Ichigo was sitting in his apartment looking at his cup of coffee. His mind was full of racing thoughts over the events that had happen early this year. It was December the first, two weeks after Grimmjow was sentence to jail and two weeks after Oichi lost her job. It was a hard to believe that things were happening. Oichi had collected her things from work and had moved in with Nel for the time being. Grimmjow was sentence to jail for 15 years…15…all for counterfeiting with the attempt of distributing and selling. To him that was just crazy. It's not like he fully knew the money was fake and how is that he got so much for something that seem so little? Hell, at first, he was going in jail for murder. He could believe 15 years or more for that but they barley had enough proof to put him away for that long.
Ichigo linked his fingers together. When Grimmjow heard the sentencing that was the first time Ichigo had seen a despair look on his face. Even if it was only for a few seconds it was still a shock and it made his heart quiver. Grimmjow had been trying to change for Oichi, to create a better life for them both. He gave up everything for that and this is how it turned out. It was like fate was slapping him in the face not allowing him to see the future he wanted.
"Ichigo?" Ichigo looked up to see Orihime. "Are you okay?" Ichigo sits back. "Yeah, I was just doing some thinking." Orihime sat beside him and wrapped her arm around his. "About Grimmjow and Oichi?" Ichigo nodded. "Yeah, I wouldn't even know where to begin at anymore. They both keep trying to climb up and start their lives, only to be knocked down again and again. I admit it's frustrating that I can't do anything to even help them." Orihime leans her head on him. "Not true Ichigo. As their friends we can be there to support them through this. Oichi is a strong and independent person she will find away and Grimmjow has a lot of that book smart stuff. I'm sure once he gets out of this he will be climbing back to the top somehow." Ichigo looked at her and smiled. "Yeah. I'm sure of that to. You're a very supported person Orihime." Orihime blushed. "Y-You think so? I mean I didn't do much so…" Ichigo chuckled and kissed her. "Your adorable." Orihime's face went even redder. "Oh Ichigo."
They shared a passionate kiss before they heard a knock on the door. Ichigo frowns. "Ugh…and just when I was about to make you mine again." Orihime rubbed her face as he got up and went to the door. He opened it to see Uryu and Tatsuki standing there. "Oh, it's you to." Tatsuki rolled her eyes and pushed past him. "Orihime! We are here!" Orihime smiled. "Hi Tatsuki!" They hugged each other. Uryu and Ichigo exchange looks before Ichigo invited him in. They all walked and headed to the living room. Orihime put on some tea. "Has anyone heard from Oichi?" Tatsuki asked. Ichigo shook his head. "No, she's not answering her phone and when we get up with Nel she says that she simply doesn't want to talk to anyone. I have no idea what state her mind is in right now." Uryu pushed his glasses up. "Then we should go over there. Sometimes we have to do things face to face." Orihime looked down. "I agree but, what if she doesn't want to speak with us?" Tatsuki crossed her legs. "Then I'll break the door down." Ichigo gave her a 'wtf' look. "You really wanna go and kick Nel's door down. Nel. The same Nel who doesn't give a damn if people in a building and would set it on fire? That Nel?" Tatsuki chuckled. "She's not that bad anyways, we can't let Oichi just wither away. This is when she needs her friends the most! With Grimmjow locked up she needs to bounce back on her feet more than ever! If she wants to make a new life with him then she can't be all depressed lying in bed day after day. So, what she got fired. She has other talent and I am sure there are many other jobs that will fit her to a T." Ichigo sat back. "You do make sense. Fine well go over there but it's best to wait for Nel to come home. That way we can get in easier without kicking doors down." He says eyeing Tatsuki. "Hey, I was only making a suggestion here."
Over at the Kuchiki manor, Renji and Byakuya were sitting in his private room. Renji was looking down at the floor with a nervous look. Byakuya was doing some paper work not saying anything but, Renji could feel a mincing vibe coming from him. "Renji." Renji jumped and looked up and sat up straight. "S-Sir!" He gulped. Byakuya was still looking down as he worked. "I have never approved of you and Rukia's relationship and even now I am questioning it. As a member of the Kuchiki clan she is an important family member and around here people see her as the next and up incoming leader, taking after me. Of course, it won't be some time before that. During your time in school when you started dating Oichi Yamamoto I was aware that you were still seeing each other." Renji's eye widen slightly.
"I do not approve of your methods Renji. The best things for me to do is to fire you for the disturbance you have caused my home, name, and reputation." "What!...But Sir!" Byakuya looked up and gave him a look that quickly shut him up. "I find what you and Rukia did to be a disgrace of this family. However, at the same time because she instructed you to not speak about your relationship around the work area, few people know about this blasted affair. Therefore, no damage was done. None that couldn't be easily taken care of. So for now your job is safe." Renji sighed out in relief. "I do not give third chances Renji. I do not like easily made mistakes. If you disappoint me again, bring more shame upon our family name, or do to Rukia what you did to Oichi Yamamoto, I will make sure that you never work in this town again. Do I make myself clear?" Renji gulp. "Y-Yes sir…" "Good. Now go to the office and start on your paperwork. You will be on desk duty for the next three weeks." Renji got up and bowed. "Thank you sir! I will not let you down again sir!" He then quickly left the room.
Making it out of the Kuchiki manor, Renji got into his car and took off to the office. He's body started to relax as the menacing vibe soon went away. He wiped the sweat that was running down his chin. "Jeez. He is scary as ever. I hope he cheers up when his niece is born in February.
