Chapter 34: Horrible Questions that Needed to Be Asked
Unfortunately, Ulquiorra could not make good on his promise to ravish Orihime. Maggie called for him to come downstairs. He made Orihime come with him and entered the kitchen to see a small spread of snack foods set out.
"I made you something to tide you over until supper. I'm going to be downstairs doing laundry. Is Orihime going to require a room of her own?" Maggie asked as she hefted a basket on her hip. "There's a bottle of white wine sitting on the counter if ya want it."
The green-eyed man shook his head. "No, we will be staying in the master suite," he answered, then looked at Orihime. "Would you like a glass of wine and a snack?"
"That sounds great," she said, looking up at him with a smile and raising her brows suggestively. "I could use a snack for sure."
As soon as Maggie disappeared, Ulquiorra stood behind Orihime, grabbing her hips with his hands. "You would have been a snack for me. For now though, I guess I'll get some real food to eat."
She bit her lip and nodded. "For now…"
"You tempt me," he replied, bending his head down and kissing her softly. Ulquiorra had to break the kiss off because he was quickly becoming aroused. "Come, let me serve you."
She blushed at the idea. "Okay," she replied shyly. "After you, I suppose."
Taking Orihime's hand, Ulquiorra led her over to the counter where Maggie had laid out some fruit, nuts, cheese, and crackers. He couldn't help notice there were figs, peaches, bleu cheese and gorgonzola laid out. He had a tiny smirk on his face. "Well it looks like Maggie has your number," he remarked.
"How?" she asked, totally mystified. "How would she know that?"
The smile on his face got bigger. "I might have told her that you liked my cheese plates," Ulquiorra said. He lifted Orihime's hand and gave it a kiss before he grabbed one of the small glass plates and handed it to her. He then filled one of the wine glasses halfway from the wine bottle. "Please help yourself. I can get you some honey if you want to recreate my dish."
"Maybe, let's have a seat first and have a toast," she proposed, holding her glass up.
Ulquiorra filled his own glass and touched the rim of it to Orihime's before he said, "What shall we toast to? Your new status as a college graduate or to us?"
"I think graduating is exciting, but I'm more excited about what's next. Graduation is an ending. We are just beginning, aren't we?"
His eyes regarded her for a moment. She was correct. One chapter of Orihime's life was ending and a new one was beginning and he was going to be there for it. "Yes, we're just beginning. Let's sit down and we can talk."
"Okay," she said, clinking her glass to his and taking a sip before sitting down at the informal dining table in the kitchen. "What do you want to talk about?"
"Anything? Everything? What are your plans now? What are some of your goals? Maybe find a mindless quiz on some blog site and we'll answer them to find out more about each other?"
Her eyes narrowed. This was the kind of thing she secretly loved. "You know me better than you think, I think," she murmured and pulled her phone out. "I know just the blogger."
He took a sip of wine before he raised an eyebrow. She knew just the blogger? This worried him somewhat. Ulquiorra filled his plate and then Orihime's before he went to sit down at the kitchen island. "Do you know a lot of bloggers?" he asked.
"Not personally; it's just someone I follow. They do horoscopes and personality tests and interesting "asks". We can pick something from there, if you like." She smiled down at her phone. "How about this one? Sixty horrible questions you can ask?"
"Horrible questions you can ask? That doesn't sound like a good bonding experience," he stated.
"They aren't that bad," she murmured as she sent him the link to his phone. "See for yourself. We can take turns picking ones from the list."
His eyes scanned the list, his face remaining passive until he saw some of the questions. These were ridiculous. "Okay, I'll start off. Uh, number nineteen, would you go back in time if you were given the chance?"
She glanced at her phone to see the question he had read as she thought about her answer, humming thoughtfully. "No," she finally answered. "Would you?"
"Hmmm, maybe. I would have tried to find you before other men broke your heart," he replied, popping a grape into his mouth. He chewed silently for a moment and watched Orihime.
Her face crumpled into a pout, but she refrained from saying, "aw". "I love you," she mumbled. "I hope that if you had, I would have been mentally strong enough for you then."
