I always knew that Aizen was going to be the man in the picture that Noboru always held. I also knew that once I introduced Aizen into the story I was going to also tell the story of Sora and Orihime's parents. This story is basically told through Sora's point of view in the beginning and now we get the full story. I strongly want to warn that since this is about Miki and Noboru this is not going to be a happy ending. I'm also warning about some of the violence and mental anguish that certain characters have to go through. I didn't want to go into detail because I really didn't feel it was necessary, it's a little watered down in my opinion. I know you might hate me for this story but I wanted to express a relationship between two people that started out good but unfortunately circumstances ruined it. Please Review and let me know.
Thirty-Five years ago
"Noboru," the auburn-haired girl jumped on her best friend's back as he fumbled in carrying her while she wrapped her arms around him. "I haven't seen you in like forever. Since you've left the orphanage, you haven't visited very often." The young girl nervously scolded him as he heard the hurt in her voice.
"I know Miku! I've just been working hard, even got my own place and saved enough money for this," he settled her down as he turned to show the pretty girl the small diamond ring in his hand. She looked at it curiously and looked up at him in surprise.
"W... What's this?" she frowned, afraid to take the ring in his hand.
Noboru noticed her hesitation as he took her left hand and placed it onto her ring finger. "It's an engagement ring silly. You remember I promised you that I'd marry you when I was old enough to get a job. I've been working these past two years to prove that I could provide for us," he smiled but it soon faded when she glanced at him with a sad expression as she gripped her arms. "What's wrong, Miku?"
"I... I didn't think you remembered," she softly said, "I've been seeing Sosuke. We've decided to start seeing each other a few months ago," she told him, barely a whisper as she took off the ring and handed it back to him. He nodded and began to smile as his chest began to constrict, feeling like he couldn't breathe. Sosuke had been his best friend when they all lived in the orphanage together. He had come a little later as Miku and he grew up together in that small place.
Miku being two years younger wasn't legally of age to leave, he figured now that he was 18 years old and with a steady job and ring, she'd be able to be his wife. It seemed the years he'd been gone, visiting every so often, blinded him to Sosuke's intentions to Miku. He knew she thought the light brown haired boy was handsome, but Sosuke never took interest in her. Always having some other dame on the side.
"C... Congratulations, Miku. I wish you the best," he told her when she proceeded to hug him, he reflexively stepped back as he shook his head. "It'd be too improper now that you're seeing him."
"I... I guess so," Miku bit her lip as she began to tear a little, she watched her childhood friend nod and leave heading into to town.
Months passed, while the factory days were grueling but he spent the rest of his days going to college to study film. Since it was such a small town, he heard whispers of Sosuke leaving Miku behind to pursue his career in law. There was also other rumors that her chastity was given to the young man before he left. Many women in town turned their nose up at the beautiful girl, claiming that she was naivete. Miku would simply tell the women to 'have a good day' and happily bowed to them in respect. It was one day, that Noboru was passing by a store that he found her grabbing newspapers off the newsstands crying, as the stand owner was yelling at her.
"Oi! You can't do that!"
"It's alright Jun. Here... how much do I owe you?" he asked the owner, giving him the proper amount as the girl glanced at Noboru with a surprised expression while she held onto the papers. He walked her off while he apologized to the group of onlookers who were watching the commotion, who shook their heads at the young girl's lack of etiquette. 'Slut' or 'Serves her right,' were whispered among the crowd as he walked away. He brought her to his place while he made her a cup of tea. She hadn't spoken the whole walk to his home and she continued to grip the papers.
"I made some delicious tea, Miku. You can't possibly drink from the cup holding that in your hands," he jested as the girl looked at her hands, noticing the papers as she loosened her grip. The papers fell onto the floor, scattering everywhere as she covered her face. Noboru looked at the article on the front page and found a picture of Sosuke Aizen. Already establishing himself with important people as he held a girl on his right arm. There were other women he was associated with more intimately it revealed as he continued to read the article.
"He... said he needed to keep up an image and that the girl meant nothing... that was months ago. Now whenever I call him, it's either a girl on the line or him not picking up at all. I...I think he changed his number. I yell at the operator to put me through to his college dorm and I just get the runaround," she said softly as he sat beside her. "I'm such an idiot! H... He told me to wait for him. He said that he wanted to establish himself first and then we could get married. So to prove he cared for me ... he made love to me. I should have known something was off when he didn't even ask if I was okay. He left without saying goodbye. I should have..." she began to cry as Noboru angrily gripped his fist tightly. He held her close, wanting nothing more to make the pain within her go away. It was a shame that they were so close before and he had distanced himself from her. He still loved her. Honestly, he knew he would always.
"I still love you, Miku Sone," he whispered as he heard the cries pause as she abruptly looked at him. He opened his drawer to take out a jewelry box as he opened it. "I.. I still have the ring," he sheepishly laughed as she shook her head and began to cry.
"You don't want to marry a stupid girl like me. I'm everything they say I am. You deserve someone, pure, someone-"
He kissed her lips, making her silent as he opened her mouth with his tongue. His hands moved around her voluptuous body as she began to moan into the kiss. "I don't care what they say about you, I know the real Miku. The kind, sweet, and beautiful Miku. I want to marry you, I've always wanted you to be my wife. I...I should have told you this back at the orphanage but I wanted to prove to you that I was worthy for your hand," he grabbed her hand, sliding the ring onto her finger. "Please, if you don't love me now, maybe you can begin to love me?"
Miku did love her best friend, she always had strong feelings for him. When he left, she believed he didn't feel the same. When Sosuke noticed that she wasn't the same little girl anymore, was when he acknowledged her presence. She nodded her head as she accepted Noboru's proposal in marriage.
Three years married, with her two-year-old son in her arms as she walked into their home with a newspaper clipping in hand.
"Look at this Noboru. 100 dollar prize to the chosen headshot of a beautiful lady, along with the picture displayed in a magazine. You have a good eye in taking pictures and filming. I'm just as pretty as those girls in those magazines, right?"