Renji made it to his job in a nice fashionable time. He pulled into the employee parking lot under the building. He grabbed his suitcase and phone and dialed Rukia's number. Walking to the elevator he hit the up button and waited for it to come down. He listens to the phone ring twice before being picked up. "Hello?" Renji smiled as he got on the Elevator and hit his floor number. "Hey Babe. How are you feeling?" The door closed and started to go up. "I'm good. I'm a little worried about Oichi though." Renji frowned. "Forget about her Rukia. She's the one who choose a criminal as a rebound date. She brought this on herself." "How can you say that!? It's not her fault Renji! If we would have done things the right way, then this might have never happened!" Renji sighed. "Even so Rukia. The guy isn't even her type and she was flocked like a sheep. It sucks that she lost her job, but this should be an even bigger wake up call. Just because some guy flashes a nice smile and throws out pretty words here and there doesn't mean he's good for you." There was silence over the phone. "Babe?" He heard a deep sigh. "Wow Renji. That is so inconsiderate…" "Huh!?" "You just described yourself! You did this to Oichi both in high school and months ago when you tried to make her believe this was her fault!" "Rukia what is wrong with you? Are you angry or something? Did I forget something? Why are you coming for me about something WE did!?" "No! You did this Renji! I told you, begged you, pleaded with you to let her go! Why didn't you let her go Renji!? Huh!? Why!? I have loved you since we were children shouldn't I matter more to you!?" "Yeah and in hopes of your brother not noticing us we decided, together, both of us, to use Oichi to avoid his attention! Don't act like you are the only innocent one in this!" "All you had to do was to leave her after school! Why did you keep going Renji?" Rukia asked in an upset tone.
"Rukia…" "Did you fall in love with her? Were you happy saying that you were going to marry her instead of me?" Renji groaned. This wasn't the first argument they had like this. He could call and ask her a simple question and the next thing he knew she would go on a rant about Oichi. He didn't know if it was because of her ranging hormones or what. It was really annoying him. "Rukia. If I did love her then I would still be with her. If I wanted to marry her I would have already. You know this. You know me." "Then why did you stay?" Rukia asked. Renji bit his lip. The elevator opened on his floor. "I have to go." He says before hanging up on her. Stepping out on his floor he groans as he went to his office. As he walked by he could hear his co workers talking about various things.
"Did you hear about Renji and Rukia?" "No, what happened?" "I heard they had an affair." "Huh!? That's dumb. Renji wasn't even seeing anyone." "That's a lie. He has been dating some girl that works at the café. I was told that they had been together for a while." "Wow, but isn't Rukia pregnant? They were barely speaking to each other while they were here. How can we know its his for sure?" "Eh? Well you do have a point…but an affair of all things. I hope that girl is okay. I'd hate to have that happen to me."
Renji kept his thoughts to himself. He didn't have time to worry about rumors at this point anymore. Months ago, that would have caused a issue but with the cat being out of the bag there wasn't much to hide. The co workers will talk until they couldn't talk anymore and move on to something else. Opening the door to his office he frowned when he spotted Ikkaku sitting down waiting. "What are you doing here?" Renji asked closing the door behind him. Ikkaku yawns. "I was taking a nap." "Go take a nap in your own damn office!" Renji says slamming his suitcase on the desk. "Whoa there. Seems like someone is in a bad mood. It can't be because of the rumors running around now." Renji sits down and leans back in his chair. "No, I don't care about that. It's Rukia." "Trouble in paradise." Renji rubs his face. "I get that she's going through a range of emotions but ever since she told Oichi what really happened between us she's been bring up the same argument over and over again and its getting on my damn nerves! I'm trying not to snap at her but I'm reaching a limit…why can't she understand that I love her and only her. If I didn't then I wouldn't have done all of this. If I still have feelings for Oichi then I wouldn't be sitting here trying to figure out what I can do to make her shut up and be happy."
Ikkaku chuckled. "Your tense, how about we go out for drinks tonight. Since you have been put through the ringer so much I'll even pay." Renji looks at him. "Really? Alright then. I'll go. I'll let Rukia know when I'm done with this overload of paper work." Ikkaku yawned and got up. "Alright, then see you at the usual spot?" Renji nodded and watched him walk off. Renji looked down at his desk and then rubbed the back of his neck. He closed his eyes for a brief second.
"You look so stiff. Here let me help you dear." Renji could feel a pair of soft hands on the back of his neck. The scent of honey filled his nose and a warm smile came to his face. "I always did like the way you gave me a rub down." He heard a giggle as the hands went down to his shoulders. "Is it because you like the way it feels or because of what happens after." Renji chuckled. "A bit of both." The pair of hands then wrapped around his neck. He felt something lean on his head. "You are such a perv but I love that about you Renji." "Do you now." The hands wrapped around him tighter. "I love you so much Renji. I truly do. Forever and always." Renji smiled as he opened his eyes. He frowned when he saw no one there with him. "A dream maybe…" He rubbed his shoulders. They were feeling a bit better but when Oichi finished with them they felt much better. Rukia tries to do it but it's not the same. Renji stretches and them smacks his cheeks. "Alright no time to dream. I can't keep living in the past anymore. Time for work and then some drinks!" He said laughing to himself.
At the café, there weren't many customers. Word had quickly spread how Oichi lost her job. Some of the employees who couldn't handle Luppi's changes wasted little time in leaving. Momo and Kira were the only two managers on duty that morning. They were both in the restaurant area attending to the few customers they had. Hisagi was with them drinking. Momo leans on the counter. "We have never been this dead before. I just don't get why they fired Oichi. She didn't do anything wrong." Kira rubbed her back. "The company was looking out what was best for the company. That's all that was. If Oichi would have just let Grimmjow go then she'd still be here." Momo frowned. "Even so! It's not right to involve her love life with her work life! So, what if she was dating Grimmjow! It's not like all the workers here have a clean record."
Hisagi put his glass down. "I offered her a job." He says. Kira and Momo looked at him. "Say what?" Hisagi pulled out his called. E.E.D. Momo's eyes widen. "Are you serious? Oichi can't work in such a place like that!" Kira nodded. "I agree. You must be joking." Hisagi shook his head. "No, in fact, she starts tonight." Momo and Kira's mouth dropped. "D-Did you explain to her what E.E.D stands for and what you do there!?" Momo asked. "Somewhat. I gave her the run down on what job she was going to do. I told her once she got there the boss will give her the full details and if she chooses to accept them then the job is hers." Momo and Kira looked at each other. "I don't know Hisagi. That type of environment might not be good for Oichi right now. Plus, what is Ichigo and the others are going to say about this." "I didn't ask her to do the impossible. It's a simple job that she can do, and the pay is good. Besides Oichi is an adult, she can make her own decisions. She's also a hard worker and will take any job she can within the reasonable range." He got up. "None the less good luck with the café. If you want to stop by and see Oichi your welcome to." He says leaving.
As 4pm approached, Ichigo and the others arrived at Nel's apartment. Orihime was holding a bento box for Oichi. "I hope she's okay." Orihime says with a sad tone. Ichigo smiled at her as they walked to Nel's door. "I'm sure she's okay and plus your bringing her a bento box. She loves those." Orihime smiled. Tatsuki placed her hand on her hip. "I hope she has a good reason for not answering our calls." Uryu pats her shoulder. Ichigo knocks on the door.
"DOOR!" They heard Grayson yelling. Orihime and Tatsuki giggled as they heard him hitting the door. "Open! Opennn!" They heard him cry out. "Okay, okay sweetie." They heard Oichi's voice. They heard the locks unlocking. It open and Grayson jumped out with sparking eyes. "Daddy!" He stopped when he looked up at Ichigo. "Not daddy…" Grayson said sadly. He tears up. The door opened wider. Oichi appeared. She was wearing a burgundy long sleeve button up shirt with a black vest over it and a short black skirt. She smiled down at Grayson and picked him up. He sniffed rubbing his eyes. "Daddy…" Oichi smiles at Ichigo and the others. "Sorry about that. He may be one, but he can clearly tell that something is wrong. Come on in." She says.
They walked and went into the living room. Oichi placed Grayson down on his play mat. He looked down sadly as he pushed his toys around. Oichi and the others sat on the couch. "He really misses Grimmjow huh." Ichigo says. Oichi sighs. "Yeah…Nel doesn't want him to come with me to see him. I get why but 15 years is a long time. I don't think it would be fair to both Grayson and Grimmjow. I'm here as a guest so I don't want to overstep anything big she decides in Grayson's life." She eyes the bento box on Orihime's lap. "What's the bento box for?" Orihime held it up. "Its for you. I thought you could use some pick me up food." Oichi smiles. "Aw, thank you!" She takes the box and opens it. There were rice balls, chicken, veggies, a little fruit. "Wow! It looks so yummy! Grayson." Grayson turns around to her and looks at the box. "Food! Eat Eat!" He got up and ran to her. Oichi giggled as she picked up a pair of chop sticks that came with the box. She picked up a piece of chicken and fed it to him. "Mmm!" He says rubbing his cheeks. "Is it good?" Grayson nodded as he waited for more.
Uryu pushed his glasses up. "We came over to see how you were, but it looks like you are doing okay." Oichi chuckles while picking Grayson up and sitting him beside her to eat. "Yeah, it was bad last week. I felt a bit of lost. With Grimmjow in jail, me homeless and no work, everything just seems so pointless. I didn't want to do anything, and I wanted to stop trying. It seems like the harder I try the harder I fall right back down to the bottom. It's was frustrating…" She feeds Grayson some veggies. "Last weekend, Nel kicked me out of bed and shook me out of depression." Oichi rubbed her head. "It's been a while since I truly have hit rock bottom. Last time it was at school when my dad found out that I lost my v-card." Ichigo chuckled. "Yeah, he stripped your whole room bare along with anything that you didn't need to survive." Oichi shivered. "Yeah he left only the kitchen and bathroom. He left me with one blanket and a pillow. Ugh…" Ichigo laughed. "Don't forget he nailed the windows shut and blocked the door, so no one could get in or out." They laughed. "Or remember that time when you tried to sneak in anyways and he made that pit trap." Ichigo rubbed his head. "Man that sucked. How did he ever find time to dig that!" Oichi shrugs. "Who knows…speaking of my dad…I reached out to him the other day."
Ichigo's smile turned to a frowned. "Oh?" Oichi nodded. "I told him everything that happened and…and asked for help." "Your kidding." Ichigo says. Uryu crossed his arms. "What's wrong with that? As a parent he should be willing to help you out when you need it." Ichigo shivered. "How can you say that when you hate your old man." Uryu glared slightly. "That man is not my father. So I think I can hate him all I want." Ichigo gave a dry laugh. "Don't be such a pansy over it. Didn't you two make up or something." "That is none of your concern." "Uh huh…anyways…Dante is a bit worse then your old man. Hell if it wasn't for the hair you would think him and Oichi aren't even related. So, what he say?"
Oichi sat back as she ate a piece of the rice ball. "Mmm…he said there was nothing he could do for Grimmjow and wasn't shocked that he got 15 years since it was a federal offense. So long as Grimmjow behaves he can get out on good behavior. As for me…he was just as shock as I was when I asked for help but he sounded happy about it. He said he is doing some work, so it will be a while until he is back in town. He told me not to worry about anything and just keep working hard." Oichi smiled. "I'm not sure what he is going to do but it nice to know that he wants to help." Orihime and Tatsuki smiled at her. "Well then I guess there was no reason to worry about you at all." Tatsuki says laughing. "Listen, if you need a job you can come work at the dojo with me and Ichigo. You don't have to train the kids, or anything just keep everything nice and neat and keep up with the roll and what not." Oichi looked at her. "Really? I mean are you sure!?" Tatsuki nodded. "Of course! You can even start tomorrow morning if you want. I can train you to if you want." "Thank you Tatsuki! I hope you don't mind me working part time."
"Sure! I can tell you already have a job now since you are dressed like that." Oichi nods. "Yeah, Hisagi came over and offered me a job as a bartender at the E.E.D club." There eyes widen at her. "No." Ichigo says in a stern tone. Oichi raised her eyebrow. "What do you mean 'NO.'" Ichigo crossed his arms. "I won't allow that. Do you even know what E.E.D means and what they do in there?" "It stands for Exotic Erotica Dancing. To many it looks like a strip club." "It is a strip club." "It's not. The women there don't take their clothes off, mostly. They just dance and get money. I will be a bartender nothing more nothing less. Plus they are going to be renaming the place and content soon." "Do you think Grimmjow will approve of you working there?" "No, but its not like I'll be working there forever. It's a part time job and only until I find something better." "I don't trust that place Oichi. It's not a good place for you to work." Oichi sighs. "I'll be fine Ichi. You're such a big brother." "Well if your actual brother cared enough then maybe I wouldn't have had to work so hard." "You have a brother?" Orihime asked. "I do. His name is Mikey. I never met him, but I heard that he is like my dad's twin. He's 5 years older then me or so I've heard."
"Wow…I bet he's hot." Tatsuki says. Oichi giggles. "If he is like dad then yeah. If he's a play boy like him then I doubt he want to be tied down. Anyways, I'll be working at the club part times at night." She ate a piece of chicken and fed a piece to Grayson. "Mmmm!" "I'm thinking of going into businesses with my sisters as well. They seem to be doing good." Ichigo smiles. "It looks like you have things planned out already. Other then you working at the club I'm happy that your bouncing back up." Oichi looked at the clock on the wall.
It was pushing 4:30. "Nel should be home soon…I have to be at the club by 7:30pm so that should give me enough time to go see Grimmjow." "How's he doing?" Orihime asked. "Well on the phone he asked me to come on the first and not right then and there. It kinda hurt but I understand. He can have at least two, one hour visits every four weeks. If I visit today I won't be able to visit him until the week of Christmas…" Oichi looked down sadly. "I miss him." Ichigo reached over and grabbed her hand. "Don't get down. You have to focus more than ever now. Didn't you say that Grimmjow said to not show how down you are? Don't let those guys win. You need to work harder and smarter now. Whatever jobs you are doing you need to go in with that same jolly attitude, fuck everyone in there, and give it your all like you always do okay? Remember that you have friends that support you every step of the way. Don't hesitate to ask us for help to." Oichi smiled. "Thanks, Ichigo. Thanks to all of you."
They heard the door unlocking. Nel walked in with a loud groan. "I hate this job." She walked to the living room and stopped to see everyone. "Hey! I didn't know you guys were coming over." "Ma! Food!" Grayson says pointing to the bento box. Nel smiles. "I guess you all came to see how Oichi was." Orihime smiled. "Looks like we didn't need to." Nel placed her hands on her hips. "Damn right. I let her have her depressing moment, but I didn't want her to willow away. Grimmjow will never let me here the end of it if I let her." Oichi quickly finished up the bento box, upsetting Grayson. "No auntie! Food mine!" He grabbed on to her pouting. Oichi giggled and gave him the last of her chicken. She then got up and rubbed her belly. "Haa that was really good! Thanks for the meal Orihime." Nel chuckled. "Off to see the bum now?" Oichi nodded as she walked into the kitchen. She then walked into the room to get her shoes and purse.
Ichigo looked at Nel. "You're not letting Grayson go see him?" Nel frowned. "No, I don't want Grayson around him while he is there. He doesn't need to see a place like that. Maybe when he is older but not while he's just a baby." She walked over to Grayson and picked him up. "I get that him and Grimmjow were starting to bond more but I don't want to take him to a place that will do nothing but confuse him. He would want Grimmjow to come home and start crying his cute little eyes out." Nel tighten her grip around him. "…and much as it kills me to say this, I don't think I could bare looking back and seeing that despair look on Grimmjow's face, knowing that he may miss 15 years of Grayson's life." Tatsuki nodded in agreement. "Understandable. You are just trying to protect him until he is old enough to understand what is going on." "Yeah…" Nel says snuggling Grayson.
"Nel? Can I have the keys?" "They are in my purse hun." Oichi walked over to the door and digs in her purse, pulling the keys out. She slipped on a pair of flats and had a pair of black high heels in her hand. She grabbed her own purse and jacket. "See you later tonight!" She says walking out the door. "Bye Bye!" Grayson says waving. Nel chuckles. "It's nice seeing her back on the saddle like this. I don't like her working at the club but, I'm sure they will take care of her. I hear they are under new management." Ichigo frowned. "They better…"
In Prison near the edge of the city, Grimmjow was laying back on his bed with his eye's closed. He was dressed in all orange and because the place had no gel, his hair was down over his face a bit. He was stuck in this place for 15 years. He was told though, if he could stay on the good side he could get out in a year or so on good behavior. Luckily, he knew most of the people in here, so they didn't bother him to much. It was just the new rookies who were going to be an issue. He worked with a few of them and screwed them over from time to time, so he knew that they would be gunning for him. If he didn't throw the first punch then he should be fine however, he had no idea on who would be on Aizen's pay roll. It was even more luck though, that this was a shared jail house. Imamates from both sides came here and while hanging out with Oichi he did manage to make a few friends on the other side.
"Yo, Grimmjow." Grimmjow opened his eyes to see Ikkaku. "Come on let's go." Grimmjow got up and stretched. Ikkaku opened his cell and took out some handcuffs. "Are these really necessary? It's not like I'm gonna attack you." Ikkaku chuckled as he cuffed his hands. "Protocol." Grimmjow walked in front of him. A few prisoners where staring at him. "Seems like you're the life of the party in here." Grimmjow chuckled. "Most of those guys I already beat the hell out of. The others are newbies who want to take a shot at me." Ikkaku chuckled. "So I guess I'll get to see some epic fights huh. If I bet my money on you I think I'll win big." Grimmjow laughed. "You only get a fight if they lay a hand on me first. Trying to get out on good behavior here. Starting a fight will only push those 15 years up." Ikkaku frowned. "So you are willing to take a beating?" "I've taken a lot worse. I want to get out of here and soon as possible and get back to Oichi. I don't want to leave my woman alone for two long. Who knows who is out there trying to pull her." He gripped his fist. "I promised her that I'll always be there for her. Me sitting on my ass for 15 years isn't going to cut it." Ikkaku smirked. "All this for a woman huh. Seems like I was almost wrong about you. Don't worry, I got your back for now." Grimmjow smirks back. "Then I'll treat you for a drink when I get out." "I'll hold that to you."
Ikkaku led him down a set of stairs. They came to a gate. "Oi! Open the damn gate already!" He says looking into the camera. He heard a giggle ring out the speakers. "Call yourself a bald old man and I'll think about it badly haha!" Ikkaku growled. "Yachiru! Open the damn door!" "Come on you bowling ball. You gotta say your name first or I can't open the door. Oooo! Now call yourself captain baldly!" "Dammit Yachiru!" "Nope! That's not the password. If you don't say it then I'll tell Kenny that you aren't doing your job hahaha!" Ikkaku grinds his teeth. "F-Fine…I'm captain baldly! Now can you open the gate!" "Yaaay! Congratulations Captain baldly! You have earned permission to enter the gate!" The gates light turned green and opened. Ikkaku grumbled as he led Grimmjow through the gates and towards a white door.
Behind the white door, was an area in which some prisoners were talking to their loved ones or friends on the other side of a bullet proof glass window. Yumichika and a few other guards were posted up on the wall. Yumichika noticed them and waved at them. He then looked forward and motion someone to sit down. Ikkaku brought Grimmjow to Yumichika and took his cuffs off. "You got up to two hours. Make it worthwhile." Ikkaku says. Grimmjow rubs his wrist and walks in front on the window. He chuckled as he watched Oichi pat her hair down with a flustered face. He sat down and watched her for a few more seconds until he knocked on the glass. She jumped a bit and then pouted at him. He smirked and picked the phone and she did the same.
"Trying to look cute for me eh? How cute." He watched Oichi's face get redder. "W-Well…I figured I'd give you something to remember me by…" Grimmjow smirks. "There are a ton of things you can do for that, but I'll take this for now. How have you been holding up? Nel getting on your nerves yet?" Oichi sat back. "No, she's been really supportive. I was able to get some jobs lined up because of her." "Oh? That's good. I figured you wouldn't let this setback get you down." Oichi smiled. "Yeah. I really miss you though." Grimmjow smiles back at her. "I miss you to babe but if you think about it, 15 years isn't that long. It will fly right on by before you know it." "I guess, but it would be nice if you could stay out of trouble and get out on good behavior." Grimmjow leans back into his chair. "I can try but no promises. I am a wanted man in this place." He looks at a sadden Oichi. "I'm just kidding babe. I'll do my best not to cause to much trouble."
Grimmjow and Oichi talked for the next hour. She told him about the jobs she was doing and like Ichigo said it wasn't to happy that she was doing the club job. "Are you sure you are going to be just bartending?" "Yes. Hisagi promised me that." "You know that bastard likes you right?" Oichi smiled. "I do actually. That's why I know he will keep his promise. I won't work long there. Only until my sisters come into town." Grimmjow leans on his elbow. "I still don't like it…" "I'll be fine. If anyone comes my way I can handle myself a little bit. Thanks to you." Grimmjow smirked. "I did teach you some moves so you can handle yourself." Oichi nodded. "Yup, thanks to you I'll be okay for a bit. So please just play nice and hurry and come back." Grimmjow sighed and then chuckled. "I guess I don't have to worry about much for now but if any guy lays a hand on you, remember their name and face. I'll teach them a lesson whenever I get out." Oichi giggled. "Your so extra."
Ikkaku walked up behind Grimmjow. "Times getting cut. You got a few minutes left." Grimmjow frowned. "So that's how it is huh." Oichi looked down. "I won't see you until the week of Christmas…that…that seems like forever away." Grimmjow laughed. "It will go by quick. Oh, if you do come make sure you dress super sexy but not to sexy to where guys look at you." Oichi rolled her eyes. "That would be an issue since you think everything I wear is super sexy." "True…Hmm…" He closed his eyes and thought for a second. "Okay then dressed modernly sexy. Like sexy but not to sexy to where I'd have to quickly kill someone." "That doesn't make sense but okay. I'll just dress cute like. Sounds good?" "Sounds good…and a picture of Grayson. Not Nel. Don't need her scaring me in my dreams." Oichi shook her head. "Uh huh. I'm sure she will be thrilled to know that."
20 more minutes passed before time was up. "Be safe out their babe. Remember what I said okay?" Grimmjow says. Oichi nodded. "Yes, I'll stay strong. You just play nice okay. I don't think I can bear it if you're in here for much to longer." Grimmjow put his hand on the glass. "It's kinda cheesy like how they do this in the movies." Oichi placed her hand on the glass. "I like it and I don't mind it being cheesy. It makes you look cute." Grimmjow blushed slightly, making her laugh. Once time was up they hung the phones up. Oichi watched sadly as they cuffed Grimmjow and led him to the back. He turned back and winked at her before disappearing behind the door. Oichi looked down at her hands and sighed mentally. All when they were talking she was doing her best not to cry. Even now she was tearing up, but she couldn't show her sad face around everyone. She had to be strong. She took a deep breath and rubbed her cheek. "I guess I should get going…" She got up and waved bye to Yumichika.
It was getting close to 7pm when she walked out and headed to the parking lot. She was digging in her purse for her keys. "This is why I hate purses. Half of this crap isn't even my crap." Since she was looking down she wasn't looking where she was going. She took another step before she bumped into someone. Her purse drops, and items started rolling out of it. "Oh shoot." She bends down and grabs her purse. "I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going." She grabbed the random items and shoved them in her purse. "I hope I didn't mess up anything you were doing." She looked up at the person. "I'm known to be quite a…" Her eyes widen as she recognized the person she ran into. Her body tensed slightly, and it froze. In front of her with a cup of coffee in his hands was Ulquiorra.
"You…" Ulquiorra looked down at her. "Hmmf…you're the dog that was with Grimmjow." Oichi frowned at the comment and she quickly fought out of her slight fearful moment. "Excuse me!?" She stood up. "I am not a dog!" Ulquiorra looked her up and down. It sent her a weird vibe. "I see…Grimmjow is trash and most dogs hang around trash." "Like I told you before Grimmjow is not trash! What is your deal?" Ulquiorra turned his back to her. "I call it like I see it. Now that the trash is taken care of you must need a new master." Oichi raised her eyebrow. "I may need a loyal dog such as yourself." He says walking away. Oichi bite her lip and then stomped her foot. 'Oooo! What is that man's problem!?' She grabbed her purse and stormed to the car. "Seriously he shows up out of no where and then calls me a dog!? Ugh!" She throws her purse in the car, gets in and slams the door close. "I should have used that move Grimmjow taught me on him then I bet he would think twice about calling me a freaking dog!" She turned the car on and drove out the parking lot.
Nnoitra chuckled. He was sitting in his own car watching everything. He heard his door open and Ulquiorra got in. "Ha, and here I thought you didn't have the balls to go after another man's woman." Ulquiorra closed the door. "Take me to work." He says flatly. Nnoitra laughed and turned the car on. "I thought that chick would be a broken mess by now. Grimmjow rarely picked the good ones. Hell, he ended up with Nel of all people and got a kid by her. I told his ass that soft shell he meet was nothing but a cover. Inside Nel is nothing but a hot headed violent sexy beast." Ulquiorra leans back in his chair. "I don't care." "Uh huh. You must care enough to try to shake up that woman. You want her don't you? Curious as to what she sees in Grimmjow and how you can get her into your arms? You're a slick fucker aren't you." Ulquiorra didn't answer. He looked down in his hand to see some Chapstick. When they ran into each other it came flying out of her purse and he had caught it before it dropped to the floor. He rubbed it before he placed it into his pocket.
By 7:25 Oichi had pulled up into a parking lot across the street from the club she was going to. The club looked kind of small but it also had a underground room where the main parties were held. Grabbing her purse, she got out and locked the door. She patted her head down and fixed her clothes. Taking a deep breath, she calmed her nerves and walked across the street to the club. Outside the building was a deep blue color with a black roof. The sign where the name was had been taking down. There were workers repainting the spot. 'So they really were changing the name. I wonder if anything else will be changing.' Oichi thought to herself as she walked to the front door and opened it, walking inside. The place looked like it was in the middle of being remodeled. The walls were half painted and there was a white sheet over the bar and no stools. The chairs were flipped onto the tables and the mount TVs looked like there were hanging off the helms. Parts of the floor were also removed.
'Is this the right place? I'm sure Hisagi said it was.' "Um…Hello?" She called out. There was no answer. She took out her phone to see that it was getting ready to hit 7:30. "I'll have to called Hisagi. Maybe it was the wrong place." Just as she dialed his number the back door slammed open. She was startled by the loud noise that she dropped her phone. A tall, muscular, lightly tan-skinned man with cornrowed hair, a large handlebar mustache, which was connected to his long sideburns, and a pair of rectangular-shaped glasses walked out with a broom. In his other hand her was carrying a young boy with red hair, a dirty white shirt and blue pants. "I've told over a million times that you need to be cleaning not laying around! Time is money!" He tossed the boy into one of the tables near Oichi.
"Eek!" Oichi jumped back as the chair nearly hit her feet. The man looked at her. "Oh, my apologies but we are closed for the day." Oichi looked at the boy, wondering if he was okay. "I see…but I was told to come here for a job interview by my friend Hisagi? As a bartender? Is that spot no longer available? Or am I really in the wrong place…?" The man walked up to her and gave her a closer look. "Hmmm you are in uniform. What is your name young lady?" "I'm Oichi Yamamoto." "Yamamoto?" "No relation sir." The man pulled out a note book from his back pocket and flipped it over towards the middle page. "Hmmm…Ah! Yes Ms. Yamamoto at 7:30 the boss was just talking about you. Sorry for the short misunderstanding. I am Tessai Tsukabishi. I run the day bar up here and the child laying on the floor over there is Jinta Hanakari. He helps keep the place clean up here."
Jinta sat up. "Hey, I am not a child and I do more then just help clean! I keep those drunken bastards out the bar and I protect all the women in here you old man!" "You are doing to much talking and not enough cleaning. If you prefer I can 'fix' the talking issue." Tessai says snapping the broom in half. Both Jinta and Oichi jumped at this action. Jinta quickly got up and started cleaning up the mess that was made by him. Oichi chuckled nervously. "Quite the staff you have here." "Please follow me Ms. Yamamoto. The boss is waiting for you downstairs." Oichi nodded and followed him to the back door. When they were gone Jinta was mumbling under his breath when he heard a ringing. He looked on the floor to see Oichi's phone. He picked it up to see that Rukia was calling her. Making sure the coast was clear, Jinta answered but didn't say anything. "Oichi? Are you there? W-Well I'm sure you must since you answered. Even if you don't respond please listen to me. I know you have heard this a lot coming from me but I still want to apologize about everything. I won't waste anymore of time but I just wanted to call and wish you the best of luck in your interviews. You're a strong woman and the hardest working person I know. You had your share of setbacks but I'm sure you will still give it your all." There was a pause. "I have to get going. Sorry for calling at a weird time. Good Luck." She hung up. Jinta looked at the phone. "I guess I'll rely the message to her when she comes back up…and apologize for peeking through her phone." He said with a evil chuckle.
Downstairs, Tessai led Oichi towards the lower bar room. There was a double door that was wooden and slightly opened. There was a soft beat coming from it. Tessai opened the door and Oichi's eyes widen to see the room. It was way bigger then she could have imagined.
The interior entrance design has an illuminated "Dream Zone" sign mounted above a decorative valance. On either side of the entrance there were two internally illuminated columns with a specialty etched metal inset for a highly reflective and multi-faced surface, setting the overall tone for the interior space. The bar area design had a new looking overhead structure, which features I-5's silver and fiery red etched metal cladding and cantilevers out over the bar to create an intimate space for guests. A custom illuminated bar top provides a soft, warm glow to the area, and sleek etched metal and diamond plate finishes provide a modern edge to the overall design. With grey tones and chrome silver accents throughout the space, attention is drawn to the stage which boasts a new overhead lighting system and a floor-to-ceiling TV screen for streaming video and live events.
In the middle of the floor there was a small dance floor but what got Oichi was the stage. The stage had four to six large cylinder glass tubes that had a small device on the bottom of it. There were a few people on the stage removing a few poles that went to the ceiling and into the stage. Oichi couldn't possibly imagine what they were going to do with those tubes.
"This way Ms. Yamamoto." Tessai says, leading her to the bar. They walked around it and through a backdoor. Once inside, Tessai then grabbed her arm and pulled her behind him as soon as a glass bottle came flying towards her way.
"Screw you! What do you mean I'm fired! I haven't done anything wrong!" Oichi peaked from behind Tessai and saw a tomboyish girl with jet black hair. Her eye color was two tone. The right eye was blue while the left was amber with a red outline around it. She was wearing a fitted light blue shirt and a mini jacket and baggy brown jeans and black shoes. She was glaring daggers at a man who was sitting down on the floor in front of her. He smiled. "I never said you were fired Apacci, we do have a deal with your boss. I can't fire you unless I have a good reason to." "Then what the hell are you talking about!?" She yelled. "I only said that we were going to be getting a new bartender. I never said that they would replace you or anything of the sort. You're the one who flew into a rage and broke a very expensive bottle that will be coming out of your check. Apacci growled at him and grabbed him by his shirt. "Listen here Kisuke! You jackass! Don't think you can boss me around anytime you want! If it wasn't for lady Harribel this dump wouldn't even be on street right now!" The man, Kisuke, laughed and pulled out a paper fan. "So true, but don't get it twisted. If it wasn't for me, you and your two friends wouldn't have a job. All three of you are horrible at bring in money and you can barley bring in customers with your bickering and arguing. Your 'Lady' Harribel does like to see the money rolling in since it gets her in good favor with her boss. I've been lying to cover your asses but with one little slip up I can easily tell her how bad you guys really are at your jobs." Apacci gave him a deadly look. "You piece of…." "Now, now, it's almost time for work. Why don't you go get ready now. As you can see I need to interview our new bartender." Apacci and Kisuke looked over to Tessai and Oichi.
"Um…hello?" Oichi says waving slightly. Apacci narrowed her eyes and let Kisuke go. "You…your that chick that's been messing around with Grimmjow aren't you." Oichi rubbed her cheek with her finger. "Yeah. I guess you can say that." Apacci smirked. "I heard you lost your old job because you wouldn't leave him out to dry." Oichi nodded. "Yeah…" Apacci chuckled. "I gotta hand it to you. I haven't seen a lot of woman stand by their man like you did. I mean losing your job over him and having him thrown in jail at the same time must have been quite a blow. I bet you thought you two were going to be living a happy normal life." Oichi frowned as Apacci walked up to her. "Since your going to be my new co worker I'll give you some advice. Leave that man. He will do nothing but fuck up your life like he does everything else. All he knows how to do is destroy. So save yourself the trouble and let him rot in that cell. Less stress that way." She passed by her and walked out the door slamming it.
Oichi sighed mentally. It wasn't the first time she heard that in the past few days. Her old coworkers called and told her something similar but no matter what they said she would never leave Grimmjow's side. "Don't let her words get to you Oichi."
Oichi looked up to see Kisuke. He stood up and walked towards her. He was tall and lean built man with light skin and gray eyes. He ruffled his blond hair getting it all messy. He was wearing a white dress shirt and black slacks with no shoes. "Welcome! I've been waiting for you! Come have a seat so we can tell you about your new job." "N-New job? I haven't even don't a interview with you yet." Kisuke motions her to follow him to two futons and a table in the middle. He sat on one and Oichi sat across from him. "A futon…" She says rubbing the soft cushions. "Yeah, sometimes I can't make it home and crash here from time to time. Having a sofa that turns into a bed is the best!" He says chuckling. "Now down to business. I've heard a lot about you already Oichi. From Hisagi and few others that visit us during the night. I also know everything that happened between you and one of our regular Renji." Oichi frowned. "Renji comes here…" Kisuke nodded. "Don't worry, I will keep a close eye on him so that he doesn't cause you any problems here."
"Thank you, sir." Kisuke chuckled. "No need for the 'sir' stuff. Just call me Kisuke. Now for your daily duties and a little bit about what we do here. I'm sure you have heard a lot about us." Oichi nodded. "Well we renamed this place into Dream Zone. It's a little cheesy but it fits the theme we are trying to do now. This place was known very well for men to come here and enjoy their happy hour." Oichi tensed up a bit. Hearing that and knowing Renji use to come here as a regular irritated her but she held it together. "Due to some new head honchos we had decided to change up our policy. No more striping, No more happy hours, No more mistreatment and so on and so on. Those tubes you see out there? Those tubes are for the dancers now. They simply dance and get paid to dress cute and pretty but you're not here for that job. I'm sure everything will become clear once you see it. You are here to be a bartender."
"About that Kisuke. I don't know how to make acholic drinks like that. I mean I worked and ran a café for most of my years." Kisuke laughed. "Yes, I know. Don't worry there is a small book that you can use to make drinks and when you are on break or come in before your work hours you can practice working on new drinks and what not. With your café mind I'm sure you can come up with something creative. None of the drinks you use will come out your pay so long as you don't break the bottle. You keep all of your tips and if you ever think that you want to do a bit more such as cooking or hosting or even joining in the dressing up part you are welcome to do that." Oichi smiled. "Okay. I got it."
Kisuke looked at his watch. "Okay, so you will be starting tonight so I hope you didn't have any plans tonight. I will need you here until 2a.m" Oichi's eyes widen a bit. "That late?" "Yes, we don't close until 1am with the remodeling and everything. Soon you won't be going home until maybe around 3 or 4 in the morning." "What time do you open?" "We open at 5pm and we usually close around 3am. On special occasion like holidays we stay open until 5am." "I see…then what about upstairs? Is that going to be a different room all together?" "Yes, that's just a regular bar up there. That opens at 12pm and closes at 1am. The door will still be open so the customers came come and leave. So for now you will be working here part time correct?" Oichi nodded. "For now yes." "Then you will work on Mondays, Fridays and the weekend 7:30 pm to 3a.m. Does that work for you?" Oichi nodded. "Yes. Thank you so much for giving me a job. I will work my hardest." Kisuke smiled. "I know you will. Now you can follow me. I'll be assigning you a trainer for a week or two so that you can learn the ropes around here."
Kisuke and Oichi got up and walked out into the bar room. The room was dim and Oichi could already see a few women heading to the back. They were wearing a lot of make up and skimpy outfits that made her face heat up a bit. One of the girls breast were nearly popping out of her shirt and her skirt was short enough to show everything including the fact that she wasn't wearing any underwear. She quickly turned her head and looked down. Kisuke chuckled. "My, aren't you the innocent one. Don't worry you will grow out of that in time." He led her behind the bar counter to where Apacci was. She was in the same uniform Oichi was in and she was getting the glasses ready. She frowned as Kisuke walked to her. "Apacci, I'd like to introduce you to Oichi Yamamoto. She will be training under you for a while so please do your best to train her." Oichi smiled. "Thank you in advance for all your help." Apacci rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Sit your stuff under the counter for now and I'll show you were everything is ONCE and that's it. You're an adult so I wont be spoon feeding you. This is a whole different ball game from some lame ass café. You got that!"
Oichi smiled slowly faded. "I understand that but if I all I have to do is cater to the customers I don't see how different it is from a café. I do thank you for treating me like an adult. I look forward to working with you from now on." Apacci frowned but nodded. "Right. Follow me." Oichi put her things under the counter. "Kisuke is it okay if I let my friend know how long I'll be gone? I wasn't really prepared to actually get this job as soon as I get here." Kisuke nodded. "Of course. You live with Nel right? She use to work here. Tell her that her spot is still open if she wish to come back. From what I hear the café thing isn't working out to well." Oichi sighed. "I figured that much…" Oichi says digging in her bag. "Huh!?" She frowns as she digs around more." "Something wrong?" "My phone…I can't find it. I know I had it earlier when I was going to call Hisagi…I must have dropped it upstairs." "Well I'll go get it. You go find Apacci before she gets mad." "Thank you!" Oichi says smiling. She put her things back down and walked off to find Apacci. Kisuke chuckled and head upstairs.
He opened the door to see Jinta sitting on the floor with a redden face as he read through a few of Oichi's and Grimmjow's old text messages. "What are you doing?" Jinta jumped up and hid the phone behind his back. "N-Nothing!" He said. Kisuke sighed. "It's rude to peak into a woman's phone. Hand it over and I won't tell her or Tessai that you were slacking again." Jinta sighs and hands him Oichi's phone. Wasting little time, he quick started to read through the same texts Jinta was wearing. He laughed. "Well now, and here I thought she was an innocent woman." "Hey! Didn't you tell me that it was rude to look through a woman's phone!?" "It is but it's different from me. I didn't expect to find such leverage on a new worker this quick. Oh, this is going to be fun haha. Now back to work."
Around 9:30 to 10pm the club was packed up. The music was loud and the girls were dressed up in different outfits. Some were cheerleaders, others were maids, one was a cat, and so on. Oichi was cleaning the glasses as she watched a man put money into the small devices on the tube. The woman winked at him and pressed her body up against the glass. It earned her more tips from the man.
"Excuse me cutie!" Oichi turned to a man waving at her. He had brown eyes and short blonde hair with a straight cut. She smiled. "I'll be with you in a moment sir!" "Don't keep me waiting to long." Oichi put the glasses down and went over to him. "What can I do for you?" The man looked Oichi up and down. "You new here?" "Yes, I am. It's my first night." The man smirked. "I see. Your face looks familiar as well. Didn't you use to work at that café?" "I did. Things didn't work out so now I'm working here. Would you like a drink?" The man nodded. "Since it's your first day have you made any special drinks yet?" Oichi flipped through the book on the counter. "Special drinks? No, I haven't I guess." "Specialty drinks are drinks that you personally make. Its something that not on the menu and you get half the profits for it here. Most of the bartenders here have one and the start making up there own line of drinks." "Really? Wow! Thank you for that information." Oichi says. "Do you know what you want to drink?" The man rubbed his chin. "Well since your new here lets go for something easy. How about Gin and Tonic?" Oichi nodded. "Coming right up!"
Oichi turned around and searched for the bottles she needed and a glass. She looked in the book and found the recipe. 'Seems easy enough. I think Grimmjow had this before.' She placed four ice cubes in the glass and then poured gin, tonic water, and lime juice over the ice. She then took a small spoon and stirred it. She places a lime on the wedge and places it in front of the man. "Here you go." The man chuckled and took a sip. He sighs out. "Well done. Its not super strong like I like it but its not weak." "Oh…I'm sorry. I'm still getting use to knowing how much to pour. I overdid it with the last drink." The man laughed. "Really now. Oh how rude of me. I haven't even introduce myself. I'm Shinji Hirako and you are?" "I'm Oichi Yamamoto. It's nice to meet you Shinji. Thank you for take it easy on me." Shinji smiled, flashing a large grin. "No problem Oichi." He sips on his drink. "Do you have a shaker? To mix drinks better? Using a spoon will become a problem soon." "I do but Apacci took it from me saying that I'm still a beginner and I can't use it until I make a certain amount of drinks." Shinji rolled his eyes. "That wrench. She just wants you to suffer. Might thinks you're here to take her job." "I'm not. I just want to work. Despite the small hole she put me in I'll still work my hardest." She flashed Shinji a cute smile. "I need to work hard and do my best you know." Shinji eyes widen for a second. He then cleared his throat and pulled his wallet out. He handed her a 50 dollar bill. "O-Oh. Do you need change?" "No just keep it. I'll be back for another drink or so." He says getting up from the bar. Oichi looked down at the 50 dollar bill. 'Oh my…my first big tip here.' She smiled and giggled to herself. Grimmjow gave her a 50 dollar bill like this when he came to the café. She put it in her shirt pocket. 'Okay Oichi. Time to get your head in the game!'
The night rolled on and it was around 11:45 when Hisagi, Ikkaku, Kira, Renji and Yumichika. Hisagi went around the counter to get ready for his shift. Ikkaku and the others sat at the bar. "Man…its been nothing but work work work." Yumichika says. "You said it. After that whole trial shit, squad 4 is deep in paper work." Renji says. "To think they lost all the evidence they had on Grimmjow. That's one huge fuck up." Ikkaku says. Kira nodded. "I feel bad for them a bit and we lost a chance to hit Aizen in a good spot to." They all sighed. "Well enough talk more drinking for tonight!" Renji says. "Where is Hisagi! Come on man. Can we get a drink in this place!" Renji yelled out. "I'll be with you in a second!" They heard a voice call out. Renji frowns. 'That voice…it can't be…'
Just then Oichi appeared in front of them smiling. "Hi there! What can I get you guys to drink!" Renji's jaw dropped. Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Kira were in shock to. "O-Oichi!? What the hell are you doing here!?" Renji asked getting up. "I'm working idiot. So, do you want a drink or not?" Oichi replied with a smile still on her face but to Renji it was an ice-cold smile. "Since when do you work here?" Kira asked. "I started tonight actually." