Another update! Sorry I'm focusing on this fic, it's just because I'm ending it soon and I want to get it done. Don't worry, there will be another... I might end it on a cliffie. =) Okay, on with the story. I'm sure you're tired of my ramblings ;p

Chapter 13

Ichigo is taking a bath that night, his mind working over what he's going to say to Grimmjow. As much as he wants to be with the teal haired male, he simply can't forget that this was all nothing more than sex and he can't live on a relationship like that. Shiro may think differently, but Ichigo is human and this is how he's thinking… If Grimmjow hasn't told him he loves him, he can't assume he does. The orangette would be devastated if he fell for the other and found out the feeling wasn't mutual. There's a knock on the door, the teen jumping a bit startled as the door cracks open and Grimmjow peeks in.

"You okay?" he wonders.

"Yeah," Ichigo states before frowning. "You know what? No, not really. Come sit with me?"

Grimmjow hesitates, yet enters all the way and closes the door behind him. He stands beside the tub, however Ichigo's eyes are still expectant and he knows immediately what the other wants. Ichigo has never had to tell him anything, Grimmjow has always instinctively known what the other has needed and visa-versa. He unties the sash holding up his sleeping pants, letting them pool to the floor. Ichigo smirks, knowing both he and Grimmjow hate wearing the traditional underwear with the old Japanese clothing around Seireitei, and scoots forward so the other can sit behind him. Grimmjow sighs as he sinks into the hot water, his legs parting enough for Ichigo to lean back into his chest comfortably.

"I want to talk to you about something," Ichigo mumbles. "It's about Shuuhei."

"… I don't like him, Ichi," Grimmjow frowns.

"I know, but… he's really nice, Grimm," Ichigo remarks as he looks up through his lashes at the other. "He said I can stay with you as well. It's just experimenting, Grimm."

Grimmjow sighs in annoyance, knowing this is going to take time away from him. He glances down at the amber eyed orangette, frowning just a bit in his inner debate. The other is so quiet, so uncharacteristically patient, and his amber orbs are so expectant. Finally, the teal haired male decides to try and talk the other out of his decision.

"You know, Ichi, these sorts of things never work," he remarks pointedly.

"… What do you mean?"

"You're eventually gonna show more attention to one or the other," Grimmjow informs. "When that happens someone is likely to get jealous, which will lead to a falling out between the alphas, and then there might be a fight… it's just too much stress."

"You don't want me to," Ichigo murmurs sadly. "It's not permanent, Grimm, I just want to try."

"Why?" he states angrily. "Why do you want to try? Are you not happy with what we have? Am I not enough for you anymore?"

"It's not that, Grimm. It's just… I can't live forever with just a bedmate," Ichigo says quietly. "I like being with you and I don't want to leave you, but… I need someone who loves me as well. If Shuuhei is going to let me stay with you while I try for a real relationship, I don't see what's so wrong with that."

Grimmjow can only stare at the smaller male, irritated his human emotions are fucking around with what they've managed to create. It may not be much and Grimmjow may not be able to give all Ichigo needs emotionally, but he's doing a damn good job taking care of him and that should be enough! He wants to yell at the younger male, shake him hard, fuck him until he can't stand anymore and he knows where his place is. As much as he wants to do all that, his finds himself opening his mouth to speak.

"Okay," he remarks with a shock to his disconnected mind. "If that's what you want."

"Thanks, Grimm!" Ichigo grins widely. "You know… I wouldn't have done it if you didn't want me to, but I'm glad you understand."

Grimmjow hums his agreement, holding Ichigo tighter unconsciously. The orangette doesn't catch the possessiveness within the hold, nor does he sense the minute desperation in the ex-Espada. Grimmjow has never had a mate as close at Ichigo, so he certainly doesn't want to allow a chance to lose him. He can only pray this Shuuhei guy is an asshole and won't work out, hopefully putting Ichigo off to the idea of leaving him for good. Ichigo wraps his arms around Grimmjow's neck and kisses him deeply, attempting to turn and straddle his lap. Grimmjow denies him the opportunity to turn around, yet gives him the kiss… Ichigo doesn't need sex right now, he needs sleep.

"Grimm? Are you mad at me?" he asks curiously. "I don't have to go with Shuuhei…"

"You're exhausted, Ichi," he points out.

"I can still…"

"No, you need sleep. I'm not gonna push you to have sex tonight, I never push you," Grimmjow frowns. "And that Shinigami better not either!"