A hint of a smile graced his mouth and Ulquiorra's face colored slightly. "Your turn," he said.
She nodded and looked back down at her phone. "Hmm, okay. How about… Huh, I should have done this quiz before." She huffed a laugh and shook her head. "Just to be crystal clear, number twenty-two. Do you have any kids? How many?"
"Absolutely not. I do not want kids. I do not have kids. I'm assuming that your answer is no and none, right?"
"Right," she replied, and looked up at his face with a slightly playful smirk. "Your turn."
He scanned the list again as he took a drink. He smiled at one question. "Your best friend from the opposite sex loves you, what do you do?"
She shrugged. "Depends who he is. If the chemistry is right, go for it. All in. Why waste time?" she said, blushing a deep shade of pink. "Your answer?"
"Hmmm," he hummed. "But you didn't go for it. You wasted how long with Grimmjow?" Ulquiorra hadn't meant for that question to come out.
Her shoulders dropped and she looked at him seriously, but there was no hardness in her eyes. "Too long. That was a learning experience for me. I didn't think I deserved happiness. I thought it was wiser to take what I was given and be grateful." She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "I'm sorry."
It was something. Ulquiorra gave a nod, accepting her apology. "Your go," he said.
She shook her head. "You didn't answer."
"Um. You're the closest thing I have to a best friend. I went for you."
She raised one eyebrow and tilted her chin a bit. "Kind of, in a way," she said under her breath and smiled. She wasn't sure how much "going for it" he had done before she went away. She didn't know because she knew she was a horrible judge of what others thought of her. She decided back off the pressure of the questions for one go. "Okay, number fifty-one, is it cute when a person of the opposite sex calls you baby?"
He picked up a piece of cheese and put it into his mouth as he thought about this question. The only person to try this had been Rangiiku. He hated it. "No it's not. My name is my name and I do not like pet names or nicknames. You?"
She mirrored his action, going for a grape. "I don't mind. I used to like it; not that I was called "baby", exactly, but pet names in general don't bother me."
"What did Grimmjow call you?" Ulquiorra asked.
She pursed her lips slightly before she answered, "Princess."
"Do you believe in soul mates?" Ulquiorra asked picking a question from the list. He knew he would never call Orihime anything other than her name, and "woman", but that was more of a description than a nickname. He had to wonder why Grimmjow would call her princess.
"I don't know," her eyes drifted off to the side. It wasn't a concept she had ever spent any significant time contemplating. Her index finger rubbed a spot on the tabletop for a second before looking back at him. "I am open to the possibility. You?"
Ulquiorra shook his head. He had never himself interested anyone enough to consider that a possibility. "Not until I met you," he murmured.
Her smile was pretty, but it came on before she knew it, and she quickly hid it by looking back down at her phone. She felt a bit flustered. "Yeah…" she agreed. "My turn?"
He nodded and took Orihime's hand. "Something wrong?"
She shook her head and looked up at him slowly, making a conscious effort to slow her breathing. "No, I just.." Another deep breath. "What's the status of your relationship?"
Ulquiorra raised an eyebrow and peered at her. "Meaning? With whom? Concerning a romantic relationship, I am happily taken and occupied."
She chuckled. "I don't know, I didn't write the question, I just read it. But concerning a romantic relationship, same. Locked down tight and not looking for escape."
"Number three. Do you regret anything?"
"Yes and no. I regret being born to my mother. I regret not being enough to stop my brother from dying. I regret not allowing myself to believe that I deserved happiness. I regret meeting Grimmjow before I met you. I regret believing his lies and thinking that even if they were not true, I probably deserved it. I regret not being brave enough to tell you how I felt or to tell Grimmjow off. But despite all that, I don't feel regretful. My path led me here, tonight, and that makes up for everything," she said and then looked at him with a hint of a smile and took a sip of her wine. "Regrets for you?"
"I regret not kissing you on Halloween. I regret letting Grimmjow walk all over you and respecting your boundaries," he replied.
