Chapter 11: Give Thanks and a Throw Down

Orihime stewed in everything she'd heard the following day. The morning of Thanksgiving found her no closer to any answers. Grimmjow showed up to pick her up at around noon. She had dressed nicely, a skirt and sweater. She had even bought a muffin basket the day before from C&S as a hostess gift for Grimmjow's mom. She was still holding out hope that all of this was just people trying to ruin her relationship maliciously, and Grimmjow was everything he promised her he was.

She refused to think about that magical cup of coffee or the warm, dry brush of Ulquiorra's clove and tobacco flavored lips.

"You're quiet," Grimmjow said as they drove. "I should have brought a bottle of wine. Today already is tense. I hope my uncle Fred isn't drunk as fuck when we get there."

"Sorry," Orihime said. "I have a lot on my mind. I did pick up a muffin basket for your mom, though. You can say it's from both of us," she offered with a smile.

He glanced at her. "Really? You're a peach," Grimmjow smiled for a moment. As usual people were driving like idiots… He almost flipped off the person in the lane beside him. "It's nice of you to do that Hime."

She shrugged. "It's the least I can do," she muttered. "You've been busy lately, even more than usual. I figured you would not have time to think about it."

"Things have been busy. End of the year is coming, Kuchiki wants accounts done. Speaking of which, have you talked with Ulq about his logo? I would like it done by December fifteenth," Grimmjow said as he got off I-94 by the exit ramp. He turned right to make his way to the small city.

Orihime scoffed. "No. I sent him a message to get back to me on Tuesday again, and he ignored it again. I even went to see him. He changed the subject to coffee and flowers," she floated the partial truth past him. "I'll try again," she said, taking out her phone.

Grimmjow's blue eyes glanced at Orihime and then back at the street he was now driving down. "He wants his logo to have something to do with coffee and flowers? He's an oddball. I should take you past his childhood home."

Orihime shrugged and made a noncommittal noise. "Is it anything special?"

"A four-million dollar coastal home on the lake is something special," Grimmjow said. "The guy is a multimillionaire. He's been one since the age or four or five. It's like a six bedroom house? I don't know. It's massive compared to my mom's little apartment."

Orihime blinked. That didn't make sense. That didn't fit her view of Ulquiorra Cifer. "If that's the case, why is he running day shifts at a coffee house?"

Grimmjow looked over at her as he stopped at a red light. "His parents died when he was young. Something went wrong with their car. They got in a wreck and it caught on fire. His uncle, who is a prick, brought him to the scene. So Ulq had to deal with that. He inherited his father's fortune and continues to make money off his dad's name. He told me that he doesn't think he's earned it and wanted to make his own way in life. He doesn't drive. He walks everywhere or uses Uber or the train. He's like a normal guy. He just became more guarded after… well… after the shit hit the fan."

Orihime frowned. "What shit hit whose fan?"

"Ulq's been to prison."

"WHAT?" Her entire body whipped in his direction. Her voice was not overly loud, but sharp.

Grimmjow nodded as he started driving again. "Yeah, uh… He was seeing this person. Me and Nnoi swore they were female. Ulq thought they were too. Luppi is a guy. Ulq wasn't comfortable with that so he broke it off and Luppi attacked him. Ulquiorra stabbed him. He did three months in and then spent a lot of time on probation. Luppi's living a comfy life in St. Louis, I think."

Orihime was shocked. She looked from Grimmjow to the street and back several times before asking, "But it was self-defense, right? I mean, surely a guy like Ulquiorra would never stab someone for no reason."

"It was self-defense, but Luppi said it was a hate crime or something," Grimmjow replied. He turned another corner and they found themselves in front of some townhouses. They looked like they'd seen better days. "Nnoi's been to prison, too, but that's not surprising. Look at the guy. Only thing I've gotten in trouble for was drunk driving when I was… Shit… That was almost ten years ago."

"How old are you?" she asked. She knew, but the math didn't add up.

"You're asking that now? Twenty-six. Ulq's about to turn twenty-five."

"I know you're twenty-six. Nnoitra told me. I asked because I'm trying to understand when you got a drunk driving. You must have just gotten your license."