He kissed his wife as he grinned, "You're not pretty," he watched her face frown. He scooped up his drooling son, "Your mama is gorgeous! Right, Sora?" The boy giggled as he clapped his hands. "Okay, I'll take the picture." She gave him her biggest smile, he was just the perfect guy, he always did little things to make her happy. He worked hard to provide for them, finishing college as he began to make his career in helping film commercials. She knew he secretly helped film r-rated ones that were frowned upon but it was extra cash in their pockets.
Sora took the picture of his wife as he sent it to the address that was stated in the paper. Just a few weeks went by and she received the check in the mail. Her face was plastered on Flower Mode, one of the popular magazines his wife read. There was also an offer to do more images since they loved her unique look and hair, so different from the traditional straight black hair of a Japanese woman. There was another offer from an up and coming magazine from America, Playboy, wanting a page on international beautiful women. Miku, looked at her husband to ask him when he declined the offer. He felt uncomfortable having someone look at his wife, even if the pictures were tasteful.
The money she received from the magazine company helped a little in their finances, but Noboru didn't always have luck in getting a filming opportunity. Though his other lucrative filming was going rather well, his main focus was to put his name out there. Miku stressed to him that he should focus on filming more r- rated films instead since it paid more.
He, of course, got recognized for his adult movies internationally. They also noticed Miku during his talks with the filming company he worked for. They joked about having her as the face since he had the prettiest wife. The jokes turned to aggressive asking as even the owner had confronted Noboru. In which he nervously declined.
It was when their son had gotten sick, that the hospital bills began to pile up. Due to the stress of not keeping up with the bills was when Miku asked if he was alright with her being in his films. She knew he hated the idea but because she asked, he felt like he couldn't say no. At first, it was just filming. He'd leave the room and drank while they filmed his wife with other men. Sora's sickness cleared, but his anger towards his own son grew. Filming turned into meeting men at odd hours of the night as an escort, she was paid handsomely and she began to love the attention. Whenever they were together, they never spoke about her nights and he honestly didn't want to know what it entailed.
He would yell at his son through the years as his wife would argue with him to leave him alone. When his anger was directed to Miku she would cry and he would leave to go to a bar and continue binge drinking. She would hate the stress of being left alone with a child, so she would direct her bitter words to her son instead of her own husband. She would apologize to her baby boy as she watched him cry himself to sleep.
To make it up to her little boy, she brought her eight-year-old son to the stores with her as she bought him ice cream. Explaining to him that mommy and daddy were just having a rough time at the moment. She seemed to always have 'ice cream days' every weekend because her son would get the brunt of her anger throughout the week.
She left the house at one of their arguments with her husband. Slamming the door as she made her way to the stores wanting to buy something. A new blouse or maybe something to cheer her son up? She stopped and saw the man that haunted her dreams while he flirted with a high-class girl, a few years younger than her. She looked at her self in one of the vacant store's reflected windows as she noticed that she had aged but found she was still beautiful at twenty-five.
"Miku?" she heard his voice as she turned to walk in the other direction with a faster pace in her step. She felt his strong hands on her arms as she tried to shrug him off. "Miku? Would you calm down."
"Leave me alone, Sosuke. I want to go home," she yelled at him, as she finally looked at his handsome face. God was he sinfully created just to tempt her, the face of an angel while he lied like Lucifer himself.
"Look ... can you just wait here while I do something real quick," he asked her. She should have just told him, no but her mouth expressed to him that it was okay.
She watched him speak to the girl he was with as she nodded and went to his limo. The black car sped away. He walked up to her, looking at her features and clothing. She looked away, feeling him judging her as his clothes were crisp and new, costing a pretty penny. Money her clients possessed but not as much that he seemed to possess in abundance.
"How have you been, Miku?" she heard him ask.
"Married," she gave a retort back as he smiled a bit while nodding his head.
"I heard... and with Noboru. Heard he's made a name for himself in filming," he glanced at her as he stroked the side of her face, "You seemed to enjoy being in them." She pushed him away as she began to walk, trying to keep her distance from this man. "You know, you wouldn't have to do those things if you were with me." She stopped abruptly as she eyed him with hate in her heart.
"Noboru never forced me to do the things I did, I chose to do this. He loves me and would do anything for me," she yelled at him.
"Anything except keep you from having to open your legs to make a few bucks," she slapped him with everything she had as he grabbed her arm.
"Since you seem to like men paying for your services. Why not keep me company?"
"No!" she seethed, trying to pry her hand away from him as he pulled a wad of cash, rolled in hundreds.
" All yours, just keep me company... no sex," he stated the stipulation as she swallowed and closed her eyes in thought.
Was this the right thing to do? It was just to keep him company, nothing more. She did more for even less cash, what was the harm in accepting. She sighed, accepting his offer with a nod. That night they spoke about the past and about his time in college. She didn't provide him with sex and he didn't ask as she bid him goodnight. They met more frequently, as he showered her with gifts for her and her son. She couldn't help but feel the guilt overwhelming her heart as she thought of her husband at home.
The stipulation of not having sex changed, with his hand lightly touching her arm as he kissed her one night. Then gradually kissing her neck to fondle her assets on another night. He continued to progress his actions with her each night until he finally removed her underwear to taste the sweet nectar between her legs. Making her his as he entered her while she screamed his name. He gave her many nights of pleasure after that as she received his money and went home until they met again.
Miku entered her house one of those nights, to find her husband waiting for her, pouring himself a drink. She took off her expensive coat that Sosuke had given her that night as she timidly entered their quaint home. He looked at her before taking a drink from his cup and glanced at her sternly.
"I wasn't okay with you making those films or even getting paid for your... services," he said condescendingly. "But to fuck that asshole behind my back, how would you think I'd be okay with that?" he growled at her as she stood firm glaring at him.
"Your shelves are stock full with your favorite bottle of poison. He just provided me with the things you can't." She watched his eyes widen as he slowly looked down at his cup.