She nodded. "When was your last physical fight?"
Ulquiorra gave her a quizzical look. "When I stabbed Luppi, that was the first and last fight I was in. Wait, no, I punched Nnoitra; it was around the time you started your exams."
"Well, I can't say I'm disappointed to hear that you got one in on him. He was the last time for me, too, although it wasn't much of a fight," she replied, twisting her lips to the side. "Thanks again for that night. He was either going to kill me or worse."
"I would have killed him. I would have gone back to prison if he had done that," Ulquiorra stated. His expression was dead serious and he eyed Orihime. "I wouldn't have regretted it."
A cold fear lanced through her, but it wasn't that she was afraid of him. Her eyes watered a bit and she gripped the edge of the table for a moment before she quietly stood and walked around the table to stand beside him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered, "Thank you," before squeezing. She didn't move after that.
His arms slipped around her and he held her tight. "Come on. Enough of these questions. Let's cuddle on the couch in front of the fireplace and watch a movie."
She nodded into the side of his neck and didn't let go for a couple more moments, blinking the moisture in her eyes into his hair and breathing his comforting scent. When she stood she took his hand and pulled. "I'm ready."
"Are you though? Are you ready for all this and the baggage I carry? Are you ready for my lifestyle?" Ulquiorra cupped her face with his hand and studied Orihime. "When you get back from your book tour, I'd like for you to consider moving in with me, or at least staying at my place during the week."
She pressed her lips together and took a slow, deep breath. "Let's talk about that baggage. The lifestyle might require a bit of an adjustment period. Trial and error is what I'm anticipating." She paused and took another deep breath. Her emotions were threatening to overwhelm her. "I would fail a million times and try again for you."
Ulquiorra stared at his girlfriend. Maybe this conversation was more suited for a private space rather than the couch that stood across the room. "Let's go upstairs."
She nodded and followed him as he led the way up the stairs and back to the master bedroom. She passed through the door and walked directly to the bed, sitting on the edge and watching him as he closed the door and turned back around to face her. "So?"
The green-eyed man looked at her before he sighed. "I have no parents. I wasn't raised in a loving home. Pretty much anyone I've been with has betrayed me. I have trust issues and I guess I have abandonment issues. There are times when I seem distant. Do you think you can handle this?"
She nodded once. "I, too, don't have an ideal background. I have trust and abandonment issues, too. There will be times when I will be overwhelmingly clingy. There will be times when I will have difficulty trusting you, I think. Can you handle it?"
"It will be something we need to work on, yes?" To his ears it sounded like an uncertain question, but there was a lot of unknown in front of him… in front of them.
She offered him a timid smile. "Like I said, I would fail a million times and try again, if it's with you."
Ulquiorra had to swallow the emotions that were building in his throat. He gave Orihime a nod and then joined her where she sat on the bed. "I will do the same."
Her palm found his and her fingers wove between his. "I want to be with you, Ulquiorra. If you want me to move in with you, I will."
Ulquiorra gave a nod. "We will discuss this further when your book tour is over," he replied.
"Okay." She felt like he was ending the conversation for now, which was fine. She leaned her head to rest on his shoulder. "I want to take a picture of us."
Ulquiorra looked at Orihime. "A picture of us? I've not taken a picture of myself in a couple of years."
"Afraid you won't show up in them? I know the feeling," she said with a smile. "But I have lots of pictures of you. They're just not photographs. I don't have any photos of myself, really, either."
"Are you sure?" he replied. "Are you really sure you want some tattooed sad looking guy in a photo with you?"
"Let me tell you what I see when I look at you, then you tell me if you think I'd like to be in a picture of you or not," she said, pausing to make sure she had his attention.
"Tell me, then," he said. "Because that's what I see when I look in the mirror."
"I see that, sometimes." She picked up their hands and traced the tops of his fingers with hers, running them over his bat and other talisman-looking tattoos. "I also see a craftsman. An artisan. I see someone with exceptional work ethic and a strong will to succeed." She brought the hand to her mouth and kissed it. "I see someone quietly charming and thoughtful."
She put his hand on her chest and held it there. "I see someone who sees me, and that's all that I've ever wanted," she whispered, her eyes beginning to water.
"No tears, my woman. Please," he said, using his other hand to caress her cheek. "I see things in you too. I see a great artist. I see an imaginative creator. I see a woman who can stand up for herself. I see a lover who is kind and patient. I see a wallflower who blooms when in the right company. I see a woman who has captured my heart, because she and I are alike in a lot of ways."
She blinked and smiled at him. "You have my heart, too, Ulquiorra. You've had it. It's been yours for awhile.
"You've always had my heart."
Ulquiorra prolonged their visit because Maggie seemed to enjoy having them in the house. He wanted to show Orihime around the house more. They had a great time, but now it was Christmas Eve and he stood in front of the fireplace in his apartment, watching the flames. Sometimes he wished that he had opted for a real fireplace instead of a gas one. Watching the fire consume the logs was much more satisfying than watching the ceramic logs surrounded by gas fueled flames.
Orihime would be there soon. He already had their dinner waiting on the kitchen island. It was mostly finger foods; stuff he wouldn't normally eat, but he had promised her a fun night. He wasn't even sure he was going to go through with what he wanted to do.
It had been almost four months since they started this companionship, and while he felt like he was waiting for the perfect moment to transform their relationship into something more, Ulquiorra held back. None of the moments he had been presented with were perfect for him. Many had come close, but none screamed that tonight was the night that he fell head first in love with this woman who turned his entire universe upside down.
Orihime had gone through her mental checklist, and, in an unusual move compared to her regular organized chaos, she made an actual list that she compared with the mental. She had everything. It was just a matter of tossing it into her car and driving over to Ulquiorra's.
They'd been talking about this for a long time. He had held out. She had been able to deal with it, which was a miracle. Not that they were perfect angels, but neither of them had pushed past the boundary he had set. Now she felt a lot of nervous energy. The downside of this plan was that it put a lot of pressure on them.
Did it have to, though?
She stopped at her hallway mirror and checked her face one last time before she locked up and left. No, it didn't have to. She was determined to stop thinking about it.
She had to remind herself to stop thinking about it once every fifteen seconds or so, but it was the thought that counted.
When she got to Ulquiorra's, she rang the buzzer on the door that led to the alleyway behind the shop and waited.
Ulquiorra looked at the intercom system and saw Orihime standing at the door. He walked over to where the buttons were on the console and pressed the one that would unlock the door to let her into the building.
She came in, hoisting her big bag onto her shoulder, and started up the three flights of stairs. By the time she got to the top, she knocked, not bothering to wait to get her breath under control first. It would add to the effect; she had a santa hat and a fake beard on.
Ulquiorra opened the door. His brow furrowed and his mouth twitched for a moment before he burst out in laughter. "What is this?" he asked.
"Ho ho ho, merry Christmas Eve, Ulquiorra!" Orihime said, mimicking a Father Christmas-style voice. "Have you been naughty or nice this year?"
He shook his head. "I don't know, Mrs. Claus, have I been naughty? I think I've been really nice this year," he said as he stood to the side and let her in. "Honestly Woman, where did you get that getup?"
"The dollar store," she said in a cheerful version of her regular voice, pulling the beard down for a moment to kiss his cheek as she passed. Then, back in Father Christmas mode, she said, "I think I saw your name on my "nice" list, so you deserve a treat."
After she removed her shoes, she set her bag down next to the sofa and bent over to get something out of it. When she stood a moment later, she had a cookie tin in each hand. "A treat from Aunt Kathy," she said, holding one hand out further than the other, "And one from me,"she concluded, repeating the gesture with the other hand.
Ulquiorra took both and then set Orihime's tin down before he pried the lid off the one Kathy had given him. "I take it she liked our gift basket?" he inquired as he looked at the gingerbread men. There was a hint of a smile on his face as he glanced back up at her.
"She did. I told her we would facetime her tomorrow afternoon, if you don't mind. She loved the basket. See?" she said, pointing to a cookie decorated with the word, "hazelbutt!" on it in white icing.
He nodded and put the lid back on before he reached for Orihime's tin. This time it was filled with those cornflake cookies with the cinnamon candies on them. It was cute. It was also absolutely something Orihime would make. "It's adorkably cute," he mused. "The question is, have you been a good girl this year? Because I have a treat for you… and another one later tonight."
She smirked at him. "Well… the jury is still out. I guess you'll have to be the final arbiter on that one," she said, pulling off the santa stuff and shaking out her hair.
Ulquiorra walked over to where his small tree sat and bent down to pick up a gift. It was bulky and wrapped somewhat neatly, but it wasn't his best job since the object inside was awkward. "Well, I think you've been a good girl this year, so here is a gift from Santa," he smirked at her before he handed the item to her.
She grinned at him and took the parcel, glancing down at it and then ripping the paper off unceremoniously. "Wow!" she crowed as a big bundle of chunky knitted fabric spilled out of it. "Is this a blanket?" she asked before she was able to straighten the thing out. It looked warm and the color was a very pretty shade of dark lake blue.
"A scarf, which, if I recall, you didn't have last winter. I just wanted to make sure you were prepared this year," Ulquiorra said.
"Aww," she pouted, then stepped into him for a brief kiss. "You remembered that? Thank you, I love it!" she said, wrapping it around her neck.
He was happy that he remembered such details about her. Ulquiorra just hoped that she was happy with the rest of the gifts he had bought her. "So, uh… Did you have anything you wanted to put in my room since you're staying a couple of days?"
She smiled at him, his words distracting her from nestling her cheeks into the fluffy scarf. "Yeah, I don't have a ton of stuff, but that bag is it. There are a couple of surprises left in there, so I will handle it," she said, moving back over to where she had left it. "Do you want both your presents tomorrow morning, or do you want one now?"
"Tonight is not Christmas. Tomorrow is. I was always raised that presents were to be opened on Christmas morning. The only reason I gave you the scarf is because I know you need one," he said. "Do you want help with anything?"
"Nope," she said, picking up the bag and taking it to his room. She left it and her scarf inside and returned with two wrapped packages, one small, one about the size of a magazine, and left them under the tree.
"So," she said, looking up at him after depositing the items. "In my house, growing up, my brother and I ate junk food and watched movies on Christmas Eve while Kathy was at work. I imagine you will want to break from that tradition," she said with a chuckle.
Ulquiorra smiled at her but shook his head. "I have your assortment of junk food in the kitchen, but it's "grown up" junk food. I also have Netflix ready and waiting for our viewing pleasure. I've also made peanut butter hot chocolate and several dessert items."
"You spoil me," she said in a sing-song voice as she walked over to the kitchen to spy on the goodies. "Also, the PB hot chocolate kind of links to my tradition; a jar of peanut butter with a spoon in it. It's just missing the errant Cool Ranch Dorito crumbles."
"I try to spoil you, but I did buy you small bags of Doritos. It's the least I could do," he replied. Ulquiorra took a deep breath and walked over to where Orihime stood. "I kind of want dessert first, though. What are your thoughts on that?"
"No objections," she said, brows raising, wondering what he had in mind.
He swept her hair away from the side of her neck before he placed his lips there, kissing a trail up to her ear. "Are you sure?"
She bit her lip and sighed. "Even if I wasn't, I'm pretty sure you could talk me into it," she purred and closed her eyes.
"Really?" he murmured. His hands drifted up to her waist and slowly made their way to just under Orihime's breasts. "Seriously, do you want food first, or would you like your other treat?"
"This is a really hard decision," she whined. "You pick."
"I asked you," he said in a teasing manner before backing up. "It's your present."
It was still early. There would be plenty of time for movies and snacks, she thought, pressing her lips together and looking off to the side. Her eyes found his and she looked into their green depths for a few moments, trying to guess what was on his mind. Finally, she gave up. "Treat," she decided.
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