Ichigo rolls his eyes, getting comfortable once more against the teal haired man. Grimmjow sighs, listening to Ichigo's breathing until it evens out in sleep. The teal haired man carefully shits Ichigo in his arms and pulls the plug, lifting the other so as not to wake him and grabbing a couple towels before leaving the bathroom. The bedroom has a small couch against one wall, so he lies the orangette down there and dries him off. He repeats the process on himself, pulling back the blankets and retrieving the smaller male to get him comfortable in the bed. Ichigo cuddles into his pillow and Grimmjow wakes around the bed to get in on the other side. He doesn't close his eyes once he's lying down, his mind far too preoccupied with the possibility of Shuuhei stealing his lover from him. With a miserable sigh, he just stares at the ceiling. Sensing his inner turmoil even in his slumber, Ichigo turns around and instead cuddles into his lover.

"Ichi… You don't need anyone but me," he whispers. "But I'll give you this just once… Make it count, because it's never happening again."

Ichigo mumbles in his sleep, tightening his hold on Grimmjow and smiling minutely. He scoots as closely as possible, sprawling half his body on Grimmjow and sighing in content. The teal haired man snorts in humor, Ichigo's right arm flung over his stomach and one leg tangled between the muscular male's. With a soft gaze the ex-Espada wraps Ichigo in strong arms once more and forces himself to fall into a fitful sleep.

The next morning Ichigo is startled awake by Grimmjow's low and feral snarl, the orangette lifting his head quickly and drowsily. He looks around in search of the sound's owner, finding it when it's repeated by a still deeply sleeping Grimmjow. Ichigo stretches in a feline manner without moving from his spot atop the other, shifting his position so both his legs are between the other's and he's pillowing his head in his arms over Grimmjow's chest. He watches the other for a long while, and then the snarl comes once more.

"Grimm," Ichigo murmurs. "Wake up."

He reaches a hand up and tugs gently on a strand teal lock, moving his hand to poke the other's cheek. Grimmjow hisses angrily in his slumber, the orangette furrowing his brow before moving a bit. The hiss turns to a strangled moan and Grimmjow's eyes snap open, wild and detached as he attempts to separate dream from reality. His cyan eyes land on Ichigo's calm amber, the teen smiling sweetly.

"Good morning!" he grins. "What were you dreaming about?"

"… Nothing," the muscular man states groggily. "How long you been up?"

"I just woke up."

They get ready for the day as they normally do, Ichigo making breakfast while Grimmjow showers and then switching off to reduce the risk of the orangette getting jumped. Normally he doesn't mind it, but in Seireitei you never know when it would be most beneficial to be able to move quickly. As Grimmjow showers and Ichigo fixes breakfast today, a knock on the door distracts him. He sets the food off to the side; glad to at least have it finished, and then hurries to answer the door. He's dressed in nothing more than Grimmjow's dress shirt from home, which is long enough to cover everything and make him look as though he's swimming in it, so when he answers the door to see Shuuhei on the other side his blush is instantaneous.

"Sh-Shuuhei!" he gasps.

"Hey, Ichi… cute jammies," the raven snickers teasingly.

"It's G-Grimm's shirt."

"… Oh. Is he up?"

"Showering."

"Ah. I was wondering if you'd like to go to lunch with me today."

Ichigo blushes a tad brighter, fiddling with the hem of his shirt as he tries to answer. He doesn't know what's wrong with him, he never acts like this with Grimmjow and he certainly never does this with any humans that hit on him. It's not like he doesn't know the raven and he doesn't exactly care if he impresses him or not, so why is he getting so flustered?

"Ichi?"

Oh yeah… because Grimmjow should be getting out of the shower any minute. Ichigo sighs, opening the door for Shuuhei to enter before hurrying to the bathroom. Grimmjow is just getting out of the shower, opening the door just as Ichigo reaches it. Shuuhei is shocked at the sight of nothing but tan skin and perfect muscle, Grimmjow never shy enough to cover himself even here. He pulls the orangette closer and kisses him deeply; pulling away as though that's such a natural thing it's like breathing.

"You see that outfit that friend of yours let me borrow, Kitten?"

*Kitten? * Shuuhei frowns inwardly.

"Yeah, Grimm, I put it in the dresser in the bedroom," Ichigo smiles. "I'll show you, come on."

