time, it must have been miserable because it hadn't involved Ichigo sitting beside him with an arm wrapped around his waist. Uryu couldn't imagine being without that, even though it had been the strangest thing in the world yesterday morning.
Lunch breaks on autumn days usually involved a warm scarf (white of course) and a book. And that one cosy chair beside the radiator in the library by the window overlooking the school yard. Books were something you could drown in; a welcome relief from the cold world outside (and the cold world inside of Uryu).
But Uryu didn't need books anymore. In fact, a book was useless now since all it would do was take him away from the world that he had once longed to escape but now wanted to revel in.
Sitting between Ichigo's legs and leaning back against his chest, Uryu stared at the sky with a vampire's eyes that could see the colour of the breeze against the blue and white. No wonder he had been miserable before this. The sky had always been a Tokyo grey through his old gaze, not a brilliant blue that Uryu couldn't help but smile at.
The frozen chill of the past few days had thawed with a comparatively mild day that smelt of dry leaves. Uryu didn't have his scarf with him. They'd left Ichigo's house early this morning so that Uryu had time to go to his apartment and get changed (with Ichigo helping, of course). But overly excited hands had made Uryu forget about his scarf, as well as most of his school books, which on any other occasion would have really irked him.
But things like that weren't important anymore. He was wrapped in Ichigo's scarf; the blue and green patterned wool encircling both of their necks as they sat together on the grassy corner of the school yard. In a role reversal, Ichigo was the one who was reading. Tilting his head, Uryu watched Ichigo's intent eyes and furrowed brow trying to take in the words of the textbook. He looked funny when he studied with his forehead screwed up like that and his cheeks slowly puffing as he neared an angry grump about something in the book he couldn't understand.
Uryu brushed a finger against Ichigo's cheek. "Hey Kurosaki, it looks like you need a break. What classes do you have this afternoon? Sports and Japanese?"
"You know my timetable better than me. I need to read this for class but it's boring."
Uryu smiled. "Then let's go."
"Huh?"
"Let's go somewhere."
"After school?"
Such a dumb vacant expression on Ichigo's face that seemed far more amusing than Uryu remembered it looking. "No, idiot. Now. It's warmer today and the sun is out. I know a nice place out of town up in the hills. Nobody ever goes there so we won't be disturbed."
"Ohhhhhh?" Ichigo grinned. "And what would we do when we got there?"
"Whatever we want. Because Sado-kun won't be there to stop us."
Uryu supposed that a school corridor wasn't the best place to succumb to vampire urges, but it wasn't as if similar things didn't happen in the school since there always seemed to be some student clamped to another student's face in the corridor at break times (really, when had schools in Japan started to go downhill?). And if everyone else was allowed to couple up then Uryu didn't see why Chad should take offence.
And it was just rude to interrupt moments like that.
Ichigo chuckled. "Not like you to skip classes. You downright resent it when I drag you out to take on Hollows. What's with this change of opinion?"
Sitting up, Uryu rearranged himself in Ichigo's lap until he was sat astride him. He plucked the literature book out of Ichigo's hands and draped his arms around his neck. "There are far more interesting things in this world than Hollows, Kurosaki. And classes."
Like everything that happened last night.
Ichigo sighed as he leaned his forehead against Uryu's. Gently he unravelled Uryu's fingers from the book. "Do you know how hard it is to say no to you?"
"Why would you even want to say no? I'll never fall behind and I can make sure that you don't either."
And it's not as if I'll be able to concentrate in class at the moment anyway.
"Because..." Ichigo kissed him lightly on the lips but before he could pull away, Uryu clasped his face and pressed their mouths together tightly. He felt Ichigo trying to draw away but he refused to let him go until they were both out of breath.
"Ishida..." Ichigo's brow was furrowed again. If possible, the wrinkles were even deeper than they had been earlier and Ichigo looked so funny that Uryu couldn't help but laugh.
"What's with that look? You're brooding on something. I don't like it."
"You're not acting like yourself. You hate skipping classes."
"You skip them all the time."
"But you don't. And I heard a rumour you got in trouble for not doing your physics homework. It gets round quickly when someone like you doesn't do their homework, Ishida."
"When have I had time to do it? I'll catch up later. I promise."
Though maybe the homework wasn't worth doing. Uryu knew those equations and the rules behind them inside out so it was pointless to do any more of them. He hadn't even gotten into trouble this morning; it had just been a slightly sarcastic comment from sensei. People like Uryu never got into trouble because his grades were too good.
But Ichigo was still frowning at him and his eyes were adopting that stern, worried look Ichigo had sometimes. The look that Uryu had always hated because he could feel it eating up Ichigo's insides.
"Kurosaki, don't worry," he said softly. "It really doesn't matter."
Ichigo cupped Uryu's face. "I think all that blood you drank last night has gone to your head."
Uryu smiled as the thought came to his mind. "One of them anyway," he answered coyly.
And forcing the dirty comment out of his mouth was worth every effort as he saw the expression on Ichigo's face. The frown lines vanished into surprise amid a stawberry-red blush and a burst of laughter.
"You didn't just say that... Ishida Uryu would never say something like that!"
Uryu pressed his head against Ichigo's shoulder to hide his own red face, although actually he might be able to get used to talking like this since it elicited such a pleasing reaction from Ichigo. "So, are we going to leave?"
"All right, we'll go to this place you know, but after school. And if you're a good boy then I'll let you bite me wherever you want."
Still the reluctance to cut classes, which was slightly offensive considering the number of times Ichigo had run out of school for lowly Hollows. Uryu sat up. "I'm biting you whether you like it or not."
"Oh rea-"
Uryu leaned forward, pressing his lips against Ichigo's neck and biting through the skin.
"Uryu!" Ichigo hissed. "People are watching!"
People had been watching them and whispering all lunchtime. Uryu would usually have been the first to shuffle away at such attention since he didn't like the sensation of eyes scrutinising his every move (reminded him of Ryuken as he searched for something to criticise), but weirdly it didn't feel bad today. And actually he liked the way the attention changed the colour of Ichigo's face and made him squirm slightly.
"Ishida..." Ichigo's voice was somewhere been desperation and a euphoric gasp.
Uryu sucked hard enough to drag a moan from Ichigo's lips before relaxing his jaw enough to speak. "I forgot. Shinigami aren't used to be seen are they? I like it when you're nervous. You're such a brash idiot most of the time that it's nice to see that you have some character depth."
He bit down again, nibbling lightly against the skin as he sucked. Blood seeped across the grey of Ichigo's colour, slowly staining the grain of the fabric. "Oh Kurosaki," Uryu murmured. "Your uniform is getting soiled."
Which means I'll just have to take you out of it.
"What happened to my nervous Ishida?" Ichigo muttered, but he was grinning as he wrapped an arm around Uryu to pull him closer. "I miss discounting your complaints." Ichigo leaned forward, licking the front of Uryu's throat for a second before slowly biting him.
Uryu tilted his head back as he tangled his hands in Ichigo's hair. Around them, he could feel the eyes from students desperate to soak up every detail of the scandalous scene that was occupying the school yard so that they could gossip about it later. And for the first time Uryu suddenly realised the power that he and Ichigo occupied in the school. Two kissing boys in any school would become a target for being beaten up (because kids are stupid and immature when it came to things like that), but nobody had dared try to beat Uryu up in years because everybody knew that he could mop the floor with anybody. And even if he didn't then Ichigo was usually around to break their teeth.
The two of us together means that we can get away with anything we want.
And how many times had Uryu walked past disgusting couples in the school corridors flaunting their excessive emotions? Reminding Uryu that there were some things he'd probably never have.
So it's my turn now.
And it was particularly satisfying since he knew how many girls were after Ichigo. He moaned as Ichigo bit deeper, pulling his head closer as the blood loss turned him dizzy.
Ichigo licked the last few drops from Uryu's neck as the school bell suddenly droned across the yard. He kissed Uryu on the lips, leaving behind traces of blood for Uryu to taste.
"You've had what you wanted now back to class with you," said Ichigo. "How else will you be my perfect Uryu without those sickeningly perfect grades of yours, bookworm?"
"Grades don't matter anymore. As long as I have you, I'm happy. I don't need anything else."
Ichigo paused. A few drops of blood remained at the corner of his mouth so Uryu leaned forward and licked them away, in exchange for a red-smeared print that he left across Ichigo's lips.
"Ishida, I'd rather you were still you," said Ichigo softly.
Uryu laughed. "Why are you being so weird? I told you it's fine. I'm just happy at the moment. Things have never been like this before." He wrapped his arms tightly around Ichigo as he leaned against his shoulder and rearranged the scarf about their necks. Cold days don't have to be cold anymore.
"Go to class, Ishida."
"Not going." Uryu used his teeth to pull down the zip of Ichigo's blazer and then gently undid the top button of his school shirt. He pressed his mouth against the skin. He couldn't go to class, not when he could smell the blood from the raw marks on Ichigo's neck. And what Uryu had just drank was not enough. And just being close like this wasn't enough either. Because last night had been wonderful, but also awkward in certain places as Uryu figured things out. Uryu didn't like not knowing how to do something and a repeat without the fumbling would show Ichigo that he knew what he was doing
A low rumble suddenly reverberated across the school yard, although nobody else moving across the yard to get to classes seemed to hear it. Ichigo sat bolt upright. "Hollow."
Uryu shrugged. He'd sensed it earlier, but it wasn't a high level. "I can shoot it from here, though Kuchiki-san will be able to sense it too."
And it was her job more than Ichigo's to deal with Hollows since she didn't have to juggle a real life and the spirit world.
Ichigo paused, staring at the substitute badge tied to the loop of his school trousers.
"Kurosaki, instead of skipping classes for a Hollow, why don't you leave it to Kuchiki-san and instead skip classes with me? She's already left the school. You can sense her too, right?"
"I guess so." Ichigo looked out through the fence over the city. "It doesn't seem to be at a high level. They should know better than to come here by now."
Uryu smiled as he clasped Ichigo's hands. "So let's go."
"All right. Let's go."
So Isshin, Yuzu and Karin know, Ichigo's friends know. Who's going to be next to find out I wonder...
Heh.