"So those new toys for Sora are from him?" he asked her as she stood quietly glancing at him. He put his cup down to head to their son's room.
"What are you doing?"
She watched as he took the firetruck from the room and flung it against the wall. Then proceeded to find more of the new toys, smashing them as their son began to wake up.
"W...What are you doing, Dad?" Sora murmured as he began to tear up. He was aggressively pulled by the collar by his father.
"All these damn toys are going to the garbage. I don't want to hear anything come out of your damn mouth. Go back to bed," he yelled, his son smelling his alcoholic breath when he spoke. He held his cries, afraid of getting hit as he went back to bed. Miku watched as he smashed every toy to pieces then proceeded to sweep up the mess, on occasion stumbling a little as he threw them into the garbage. He sat back on the stool, continuing to drink from his cup as if nothing happened.
"Did you really have to do that to him?" she said through tears as she wiped them away angrily, "I should smash every damn bottle in this house," she yelled.
"Go ahead, I'll just get more, " he laughed as he drank from his cup. She made her way to their bedroom when he grabbed her wrist. "He doesn't love you," he said. She thought she saw a hint of pain in his eyes as it quickly disappeared when he looked away.
"You don't know anything," she spat back as he loosened his hold.
"Why are you so fucking naivete, Miku? I mean is that why you agreed to fuck those guys in the first place because I wasn't enough because I wasn't him?" He asked her, looking like a wounded man as he grabbed his hair, waiting for her to answer. She didn't know how to answer, she didn't even know herself. So she was honest with him.
"I don't know," she told him as he nodded. Taking his cup in his hand and smashing it into the sink. She flinched at the sound as he made to grab his coat and leave the house, slamming the door. She past her son's room hearing his small cries as she headed to the bathroom. When she was done washing she headed to his room and slept in his bed, holding him close.
Her home became unbearable as she couldn't wait to leave and go see Sosuke again. She met him one night when he asked her to wear a dress he had provided. It was beautiful as he paraded her around, speaking with politicians in the room. She felt so important as she smiled while holding his arm. When the night was through, they both headed to a suite that was different from the one she had changed in. The room was a penthouse suite, something she only seen in films. They entered the room to find an older man sitting on the sofa smoking a cigar. She stopped short as she looked to the man beside her. He turned to glance at her when he whispered into her ear.
"This man is very important, Miku. He can provide me with a career, that will elevate me. It would benefit everyone, including your son," he whispered as her whole body became ice cold. She had neglected her other clients for a while, even stopped shooting films, to be with Sosuke. He was asking her to do this and she wanted to tell him no. She didn't say anything as she looked at the ground. He lifted her face to stare at her, giving her a warm smile. "You can finally get what you want, by doing this one small thing."
She swallowed the bile that started to rise as she held back the tears that wanted to come. She nodded. He spoke to the man and then left her alone in the room with the man. As she proceeded to pleasure the man on autopilot, she could only think of one man... her husband.
She walked out of the penthouse suite, holding herself, wanting to wash the man off of her body. Sosuke was nowhere to be found as she headed down the elevator, she heard his voice as she passed the lobby. He was chatting amongst men who eyed her with lustful eyes. While he said his goodbyes, he held her arm as she began to tense up.
"Your services were exceptional tonight. What would you like, a new set of earrings or a new dress?" he asked her as he kissed her lips.
"When do I move in with you?" she said the words as he looked at her with a raised brow questioningly.
"Miku, my status has been risen, so that I could provide you with the things you need. As far as having a relationship with you, you know I can't be with someone like you. It could ruin my position," he told her as he made to kiss her again, only for her to turn away. "I have to leave back to Tokyo in the morning. If you need to reach me for anything, just call this number," he expressed, handing her a card as she scrunched and threw it to the ground.
"That's why you came here? That man had some fetish about me and you told him you knew me, so you purposely sought me out to manipulate me into doing a favor for you," she whispered, feeling herself become sick. "I want to go home."
He called his limo and entered the car with her, as she remained silent, "You only have yourself to blame, Miku. This is the life you choose when you married him," he calmly said, once the car stopped. Before she exited the limo, she turned to slap him in the face. He took the abuse without flinching as he stared at her. She left him in the limo, hearing it drive off as she entered her home.
She found the house completely silent. She paused in her movements as she made her way to the bathroom. She scrubbed herself until she turned red. She walked out of the shower, holding the dress she wore in her hands as she began to cry. She went to the kitchen to pick up a knife as she began to shred the apparel. Heading to her room, she pulled out all the clothes, jewelry, shoes, anything he had given to her as she proceeded to shred and break them all.
"What the fuck are you doing?" Noboru came out of their room when he was woken up to the noise. He glanced to see her ruining the expensive items as the tears stained her features as she ignored him. He placed his hands over her shoulders as she stopped her assault when he held her close. She pushed him off, not wanting to be touched as she placed the items into a bag and threw them away. When she was done, she went into their bedroom with her husband as he followed close behind. He turned to hug her but felt her go rigid as he stopped his advances to turn the other way.
The years past as nothing seemed to change, only getting worse. She proceeded to do adult films, while her husband continued to drink. Their son already an adolescent, going to school and kept to himself. He was fourteen and saw no end to their constant bickering and fighting. It became worse when his mother found out her husband had slept with another woman and got her pregnant with a son.
"You think I wouldn't have found out about her?" she yelled, one morning while Sora was eating cereal as his father had a beer.
"Who?" he feigned ignorance as she hit the table.
"What do you mean who? That mixed German bitch with the green eyes that's who."
"Oh," he said as he drank from his cup, "She's just someone who actually wants to fuck me since my wife is too busy fucking everyone else."
"So you planning on leaving us to be with your new family, is that it?" she screamed at him as she began to push him, "You are?" she suddenly held her mouth, when he remained silent.
"I'm not leaving, fuck, Miku. I'm too much of a fucking idiot to do the smart thing," he laughed as he watched his wife not finding his joke the least bit funny. He held her close as he rubbed her back. "It was a fucking joke." She pushed him off as he sighed.
"Well I didn't find it funny, in fact, this whole thing isn't funny. It's because she's younger than me, right? You son of a bitch, you love her don't you," she yelled, hitting his chest weakly as she cried.
"I don't love her, fuck. What do you want me to do, I'll do anything," he asked her as she whipped her tears, looking at him.
"Leave them," she whispered as she felt his body tense.
"Miku, I can't do that. He's my son."
"YOU ALREADY HAVE A SON," she yelled as he closed his eyes in aggravation. "Fine! Sora and I can just make it on our own. Come on, Sora, we're leaving," she told her son as he began to rise from his seat.
"YOU, SIT THE FUCK DOWN," he yelled as Sora paused to sit back down not wanting to upset his father. "FINE! I'll leave them and I'll even stop drinking but you also have to stop this shit with seeing your clients. No more filming either. We'll have a fresh new start, sell this fucking old house and even leave this shitty fucking town. Buy a new home with a big kitchen you've always wanted. Please? We can't continue on this downward spiral," he told her as he held her close. She smiled weakly as she nodded her head, hugging and giving him a kiss.
Sora at first was skeptical but watched as his parents sold everything they had and even the little home he grew up in. His father stopped drinking as his mother refrained from letting any of her clients know where she was going. They found a house in a nice new area with a few neighbors that greeted their arrival.
"Please accept our offering," a woman with her husband said with a plate of food, walking with their daughter that looked close to Sora's age.
"Thank you so much, I'm Miku Inoue. My husband Noboru and our son, Sora."
The young girl instantly blushed as she made eye contact with the older boy she thought was handsome. The other woman introduced herself, while they took the food and shook hands. "I am Kaiya Unohana and my husband Hisato and our daughter, Retsu." The young girl bowed, pushing her long black hair to the side of her ear. They bowed as they left the new homeowners to return to their home. Miku smiled as she watched the younger girl, slowly glancing behind to look at Sora.
"Oh, she's such a cutie. I think she's already in love with you Sora," Miku teased her son as he shyly glanced at the girl.
Things felt normal for once in his life, at least he thought what counts for normal. He would go to school, come home to find his parents only arguing about what type of food they wanted to have for dinner. He felt that he could relax again. He would watch the neighbor's daughter at school and then when he returned home.
"Would you stop glancing at her like some pervert and just talk to her?" his father demanded, sick of his son glancing out the window like a peeping tom. Sora ignored him and continued to glance out the window. He only felt like a pervert, thinking of those type of dirty thoughts because of what his dad used to force him to see. He shook his head, that was all in the past now. It was a new beginning. So he left the house, heading towards the neighbor's house to speak to her. She was incredibly shy at first, but once he got to know her, he found her exciting and seemed to like the same things he enjoyed. Things seem to turn out for the better. Especially when his parents mentioned that he was going to have a new baby brother or sister.
As the months progressed in his mother's pregnancy, he laughed watching his father doting on his mother, hand and foot. They waited at the delivery room, waiting for the newcomer's presence. When his parents gave him the option of naming his baby sister, he could only give them the only name whenever he glanced up at the stars. The little princess in his mother's arms weaved his family together and he could only think of one princess that was in the heavens, Orihime.
Miku held her little girl and thought she was absolutely precious, "She looks just like me," she smiled, as she softly touched her baby girl's head. Two months old and she already had the brightest smile she'd ever seen on a baby. She was out of milk and she needed to head to the market to get some more. She asked if Sora could watch her, along with the neighbor's daughter, now her son's girlfriend. Of course, the sweet girl didn't mind as she sweetly nodded while Miku handed her daughter to the black haired girl.
She walked up to the market that was a short distance since her husband was at the factory with the car. She didn't mind, the view was always incredible to see from the distance from her home to the shops. Getting some milk and a few ingredients for a new dessert she was going to make for the upcoming fair. The neighbors loved her baking and she found she had a knack for it since she loved sweets so much. She giggled to herself as she walked back home, thinking of Noboru and his stupid animated faces he made when he ate any of her treats. It was great that they decided to give up everything to start a new life here, why hadn't she thought of this sooner.
A limo pulled up in front as she was waiting patiently for the cars to pass. She saw the limo's window slide down to reveal the familiar face of the man she didn't want to ever see.
"Miku," he smiled at her as she held her bag tightly. Sosuke exited the limo when he watched the auburn-haired girl walk briskly away from him, "Miku, would you please stop."
"You stay the hell away from me. I...I don't need anything from you," she yelled getting the attention from passers-by.
"Miku would you just calm down, everyone is staring at us," he mentioned, as he fixed his tie and nodded to anyone who looked. Not wanting this to get back to her husband, with the commotion as a few people knew her. She turned to ask him a question.
"How the hell did you find us? What the hell do you want?" she glared at him as she looked around making sure, familiar faces couldn't see her.
"I see that you don't want to be seen with me," he chuckled as she continued to look down, trying to cover her face. "You could cover your features, but your hair stands out like a sore thumb," he whispered in her ear as she backed away.
"Stay away from me," she told him as he lifted his hands in surrender as he backed away.
"I wanted to apologize, for the way I mistreated you. My selfishness had brought you so much anguish and its completely my fault," he said with a hurt expression as she almost felt bad for him.
"I accept your apology but I really must be going," she flatly told him.
"Wait!" he raised his voice a little as he came closer to her, touching the strands of her hair, "There's one more thing I wanted to tell you before I leave," he smiled as she saw the hurt in his eyes while he leaned close to give her a hug. She reacted by trying to push him off but his next words paused her actions towards him. "My sweet Miku, did you honestly think I'd have the one thing in my life I've ever wanted, to be taken from me without consequences?"
He leaned up to give her a soft kiss on the cheek as he gave her a smile. She glanced at him with an upset frown until his eyes gazed at something behind her. Turning to see her husband's wide-eyed expression as he looked at the both of them. It was then she realized Sosuke had planned this, he had somehow convinced Noboru to meet him here, when he found her in the stores.