"You make the bed?"

"What the hell do I look like? You're little house maid?" the orangette snaps though there's no real heat there. "And yes, I made the damn bed."

"Who was at the door?"

Their voices die down as they enter the bedroom, the raven sitting down at the table to wait for the smaller male to rejoin him. He expects Ichigo to come back sooner, but Grimmjow is the one that stalks over near him. His eyes are icy and glittering with malice, his fangs bared as that quiet growl so reminiscent of a wild cat rumbles from his chest, and Shuuhei just knows this whole mess is a bad idea. Grimmjow sits across from him after retrieving his breakfast, scowling feral and hoping to instill enough fear to chase the Shinigami off.

"Where's Ichigo?" Shuuhei asks a calmly as possible.

"Getting a quick shower. Don't worry, I promised I wouldn't kill you."

"… Um…"

"Look, I don't like you," Grimmjow hisses. "I don't like that you're stepping on my territory, I fucking hate that Ichigo even considered your proposal for a fucking second, and I'd love to kill you for even suggesting it! I'm allowing this, I told him it was okay and he wouldn't have done anything of the sort if I said otherwise… Be fucking grateful! If you hurt him in any way, I swear to you there is no Shinigami army that can save you from my wrath! I'll be hanging out with Shiro today… coming up with ways to beat the living shit out of you should you be stupid enough to deserve it. Have a nice time!"

Grimmjow gives him a large grin, showcasing those abnormally sharp canines, and picks up his plate to walk off. Shuuhei is pale, fear screaming in the back of his mind, and that's exactly how Ichigo finds him a few minutes later.

"I'm so sorry Grimm gave you such a hard time," Ichigo apologizes once more.

They're sitting at a small restaurant together, having taken a long walk after Ichigo's shower, and the orangette hasn't stopped apologizing since he found Shuuhei on the brink of passing out. The raven chuckles and shakes his head, trying to push away the earlier scene that seemed so natural to the two. Seeing them together gave the other a sick feeling of betrayal, like he's trying to seduce a married woman without the knowledge of her husband.

"He seems to really care about you," he tests.

"Grimm?" Ichigo laughs. "We get along well enough, but we're only fooling around."

"… Does he know that?"

"Of course he does, he suggested it," the orangette remarks in confusion. "Let's not talk about that now, we're supposed to on a date."

Shuuhei catches Ichigo's unease and knows it's time to change the subject, he has the orangette to himself and that's all that matters. Their lunch afterward is nice and quiet, the two laughing and conversing in a friendly manner. Ichigo feels warm in Shuuhei's presence, the feeling welcome after being out of a relationship for longer than he's used to. He smiles at the raven haired Shinigami, his amber eyes soft and content, and Shuuhei returns it although the joy in those eyes when they look at Grimmjow haunts him.

Shiro is lying on the bed with Grimmjow, both of them staring at the ceiling as they impatiently wait for their orangette to get back. Shiro was all for following his aibou and destroying any semblance of romance that might occur, but Grimmjow was positive he'd only make things worse. With a lack of things to do, they did indeed think up every form of torture possible for the one intruding on their territory. Now, however, a morbid air hangs about them.

"What if he leaves?" Grimmjow murmurs.

"He ain't gonna leave ya, dumbass!"

"What if he does?"

"Then we get him back," Shiro scoffs. "Duh."

Grimmjow sighs, nodding in agreement absently. Shiro stretches and yawns, scooting around to use Grimmjow's stomach as a pillow. He starts when a hand starts running through his snowy hair, yet knows the teal haired male doesn't realize he's doing so and lets it go.

"He doesn't need that Shuuhei guy," Grimmjow growls. "That idiot won't know the things I know. He won't know when Ichi's sad and he's hiding it, when he needs to cry but he's too proud to, when he doesn't want to do something but says he does just to make someone feel better… Oh my god!"

"Ouch!" Shiro snaps when his hair is pulled roughly.

"What if that asshole tries to get my Kitten to have sex with him!" he shouts as he sits up and dumps Shiro off him.

Shiro grumbles irately, rubbing the tender spot on his scalp as he scowls at the other. The comment slowly falls into place within his mind, those golden eyes widening before narrowing in bloodlust. Grimmjow, on the other hand, has already starting stressing to the point Shiro can't get a word in. The snowy haired male growls quietly, glowering at the other as he listens to him rant.

"I don't think I stand someone else touching Ichigo!" he gasps. "Fuck! I'll fucking kill that Shinigami piece of shit! You don't think Ichi would have sex with him, do you? He'll come back, right? He won't… Mm!"

Shiro cuts him off with a rough kiss, his long pale fingers yanking on teal locks in a bit of vengeance. Grimmjow's eyes are wide and shocked, yet he gathers his wits quickly and pushes Shiro away before swinging at him. The white haired male cackles as he dodges the fist, ducking the second and tackling the larger man to the bed before pinning both dangerous hands.

"Whoa, chill!" he snaps. "I just couldn' take yer bitchin'. Ichi ain't leavin' ya, 'kay? He'll be back an' he'll probably try ta date Shuuhei again, but he ain't leavin' ya. Eventually, he'll figure out yer all he needs. I'll make sure of it."

"But…"

Shiro leans down and kisses the other once more, thoroughly enjoying the mix of pleasure and anger. A low growl answers the tongue licking the large male's bottom lip and Shiro leans away, a large grin on his face.

"What's wrong, Grimm-kitty? I ain't sexy 'nough fer ya?"

"I'm not fucking beta, get yer ass off me unless you plan on riding me," he spits out.

"… Fair 'nough," Shiro grumbles with a pout.

He lets Grimmjow go, flopping back on the bed and returning to his chiseled pillow of before. Grimmjow growls, but complains no more and doesn't make a move to toss him back. They lay there a while longer before the need to check on Ichigo becomes too great. One look from Grimmjow and Shiro grins widely, his body slowly vanishing as he heads to the inner world he's been temporarily banned from.

Ichigo and Shuuhei are sitting at the raven's place, talking and drinking happily. Ichigo doesn't like to drink, but it helps to ease his mind and calm his nerves. He doesn't notice the extra presence within his mind, too intent on the hand stroking his own intimately.

"Do you like Grimmjow, Ichigo?" Shuuhei wonders. "You seem really stuck on him."

"Grimmjow is great!" Ichigo grins a bit drunkenly.

"So why did you agree to come out with me?"

"We're just fooling around," he shrugs. "That's all. I like him and we get along well, but we don't love each other… I don't think."

"What do you like about him?"

"He's really funny! He's good to me and takes care of me… and he's really hot! And he's fucking amazing in bed!"

"… I bet I'm better," Shuuhei remarks boldly.

Ichigo snickers at that, leaning forward without realizing it and grinning provocatively. Shuuhei takes that as an invitation, leaning forward until their noses are touching. When Ichigo doesn't pull away, he closes the distance and touches their lips. Ichigo, his mind finally catching up with his body, gasps in surprise and the raven slips his tongue into his mouth.

*What the fuck! * Shiro screams in Ichigo's mind. *Hell no! I'll kill that bitch! *

The alcohol is working in Shuuhei's favor, his hands running up and down Ichigo's arms, and the orangette is too tipsy to stop him… not that he's particularly eager to. He moans into the kiss, his mind working furiously to figure out what the hell it missed and when it took a wrong turn. As it navigates back to the rest of the teen, Ichigo's body happily does as it pleases.

"You're so beautiful, Ichigo," Shuuhei whispers. "I'll show you that you don't need to waste your time on that Arrancar."

*That's it! Now I'm pissed! * Shiro hisses. *Try an' ruin all my hard deceptive work! I'll show ya. *

Ichigo doesn't quiet register the furious voice within his mind, the alcohol dulling even that, but he does note that this kiss isn't as satisfying as the ones he shares with Grimmjow. It's not that it isn't nice… it's very sweet. He likes the occasional gentle kisses and it sparks something, but nothing as overpowering as his lover. He goes to pull away, yet Shuuhei drapes an arm over his shoulders and pulls him closer. Before he can get further, Shiro jumps forward within Ichigo's consciousness. Ichigo's eyes shine gold, the red marks that frame the left eye of his mask bleed onto his skin, and a fist embeds itself into Shuuhei's stomach. He breaks the kiss and gasps, eyes turning to Ichigo in question… and fear sends ice through his veins.

Dun, dun, duuuuuun D8 How would you like to end a kiss seeing that? Okay, that's not a fair question... some of you would probably love it! ;p Anyway, how are you liking my twist so far? I really have to get away from Ichigo and alcohol... that's probably exactly why he made all those other bad decisions concerning his relationships.