Grimmjow nodded. "Yeah, I had just gotten it, we took Aizen's car with Ulq, Nel, and Nnoi and some other bitch and went joy riding. Are we going in? My mom is peeking through the window."

"Oh, we're here?" She didn't realize; she had been too wrapped up in the conversation. "Poor Ulquiorra, though. Apart from the money, it sounds like his life has just been one double decker shit sandwich."

"Eh, it's had its moments. I can tell you that much. When he moved to Evanston to go to college, he was happy. He's been running that coffee shop since his sophomore year but it was called something else, like Espresso IV or something," he said.

She smiled at that. "Why did he change it?" she asked, obviously intrigued.

"Dunno, never gave us a straight answer. I mean I've speculated," he said. "It could have been because of his parents. It could be because of a girlfriend he lost. It could because his existence is sad." Grimmjow looked at Orihime and patted her leg. "Cmon, before I decide to take you to a hotel and have my way with you. You're looking too cute today."

She blushed at his words. He always made her feel like this when they were together. "Okay, okay, if I gotta go be social…" she teased, grabbing the basket of muffins and her purse and opening the door.

As soon as the couple walked into the door, Grimmjow knew his mom did not like Orihime. "What are those?" the older blonde woman asked, pointing at the muffins. "I'm doing keto, Grimmjow, and look at your damn hair. Didn't I tell you to shave it and let your natural color come in? If God wanted you to have blue fucking hair, you would have come out with it and not blonde. I bet you still got that damn number tattooed-"

"Mom! Shut up. Damn. I came all the way up here and you're already-"

"Ungrateful brat," the woman said and huffed her way back to the kitchen.

Grimmjow sighed. "That's my mom."

Orihime's face was white. Her fingers had a death grip on the basket of muffins and she was breathing almost erratically. This woman reminded her of her mother; the one she had not seen since her brother's funeral. She was mentally transported right back to that day for a moment. She wanted nothing more than to get out of that apartment and never come back.

"Come the hell in and quit letting the damn warm air out! I'm not heating the outside up!" The woman screamed.

Grimmjow slammed the door shut after moving Orihime out of the way and walked into the living room. There were several people sitting around. "Hime, this is Fred, Martha, Janice and Tony. Martha is my mom's cousin and Janice is her sister. There was another aunt but she's fucked off-"

"Don't say that about Nancy," Grimmjow's mother said. "Who is this? Ain't the green-haired trollop you brought around the last time."

"This is my-friend, Orihime. We're seeing each other. I thought I'd bring her up to meet you."

Her eyes met his for a moment. What the hell was going on here? Why was he calling her his friend? She said nothing to the people in the living room, just nodded silently without even a smile, trying to make herself small and disappear.

"I guess put the muffins on the table. Someone can get fat off eating them."

"Now, now Ellen. Be kind," the woman named Martha said as she got out of the chair and shuffled over to the kitchen. "Let me help you. You've been at this for days."

"How can I be kind when he's bringing some woman in here, looking like she's about to get knocked up. Look at her skirt! It's fucking cold outside-"

"C'mon Hime," Grimmjow said. He took the muffins from her and set them on an end table before he walked to the front door then opened it.

Orihime made no arguments. She walked out of the door and kept going. She didn't stop until she was at the car door.

There was some yelling and Grimmjow slammed the door before he unlocked the car. His footsteps were angry as he stomped down the sidewalk and got into the vehicle. He just muttered to himself as he started the car.

Orihime slid into her seat and put her seatbelt on. She gripped the hem of her skirt and unconsciously tried to pull it down past her knees. Her throat was burning and the backs of her eyes were starting to sting. She felt completely humiliated and traumatized.

The entire trip back to Evanston was quiet, with Grimmjow driving aggressively. He was mad. It was one fucking holiday that he wanted to show off his lady and his mother had ruined it. He had ruined it too. He should have told the woman that it was his girlfriend and not just a friend but he knew his mother would freak out more. "You want me to drop you off at home?" He asked as he entered the city limits.

She nodded rapidly, finally clearing her throat and whispering, "Yes."

"I'm really sorry about that Orihime. I thought… She was obviously drinking or something. Maybe it was stress. I have no fucking clue. She's batshit crazy," Grimmjow said. It only was less than ten minutes later that he was pulling up to her building. He put the car in park and looked at her. "You want me to come up or..."

She sat there, breathing irregularly; pulling a breath and letting it all out quickly, and then pausing before doing it again. She didn't know what she wanted. "If you want to, it's fine. If you have work or something it's okay," she finally murmured, looking at the dashboard.

"I didn't plan on doing work today, but that's a good idea. I can have shit done before I meet that bossy bitch again," Grimmjow said, pondering this idea. "I'll make this up to you. We'll go somewhere fancy for Christmas, because I am not going back there. I'll see you this weekend maybe, or on Monday, okay?"

She nodded. Her head was hurting. Her heart was hurting, too. She just wanted to get into bed and not leave for a couple of days, maybe. "Okay. Don't work too hard, alright?" she said, offering him a sad smile.

He leaned over and gave her a kiss. "We can do our own thing next Thanksgiving," he said with a nod.

Orihime nodded, leaning her forehead against his lips. "Sounds good. I'll talk to you later." she said, before sitting back and opening the car door.

"Hey!" he said just before she closed it. He leaned over and looked at her. "Make sure you call Ulquiorra and get him to commit. Okay?"

She felt like he had slapped her in the face. She was sure he was going to tell her he loved her, but this veiled threat is what she got. The heat in her face wrapped around her head quickly, fading into the back of her ears before it disappeared. "I'll do that after I calm down," she said. "Don't worry about it. If I can't get him to agree I'll take responsibility and resign. I have finals to concentrate on anyway."

"Orihime, my job is on the line, so get it done," he said. Grimmjow sighed. "I'm gonna go so I can hopefully salvage it. I'll call you."

"Okay. Good luck," she said, thinking more along the lines of fuck you. "I love you," she said as she closed the door.

Grimmjow blew her a kiss before he took off.


-Dinner. December 11th. I'll pick you up or we can meet at C&S. Dress is fancy-ish. Bring your work.

That's what he looked at when he was typing out the text message on the day after Thanksgiving. He had given up. Orihime was with Grimmjow and it was time to hang up the torch he had been carrying for her since she walked into his coffee shop with her gaggle of friends. He'd been carrying it for longer than that. Ever since he wanted to change the name of Espresso IV to Coffee & Sadness. She was behind the URL.

Instead he deleted the text message and decided on a different approach.

- You busy?

Orihime had been busy the previous afternoon and much of the night, sobbing into her pillow. She looked like a wreck. When she got Ulquiorra's text that Friday, she took a couple of minutes to think it over.

He had offered her comfort. He had offered her friendship. He had said she wasn't hurting him.

She needed someone. She needed to finish her project. She needed someone and some liquid to stop the sounds of Ellen Jaegerjaquez and Louise Miller from ringing in her ears over and over and over again. She needed the words "Friend that I'm seeing" and "My job is on the line, get it done" to stop rolling through her head like a damn parade.

- Wanna have a drink tonight?

Ulquiorra was surprised to see the message pop up. He smiled. He wanted to talk to her. He wanted to not be distracted by anything else. It wouldn't be proper to invite her over for a couple of bottles of wine.

- Sure, I can get us some wine and we can have a drink at your place or do you want to meet at Starrk's?

- Or you can come here.

- That sounds really creepy of me.

Orihime really didn't care.

- I live very close to Starrk's. Let's go there.

He sent her a reply with what time would be good for him. So when the clock struck at that time, he was standing outside of the bar in a black peacoat with a white scarf wrapped around his face and a black winter hat on his head. His hands were shoved into the pocket of his coat.

She came trotting over just a minute later, also bundled up in dark jeans, a white parka, and a black beanie with a faux fur pompom on top and little silver sequins on the cuff. "Did I keep you waiting?" she asked as she reached speaking distance. Her voice sounded nasal.

"I've been here freezing my ass off for like two minutes," he said and touched the ball on top of the hat. "You look adorable. Where's your scarf? You're going to freeze."

"I don't have one," she answered honestly. "Let's go inside, my ass is frozen."

"You sound like you've got a cold," Ulquiorra said as he opened the door and let her in first. It was nice and warm inside the bar. "I'll wait until we get a table or a seat to talk about what I wanted to talk to you about."

She nodded. "I don't have a cold. I've just had a rough couple of days," she said in a weary tone as she entered the bar.

"I'm sorry. I'd give you a hug if you want one but considering… Anyway. How was Highland Park?"

"Awful," she said, unzipping her parka and folding it over her arm before taking off her hat and shaking her long hair out over her black sweater. "We were not there for long. How was your Thanksgiving?"

"I made myself a chicken breast and asparagus with cranberry orange relish. I made some rolls. I had peaches and gorgonzola for dessert," he said with a smile. He unwrapped his scarf then removed the hat, shaking out his own hair. It was a rare thing he let it out of its bun. He unbuttoned the coat to reveal a green and white striped t-shirt. "I was going to text you back but I figured you were being domestic with Grimmjow."

"No, he dropped me back home before two o'clock and went into the office," she said without inflection. "I should have called you up. Your dinner sounds much better than the bowl of oatmeal I had," she said with a dry smile.

When they got to the bar, Ulquiorra looked around for Nnoitra. "Yo, Tier, is he here tonight?"

"Break."

"Uh, what do you want Orihime? It's on me, so… I'll have a double Maker's Mark, please," he said to the blonde working behind the bar.

"The usual for me, Tier. Thank you," she said to the woman and then faced Ulquiorra. "Thank you," she said with a bit of a lilt, as though to differentiate him from the waitstaff.

"My pleasure," he smiled. "Pick a seat."

His smile made her do a double take. "Uh, okay," she replied in almost a whisper, as she lead the way to one of the back tables that she liked surrounded by velvet sofas. Starrk had lit the place well. The table was well-illuminated, but the patrons sitting in the seats were cloaked in dim light. It allowed for private, intimate conversation or just private solitude. Either way, Orihime liked it.

Ulquiorra sat down beside her and took off his coat and laid it on his lap. He put his phone on the table in front of them and then sat there for a moment while he tried to think of what to say.

"I'm glad you texted me today," she started. "I was starting to feel alone in the universe.'"

"I don't want you to feel like that, Orihime. Would you have dinner with me on the eleventh? It's a fancy place. I'd like to see the proofs you have for me," he said turning to look at her.

She raised her brows in surprise. "I'd be happy to. Why the eleventh, though?"

"It's a day I have open. I mean I could do it on the first but it's my birthday. I'm sure you'd like me to finally sign off on your designs for me," Ulquiorra replied. He let his knee touch hers, nudging it.

She smiled at the gesture. It was cute. "I would. And that is a good date for me, too. It's the day of my last exam for this semester. Anyway, what are you doing for your birthday?" she was genuinely curious. He seemed reclusive. In fact, all signs pointed to Bruce Wayne. What did Batman do for his birthday right after his solo Thanksgiving?

"Uh, staying in. I have to get ready for December. Social media posts need to be made. Uh, menu needs to be changed. I've got to figure out the hazelnut hot chocolate," Ulquiorra said.

"Ooh! Ooh! I volunteer as tribute!" she teased, raising her hand and leaning back into the sofa. "Hazelnut hot chocolate… Mmmmm," she closed her eyes and smiled, letting her head loll to the side before she opened her eyes again to look at him. This was nice. He was nice. "I thought you said that Minter is coming?"

He nodded, the smile still on his face. "Mint is the flavor of the season along with eggnog. Gingerbread and hazelnut are flavors of the month," he stated. "January is white chocolate and vanilla. I have this all planned out."

"You are a pro," she said with a nod. She couldn't take her eyes off of him. His smile was intoxicating. She smiled back at him and said, "You are a very pretty man. Is it weird for me to say that? I don't care, I'm weird."

A chuckle left Ulquiorra which turned into a short burst of laughter. "Want to come over Sunday night? We can test stuff and you can critique it, since you are my favorite coffee girl."

"Oooh," she cooed in a joking way. "Are you inviting me to your birthday party? And where, praytell, is my stall in your stable of coffee girls? I mean, the favorite gets the big one, right?" she said in good humor.

He was entranced by her. "It's in my bedroom," he murmured and then blushed after he realized what he said. Ulquiorra cleared his throat and took a sip from the glass a waitress put in front of him. His face was on fire.

Orihime picked up her drink and tilted it in her hands for a minute, letting the awkward moment pass before she finally brought her glass over to his and clinked it before bringing it to her mouth. "To your health, Ulquiorra. And to finally moving forward with this." She meant the project, although she didn't specify. And as she took a sip, she realized she didn't really care how he took it.

"Right," he said, taking another drink. "So, um, it'll be just you and me, but I usually make myself matcha cheesecake or some kind of cheesecake for myself for my birthday. It's kind of been my thing. I'd be willing to share."

Orihime's brows tented and mouth watered. She licked her bottom lip and then said, "Are you kidding me? I am so there for this," she said, the easy smile returning to her lips. She took another sip of her glass and looked straight ahead for a minute, then turned back to him. "You know, I don't mind promoting you on my site, too. Anytime. You can just send me whatever social media blast and I'll pass it on. I'll keep adding my playlists and whatever and also…" the thought occurred to her almost randomly as she thought of her blog posts, and how many of them had featured sketches of flowers lately. "I never thanked you for the flowers. Thank you."

"I know you liked them. I saw the drawings. Also, if you're going to advertise for me, let me pay you for it. Name your price. You wouldn't believe how many people I got from Chicago and all the way in Wisconsin to try the peanut butter hot chocolate," Ulquiorra said. He reached out and tucked some stray hair behind her ear. "So be at my place around five on Sunday? I'll make you dinner. We'll drink coffee and eat junky sweets."

She blushed. "Can I bring anything at least? It is your birthday."

"I'm a humble man that doesn't need much. If you want you can surprise me. I like wine and absinthe and whiskey." He wanted to tell her to just bring herself and maybe an outfit for the next day but he didn't dare.

Her mind was racing now. Booze or a bottle of wine? Easy. She grinned as she imagined what else she could give him. Drawings or playlists or a favorite book or DVD, perhaps. Her heart was bursting with ideas and imaginings. "I'm looking forward to this," she said.

Ulquiorra's smile got brighter again and he bit his lip. "Well now that you agreed to it, I'm looking forward to it. I've never really looked forward to my birthdays. They were just another day."

"Oh, oh no, my dear," she said with a closed-eyed headshake and a superior kind of affectation. "Matcha cheesecake is not just another day. That is magic, for sure."

"Tell me what else you like or love," Ulquiorra said. He was watching her mouth with rapt attention. He looked at the line of her jaw. Dammit. He shook his head. It wouldn't do to get drunk and try to hump her leg. He was sure she had enough of that with Grimmjow.

"I love coffee. No, let's be real. I love the coffee that you make. And the hot chocolate. What else…" she said, looking up at the medallions on the ceiling and tapping her chin. "Oh, I love sad music. I love the sound of the rain and short, unpretentious poetry. I love Michael Keaton as Batman. What do you like or love?" she asked, smiling at him.

He wanted to reach over and kiss her. Instead he took another drink. "I love the smell of coffee beans grinding. I love the smell of baked goods. I love how you remind me of warmth even though it's freezing outside. I love the way snow falls at three am on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. I love how the city is silent at night when I can't sleep."

Her eyes gentled and she looked him in the eye for a long moment. She heard every word he said. She hadn't missed it. She wanted to continue this. "I love the smell you bring into the shop after you come back from a cigarette break. It reminds me of my aunt. It reminds me of being protected." Her face suddenly crumpled. "I hate the sound of women saying hurtful things to children, or lashing out to hurt someone unprovoked." Her jaw clenched and her eyes watered a bit. "I hate my mother."

Ulquiorra leaned close to Orihime so he could whisper into her ear. "It's valid. I love watching you smile or laugh. I love how you look at me. I dislike how Grimmjow makes you unhappy these days."

She sighed. He was not wrong. Her fingertips played with each other on her lap a bit. "I hate how much I want to believe him," she murmured.

For a moment his nose nuzzled her ear. "You deserve to be happy, Orihime," he breathed.

She shivered. She wanted to believe him. Her heart tore in two and part of it was in Grimmjow's hands, the other in Ulquiorra's. That was shitty of her. She was a shitty person, though. Her mother had always told her so. "I don't. I don't deserve anything good," she said quietly, closing her eyes.

From a dark corner of the bar, Nnoitra sat taking photos of the two before he moved and took some more from a different angle. Twenty minutes later Ulquiorra came up to settle his monthly tab and then he went back and motioned for Orihime to follow him. Nnoi didn't give a fuck if he was on the clock or not. He slipped on his leather jacket and followed the two.

He wasn't surprised as he watched Ulquiorra throw his head back and laugh at something. Then he recorded a video. Ulquiorra had walked Orihime to her apartment. They were talking. She nodded her head. Ulquiorra and her went into the building.

As he headed back to Starrk's, Nnoitra sent off several text messages with attachments.


Grimmjow fumed. "WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS?" he said as he open then slammed Nnoitra's apartment door shut. The place was a shithole, so of course the door didn't latch. "What the fuck, Nnoi?"

The tall man grinned as he sucked back a beer. "Hey man… He comes in all the time boohooing about how he wants to dick her down and how in love he is," Nnoitra lied. "Ain't my fault ya woman is playing you both."

"What? No, you're fucking wrong!"

"I saw the entire thing. He was kissing on her neck. I think in one of those photos, her hand is under his coat. Probably working him up. I bet you they're fucking right now."

Grimmjow wanted to rip shit up. He wanted to beat the crap out of Ulquiorra. He wanted to make Nnoitra swallow his own damn teeth. "Hime wouldn't do me like that. She worships the ground I walk on."

"Looks like she's about to worship Ulq," came the reply. Nnoitra smirked. "Anyway, they're having dinner soon, I think? That's what Cassie said after she cleaned off a table close by. He's probably taking her to that one fancy place with the tiny portions and overpriced wine. You know… the one he took us too that wouldn't let me in without a tie?"

The blue-haired man nodded, his lip curling. He could not believe this. This was bullshit. He had told Ulquiorra to stay away from her. "Give me a fucking beer. I'm gonna call Riruka after this and see if she wants to have dinner with me the same night."


"So you're a student?" Ulquiorra asked as he looked around the tiny apartment. He smiled as he picked up a drawing of a creature that looked like it was a cross between a deer and a horse. "Huh, I thought you were just a part-timer at RBM."

"No, I'm a senior at Northwestern. I'm a fine arts major with a minor in creative writing. Grimm mentioned that you went to school here, too," she asked, hoping he'd fill in the details.

He gave her a nod and picked up a drawing of a bat. "Yeah. I, uh, I went to Northwestern. Majored in business and accounting. It just made sense. I didn't have any artistic ability. I'm ruled by common sense and logic. I love reading, though, and baking. I should have become a chef."

She stretched her back a bit and smiled. "I'm glad you didn't; we probably would have never met." Her stomach growled. They had met earlyish and she hadn't eaten. "Are you hungry? I have some ramen or some premade meals in the freezer. I didn't eat anything tonight."

He glanced at her and shrugged. "I can order something. You like chinese? There's an indian place that's really good around here," Ulquiorra said, putting both of the pieces of art down and walking to a different area of the apartment. Her desk was littered with more drawings and illustrations. "Is this… Oh shit… That's Rangiku. Wow. If she saw this she'd be begging you for it. Very shallow that one. Well, she can be."

Orihime chuckled. "Why don't you give it to her? I'm done with it. Like I said, I like watching people. I've watched her. Also…" her stomach rumbled again. "Indian sounds amazing right now."

"And inflate her ego? I have a hard enough time trying to manage it," he laughed. A flash of green caught his eye and he moved the drawing on top. It showed a tiny bat figure with huge green eyes. It almost looked like him. He smiled before turning to face Orihime. "What's your poison? Their curry is okay. The tikka masala is awesome."

"Butter chicken is my jam, homes," she said and shook her head, snickering at herself. She was so dorky, she couldn't handle herself sometimes.

"You're adorable." Ulquiorra smiled at her before he pulled his phone out and looked through the contacts tapping on the one that said, Depak's. "Hey, this is Ulquiorra Cifer. I'm good. I need an order of butter chicken… Orihime? Do you want jasmine or saffron rice?"

"Jasmine, please," she answered.

"Jasmine rice and the tikka masala… lamb. Yeah, saffron. Um also let me get some samosas. Uh huh. Just run the card," Ulquiorra said as he paced the floor. "Um, no I'm at… Address?"

"Three three nine Howard."

"Okay, see you guys in twenty."

He ended the call and then put the phone back in his pocket. "Thanks for letting me come up," Ulquiorra said to Orihime. "I know I said I wanted to walk you home, but I wanted to see where you lived and stuff."

She smiled at him and said, "Well, thanks for picking a day when it wasn't a total pigsty in here. I had just cleaned the bathroom on Thanksgiving morning. Anyway, my work is always all over the place so you would just have to deal, regardless."

"This place is better than the area Nnoi lives in. His apartment is always a mess," Ulquiorra commented. "Grimmjow has a cleaning lady come in once a week. Mine only comes in twice a month to dust and change sheets."

"Well, I am my cleaning lady, and let me tell you, I do not recommend her. She sucks at it."

Ulquiorra laughed. "So uh, back to the college thing. I pretty much fast tracked myself to be done in three years but I got into trouble and had to take a summer semester off. It screwed up my plans big time. I use my degree everyday, though."

Orihime's grin tightened up and her cheeks dusted a bit pink, remembering what Grimmjow had told her about Ulquiorra's stint in prison. He shouldn't have told her. It wasn't his past to share. Now she felt a bit awkward and wondered if she should say that she knew. No, she decided. If he wanted her to know he would tell her himself. Otherwise it was not her business. Speaking of business, "I can see that you do. Coffee & Sadness is a tight ship and it is just getting more and more successful. You should be proud of yourself."

There was a slight smile as he sat down in her desk chair. "I am at times. Other times… Not so much. You look like you want to say something or ask me a question, I can't decide which."

She was caught out. "Um, no, it's just… Grimmjow has a big mouth," she said, twisting her mouth to the side and twiddling her fingertips.

"That's nothing new." He gave her a glance and sighed. "I got into trouble. I did time for it."

"He said," she nodded and sighed, sitting on her bed and leaning over one of the small folding tables she had set up adjacent to it. She picked up a watercolor she had done of Grimmjow and Ulquiorra walking next to each other in black suits and glanced at it for a moment. "He talks about you a lot. I don't blame you, by the way."

"You don't blame me? What do you mean?"

"For defending yourself."

Ulquiorra nodded and looked at the wall. "I probably should have handled the situation better. I panicked. It got twisted and screwed up."

He looked upset to her. "Hey, it's in the past," she said softly. "My past is no lollipop parade either," she offered.

"You're a… You're a kid. At least you look like one."

She smiled. "I'm twenty-two. You're not that much older than me."

He stood and walked over to where she sat, then took her hand and pulled her up. "Three years," Ulquiorra said.

She looked at him, a bit confused by his gesture, but nodded. "Three years. Almost. We have a birthday to celebrate before then. Two years plus, for now."

"I don't have any parents for you to meet."

She felt her face get a bit hot. "Me either. Well, not that I would let you meet. Not by choice, anyway."

Ulquiorra put his hands on her waist. Why was he feeling like this? Why was he doing this? Orihime seemed to like him, but not in the way he liked her. He bit his lip and looked down at her before he swallowed.

She looked down at the hollow of his throat and her face turned red. She felt her body respond to his touch and she knew this was a dangerous game to play. She did not want to lose Ulquiorra. She did not want to cheat on Grimmjow. She did the only thing she could think to do to salvage this situation. She put her arms around his neck and held on tightly, pressing her cheek to his shoulder so that her face was looking out toward the room instead of under his chin.

He sighed and hugged her tightly. "Thank you."

"For what?" She didn't let go.

"Being my friend? Grimmjow said you wouldn't give me the time of day, but you have."

She scoffed. "Grimmjow doesn't know me-" she cut herself off. She felt a stinging behind her eyes. She had to swallow hard and it tasted bitter as she realized that her off-the-cuff statement was actually very true. He knew nothing about her. He never asked. He knew how her body felt. He knew how she fluffed his ego. He knew how she looked and smelled and tasted. He knew her manners and her kindness, and how she would bend over backwards to help him, but he did not really know her. He never asked about her family or her past or her dreams. She sighed. "Only the surface, I guess. He makes a lot of assumptions."

"That's Grimm for you," he murmured.


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