"Noboru, just giving my Congratulations to the new baby girl, Orihime. She looks just like you, Miku," he told her as she looked at him wondering how he even saw her daughter. "The nurses at the hospital were very sweet and helpful in directing me, especially when I came to see an old friend's child."
"Well, fuck off Sosuke. Leave us alone, along with my 'wife'," he emphasized wife, as he held her. Sosuke saw the show of possessiveness as he looked on with a small grin at the couple.
"I'll take my leave," he stated but paused in his step. "It must really irk you, Noboru?" he chuckled, when he saw the man glance at him in confusion, "That I was the first to make her cum and scream out my name."
Noboru made to punch him square in the face as Sosuke whipped the blood from his nose and smiled. He then proceeded to hit Noboru so hard that the man fell to the ground as Sosuke aggressively began to kick him.
"Pathetic," he said, whipping the blood from his nose with a handkerchief.
"Would you just leave us alone, Sosuke," she screamed at him while she made to help her husband up when he shrugged her off. The other man smiled at the man's blatant disregard for his wife's help and he knew the seed was planted. He bid them goodbye as he headed back to his limo.
Noboru walked to his truck with his wife following close behind, he opened the door on the passenger side for her to get in. He said nothing, only slamming the door rather hard. He remained silent on the way back home as he dropped her off and continued to drive.
She fed Orihime and placed her to bed, finding her son in his room studying. Her husband hadn't returned from where ever he had gone to as she waited for him. She finally heard the truck's engine cut off in their driveway and the sound of ragged steps. He entered the home holding onto the door for support, she noticed that he was intoxicated.
"Well... it's you this time waiting up for me. Isn't that sweet," he laughed, throwing the keys onto the kitchen counter as he slammed the door.
"You drove all the way here drunk?" she asked with a worried look. "You could have gotten into a car accident."
"I wasn't that lucky," he told her as he placed a cup and took out a small bottle he was carrying, pouring himself a cup.
"You promised that you wouldn't drink anymore," she whispered, as he drank from his cup and slammed it onto the table.
"And you promised you wouldn't fuck anyone else, yet I find you in the very fucking arms of that fucking prick."
"I didn't sleep with anyone and I didn't sleep with him. He somehow found us and-"
"Don't give me that shit, Miku. He knew where we were because he came to see how his daughter was doing."
She felt the unnerving feeling in the pit of her stomach as she watched him glance at her with a stern look, "Daughter? Are you implying that Orihime is his?"
"You know when I first saw her, I thought she was a spitting image of you. Thinking she looks nothing like me. Even her hair is a bit lighter than yours. How the fuck is that possible with my dark hair? Now it all makes sense," he laughed at his theory as he drank from his cup.
"Orihime doesn't belong to Sosuke. He hasn't touched me since that time..." she paused whipping the tears from her eyes.
"Is that what happened? He flat out told you that he wouldn't help raise her, so that's why you're upset with him?"
"No!" she yelled, "He wants to make our life a living hell because I didn't choose him."
"Bullshit! You are just saying this shit because now that he won't help raise his own fucking daughter, you want to pawn the responsibility off to me?" he shook his head. "That's where your wrong, Miku."
"I'm telling you the truth, Noboru. Orihime is not his," she cried trying to hold his arm. He leaned close to her, glancing at her cascading tears as he kissed her lips and picked her up, heading into their room.
She tasted the liquor off his lips as he kissed her passionately. Removing her underwears aggressively as he proceeded to make her moan while licking between her folds. He made her cum, swiftly releasing his manhood to thrust into her in one go. She kissed him, with tears on her face as she moaned with every thrust. "I love you, Noboru," she whispered to him as he proceeded to thrust into her harder and faster. She felt the tears fall from his eyes when they both came together. He abruptly got off of her to sit on the bed. He sat there for a moment in silence as he whipped the last of his tears before he spoke.
"You made me give up a son for you," he whispered, as she scooted close to him, feeling the blood run cold as he spoke.
"No-"
"Don't speak. I've given everything to you and given up everything for you. I'm tired of it. You better think of some form of income for that child in that damn room, because you won't see a dime from me. I can't believe you would do this to me," he held his head as he felt broken while he began to cry.
"Orihime is your daught-"
He made to raise his hand to her but looking at her face his hand faltered as he aggressively punched the wall next to her, making her jump. "No more lies, Miku. So you better start using your skills because I don't think selling your baking treats is going to be enough," he said through gritted teeth as she realized what he was implying.
"I... I don't want to do that anymore, Noboru," she pleaded as he shook his head.
"I honestly don't give a shit. You seemed to enjoy it plenty when you spread your legs before," his venomous tone told her as he made to wash in the bathroom.
Miku laid there all night, even after he came back from showering to just stare at the ceiling.
The months passed, while Sora had found his mother looking out in the distance as Orihime continued to cry.
"Would someone please stop the noise," she would whisper to herself as she held her head. Sora fed his sister, most of the time, whenever his mother wasn't completely there. He noticed things were reverting back to the way things were. 'Was it because of the bills?' He thought to himself, deciding to get a part-time job along with going to school. He would find his sister, unchanged when he got back with his parents arguing. He would head to Retsu's house when it became too much. Confiding to his girlfriend everything he had to put up with and thinking things had changed for the better. Whenever Retsu's parents weren't home, he would visit, making out with her while Orihime slept in the other room. Ultimately losing their virginity to one another. They would talk in each other's arms about their future together as he promised he would always be there for her.
Miku held her 12-month-old daughter in her arms as she watched the little girl playing with a toy in hand. She glanced at the cute child with the auburn locks as she looked up to stare at the wall mirror by the kitchen, noticing her reflection. Her beauty wasn't how it used to be and her clients weren't as keen on having a middle-aged woman to warm their bed. Looking at her daughter as she stroked her hair.
'Maybe if she never existed, things would go back to the way things were?'
She thought as warm tears filled her eyes.
'She'd be better off, wouldn't she?'
She moved her hand softly to her small cheek and then began to cover her daughter's nose and mouth. She watched as her daughter began to moan and struggle in her arms, she was on autopilot as she let her hand stay over her airway.
"What are you doing?" she heard her son's voice as she snapped out of her dream. Orihime began to gasp for air and cry as she reached for her brother.
"I...I was-" she wasn't sure what she was going to say, she didn't even know what she was doing anymore. Sora looked at his mother who had tears in her eyes while she looked confused. This woman was about to kill her own child. He'd have to take night classes and stay here with Orihime during the day and ask Retsu to keep an eye during the night.
"Would you shut that fucking girl up. It's like from morning till dawn," he heard his father yell as he tried to calm his sister's cries. Sora went to put Orihime into her crib, getting her to calm down as he caressed her cheek as she fell asleep.
"It's about time you fucking did something useful," his father said while he opened up a beer can and drank from it. Noboru looked at his wife, who was still in her bathrobe in the middle of the afternoon. "You should get dressed, we have that scene you have to finish," he told her as she stared at her hands. "Did you hear me?"
"She heard you," he told his father as the older man angrily glanced his way.
"So now you have a mouth?"
"Can't you see she doesn't want to do those films anymore," he yelled at his father.
"She better or your sister won't have any food," he mouthed as he stepped closer to his son.
"She doesn't have to worry about Orihime's food. I can take care of it," he angrily said through gritted teeth.
"Oh, so now you're a big man that can provide. Well, big man. You think you can pay for the rent and utilities also?" when he saw that his son had nothing to say he smiled. "You think you're a responsible adult because you fucked your girlfriend?" he laughed as he watched his son's expression turned to anger as he avoided his father's stare.
"I'm gonna give you some advice. You let a whore into your life you'll soon regret it," he growled out as his son made to swing at his father. Only for the older man to dodge his fist and hit him hard. Sora saw stars as he held the side of his face. Then he felt another punch and another one as everything went completely black.
"Sora.?"
"Sora..?"
"Sora...?"
Sora looked up from his daze to glance up at Byakuya who was passing by his office door.
"There you are," he looked at him sternly with a hint of worry, "Get some rest, you won't get anything done daydreaming like that."
"I think I'll take your advice... Four months of acquiring information and its just like Shuhei says.. not one fucking thing on Noboru Inoue. Not even a speeding ticket," he shook his head, there had to be something he did. The case files of Tsukishima were packed with allegations, only with the accusers now, too scared to step forward. It was his father's file that was opened up as he saw the man's handsome features with a smug grin in the photos. His past was such a secret to Sora, only remembering bits and pieces, some he blocked while others still haunted him. He closed the file and turned off the light to his office and headed out with Byakuya.
He rode the elevator down with his partner talking about things to get his mind off the case.
"Let's just concentrate on Tsukishima and then focus on Noboru," he told the younger man as he held his arm. "Just return home to your fiancee and think of nothing else. Sora nodded and smiled as he watched Byakuya straighten his posture once the door's opened. Since the island, four months ago, they had proceeded to have secret nights together with Retsu. It was not as frequent as before. Now it was more of a rarity that Sora would have an urge. He guessed that was progress. Byakuya bid him goodnight as Sora made his way home.
He had moved into Retsu's home and sold the three bedroom apartment and opted for a single bedroom for his brother, Ulquiorra. With his fiancee visiting and with Tatsuki sleeping over. They both realized, they both needed their privacy, especially with Orihime no longer living with them. He arrived at an empty household. There were some nights Retsu worked late to help in ER, along with Ichigo. It was then that he picked up his cell phone and dialed his sister's number.
"Sora-nii!" he heard the vibrant voice of his sister.
"Hey, Orihime! Just wanted to call and see how you've been," he expressed as he heard her giggle.
"I was expecting your call earlier, you usually call whenever Retsu and Ichigo work in ER."
He chuckled, "Yeah, you caught me. I would have been home earlier but was at the office, working late." There was a long pause on the other end before he heard his sister speak again.
"How's the case going?"
He really didn't want to tell her the details but he knew she was expecting an update. If she didn't get it from him she would bother Tatsuki to get information from her brother.
"We have enough to go to court with enough allegations to put him away for a long time but-" she heard the distress in his tone.
"but?"
"The allegations mean nothing if the victims are too afraid to take the stand. It's just hearsay."
"We can't really blame them, Sora," she said feeling for the women who weren't as lucky as her," Sora, just let me-"
"No! Absolutely not! You'll have to either face him or his other lawyers when he questions you. I can't see you go through that pain."
"Yet we're asking these victims to go through the same thing?"
"What does Ichigo say?"
"I... I haven't told him," she said in a low voice and then he heard the sniffles on the other line, "I know you're trying to protect me but I want to do something for these women. I want Tsukishima to never do this again to anyone else. I want to be their voice when they're too scared to. I know he's going to make me feel horrible but then I think about ... What if ... I wasn't able to get away."
"Orihime -"
"No, Sora-nii! Please let me finish. Why subject them to facing the man that ruined their life. I rather face it for them, nothing could be as bad as what they went through."
He understood her words and what she was coming from. He did feel like a hypocrite in asking these younger women to be brave enough to take the stand when he didn't even want his sister to be put through that sort of torture. He sighed before he spoke.
"I'll talk it over with Byakuya, but you have to promise that you'll speak to Ichigo, okay?" his voice was demanding but in a more soft worrisome tone.
"Okay... Sora-nii, have you found anything about Aizen-san?" she asked. He was surprised when Orihime had come to him the day after the wedding to say she had met Supreme Court nominated Judge Sosuke Aizen. It was even more of a shock to find out that this was the same man who knew his parents. Something didn't sit well with him about this man. His father and mother argued about him and it was a bit of a blur to him. He usually left the house or blocked out the noise when he was younger.
"I found out they all grew up in an orphanage together. Father and mother were left at the orphanage when they were just toddlers. Father at age four, losing his parents at a mining accident. While mother at age two, parents died from a car accident that she luckily survived unharmed. Sosuke came much later at the age of twelve, parents both died in a cruise liner that sank while he was at boarding school, his family losing their wealth. There's nothing else, except what's written about Sosuke in the news articles. His files are clean but so is fathers," he laughed and then sighed.
He wasn't sure if it was a habit calling his parents mother or father but Orihime usually called them by their first names.
"Don't overwork yourself trying to look for something that probably isn't there," it wasn't what he wanted to hear but he knew she was worried about him. In some ways, he knew deep down it probably was the truth.
"I ... I know Byakuya knows Sosuke, but I don't trust him. Promise me you won't talk to him or even be alone with him," he sounded stressed as Orihime expressed she understood by giving a soft hum of approval.
"I'm going to head to bed, get some rest okay?"
"Yes, you too. I love you!"
"I love you too, Sora-nii!" she giggled as she hung up the phone.
Orihime put her phone away as she glanced at her phone's screen to see her smiling brother's face she had as his contact picture. She thought of what her brother had just mentioned about her parent's coming from an orphanage and she couldn't help but feel guilty for the feelings she held towards them. She didn't even know them but she knew what they put Sora through with what he told her. Hearing the door to the apartment as she laid on her bed, turning off her phone and setting it aside. She heard Ichigo head to the kitchen as she skipped softly and wrapped her arms around his waist. He was about to drink some water when he felt her arms as he picked up her hand, giving it a light squeeze.
"How many times do I have to tell you to not wait up for me?" he chuckled as he quickly drank from his cup and set it on the countertop. He turned to face her and wrap her in a hug as he kissed her lips. She smiled up at him.
"Another!" she said as he shook his head and gave her another kiss on the lips. "Another x3!" she puckered her lips as he kissed her three times on the lips.
"So what were you doing besides waiting for me?" he asked as he cleaned his cup and headed to their room.
"I just finished talking to Sora," she stated, he wasn't surprised with that since Sora managed to call her whenever he was late at ER. It was the tone in her voice that caused him to look at her.
"Is something wrong?" he watched as she bit the side of her lip and played with her fingers while he removed his shirt.
"We can talk about it when you're done showering, okay," he frowned at her words as she gave him a quick peck on the lips. He entered the bathroom as Orihime laid on the bed once more. She waited patiently as she heard the shower shut off. After a few minutes later, he came out of the bathroom wearing black sweatpants.
He laid right next to her, yawning for a bit, as he held her close. "So what's wrong?"
"You sound tired, maybe we could talk in the morning," she nervously said as she heard him sigh.
"Orihime," he said her name in a serious tone, prompting her to speak.
"The victims are too afraid to speak on the stand. So I wanted to know how you felt about me taking their place?" she felt him tense as he looked at her with a scowl.
"How I feel? I don't want you near that asshole especially having him questioned you with devious questions to make you feel like shit," he stood up from the bed as he paced back and forth, "What did Sora think about this?"
She sat up, looking at how upset her fiancee was about this particular subject, "He doesn't want me to take the stand either."
"See, even he thinks it's a bad idea."
He watched her breathing hard through her nostrils as she laid on her bed with her back turned to him. Ichigo rubbed his face and sighed as he crawled back to the bed, beside her.
"Look Orihime. I don't want to see you put in a situation like that, especially confronting that asshole, Tsukishima."
"You sound like Sora," she pouted as she whipped her face as she reiterated everything she had just told her brother over the phone while Ichigo listened to her and remained quiet. "Don't you understand why I need to do this?" she turned around to face him as she held his face.
"To be their voice," he repeated her words as he closed his eyes and hugged her close. "I'm not going to like it but I'll support you, okay?" She knew she was right of course. If she didn't take the stand while the other girls didn't, Tsukishima might get off scot-free. He wasn't doubting Sora and Byakuya's ability in tackling their end in court, even a good lawyer can't work with just circumstantial evidence at times. He wished he could shield her from all the bad shit in this fucked up world but he knew that wasn't sometimes possible. Orihime kissed her fiancee's lips as he opened his mouth to invite her in. So what if he was dead tired. There was nothing like coming home, to destress while making love to the woman he held in his arms.
The next week after getting the okay from her fiancee and brother to take the stand, she decided to meet with the victims. Shuhei stood outside the household of the girl's she visited while she spoke with them. They were at first annoyed by having another person visit them when they clearly wanted this to be behind them. After Orihime sweetly told them she only came to tell them, what she was planning to do. Their walls eventually came down, some even shed a few tears and described their experience. It was heart-wrenching to listen to but Orihime knew they wanted someone other than lawyers or cops to listen.
She had already met with four of the victims and she made to meet with the fifth one. Shuhei had a bit of a hard time, getting a hold of this girl. She previously worked for Tsukishima as a para-legal assistant before she became a talented fashion designer. The documents stated that she also had a relationship with the man. Orihime waited out in the lobby with Shuhei, waiting to be called for their appointment that the spiky-haired man scheduled for her.
"Orihime Inoue," the secretary called out as Orihime stood," Ms. Riruka Dokugamine will see you."
She hugged Shuhei as he bid her good luck and went into the office where a dark pink haired girl sat in a pink chair. A black desk and furniture with splashes of pink were in the room. Pictures of cute girls in outfits hung up on the walls as donut decorations and stuffed animals were placed throughout the office. Orihime sat in front of the girl who was still glancing at photos before she looked up with an irritated look.
"Here I thought I was going to also speak to that handsome voice on the phone," she said sounding disappointed.
"Oh, umm that's my best friend's brother Detective Shuhei. If you want him to be in the room, I-"
"No, I just wanted to see him before I told him what I told those other people who visited. I am not taking the stand. I have my own life and business. How can I have this shit behind me when you guys insist on reminding me, whenever they visit. Now they send a beautiful face, thinking that I'll change my mind. Listen, sweetie! You can tell them my answer is still the same, N...O!" she growled out as Orihime swallowed nervously. She did get resistance from the other girls but this girl was a tad more aggressive.
"I... I didn't come to try to get you to take the stand," she told her as the girl's brow quirked up a little intrigued.
"What is it? I'm not looking for any more models. Plus, I don't think you're pretty enough," she seethed, knowing full well that this auburn-haired girl was extremely gorgeous and she couldn't stand how perfect she looked.
"No, I'm not here for that either. My brother, along with his firm is heading up a case against Tsukishima, along with Detective Shuhei, whom you spoke with. I.. I just wanted to let you know that, you don't have to speak because I've decided to take the stand and tell my story."
Riruka's features changed from shock and then immediately looked away. "You seem like a sweet girl," she saw the girl smile at her as she fiddled with her fingers. "You know he'll tear you apart on the stand," she told her softly as Orihime shook her head.
"I... I know but I still need to say something. I can't let him do this to any more girls. I feel like an inadequate witness when I can't possibly understand what you're going through. You see, I stopped him before it got any further," she gripped her fingers harder when Riruka glanced at her.
"How did you get away?" she asked her.
"When he was t...touching me and was too distracted to notice while he kissed me I kneed him and ran away. I... I could hear him trying to run after me but .." she rubbed the tear that strayed down her cheek. "I was able to get to people who could protect me."
Riruka still held a hard expression as she listened to the younger girl's story. "So you want to be a voice for us. Those poor unfortunate ones that weren't as lucky as you?" Orihime could hear a bit of malice in her words as she remained silent. "I was a naivete little girl like you until I began to hear rumors about my boyfriend and other females he was with. Some of them even confronted me and told me the horrible things. I confronted him and he just shrugged it off like it didn't matter. When I made to leave, the sick bastard, I received the same treatment he gave to those other girls."
Orihime watched the pink-haired girl whip her tear aggressively as she narrowed her eyes at her. " I bet you don't even know what it's like to have your boyfriend rape you? I bet you even have someone waiting for you at home, boyfriend..no... I bet it's a fiancee?" she watched as Orihime remained silent, feeling herself get upset with her being mute. "Well, answer?" she yelled.
"F...Fiancee," she looked at the girl who gave a small grin.
"I bet he's handsome too. How relieved he must feel to know you weren't as tainted as the rest of us. Come here to gloat about your perfect life?"
"You're putting words in my mouth. That's not fair, Riruka," she began to tear up as the woman in front of her glare at her.
"Well, life's not fair," she huffed, clicking on her desk intercom, still staring at the auburn-haired girl, "Katrina, is the man waiting in the lobby handsome?"
"Y... Yes, Ms. Dokugamine," the pink haired girl smiled at her assistant's blatant stuttering. "Good, send him in. Ms. Inoue was just leaving." She hung up the phone as she glanced at the girl who avoided looking at her. "It was great speaking with you and good luck," she gave an arrogant smile as Orihime stood to walk out. Shuhei saw the young girl's saddened features as he glanced at her and gave her a little hug.
"Just wait at the lobby. I won't be long," he gave her a grin, that seemed to ease the younger girl's nerves. Orihime watched how Riruka became flustered as Shuhei walked in and shut the door. She remained seated in the lobby, waiting patiently until she watched the older man leave the woman's office, shaking his head. They remained silent until they reached the elevator doors as she heard him chuckle. "I'm not sure what you said to convince her but she's willing to testify against Tsukishima."
Orihime looked at him confused as her mouth hung open, "What?"
"Said it had something to do with not letting your timid ass be the only one to stand up to that asshole," Shuhei hugged the stunned girl as she couldn't comprehend what just happened. She leaned her head onto Shuhei's shoulder. Riruka deep down was a sweet person. The woman just needed to vent at someone, unfortunately, it was her and she didn't mind being the brunt of her anger.
The ones who got to this point either liked this chapter or wanted to read everything before they sent me a review for doing such horrible things to Orihime or Sora. I know... I'm sorry. It had to be done. It was a story that was in the back of mind from the beginning when I first wrote the opening introduction to Friends and Family. I'm a little stressed out in writing about the court proceedings and making sure I don't sound like a complete fool. OMG! Pulls her hair out. lol! (calms down) I hope I didn't make Riruka too much of a bitch, she just wanted her Orihime to get a taste of what was to come. She knows Tsukishima very well and knows how much of a prick he could be.
My mother and I along with my little sister used to watch Law and Order. My favorite one is Law and Order: Criminal Intent. Why? You guessed it because of the mental health of some of these criminals including the main character. I think I'm obsessed with mental health because I have a lot of family members that have mental issues (all jokes aside). We have bipolar, depression, and other shit I don't know all the names of. It's pretty sad, right now I'm taking care of my grandparents who have dementia and one of them is bi-polar and went through post-partum depression (She had 8 children). Just listening to the stories from my aunts and uncles and all the Fucked up shit they had to go through, especially during the 60s and 70s. Doctors simply misdiagnosed it or said my grandmother was just being a typical crazy woman. WTF?
Oh, one more thing. My grandmother had postpartum depression but it never got to that point of her actually hurting her kids. My aunts and uncles would simply state she would always be stressed out and yelled for no apparent reason. It also didn't help my grandpa was an abusive alcoholic to his children. (My family is so messed up) I glad my mom didn't subject me to the shit she went through. I guess you have to write what you're familiar with. My mother tells me my grandfather changed for the better once he stopped drinking. It just blows my mind because growing up I never knew the crap he did, he was actually my favorite person. It just hurt because my mom only told me when I was older because she didn't want to taint the image of my grandpa. = ( So taking care of him now as a frail old man who has no sense, it just breaks my heart. For a long time, it was hard for me to forgive someone like that when I found out. But if my mother could forgive him, I did. Gosh! Writing this chapter messed me up, I'm basically saying personal shit again. I hope I haven't scared you away. = )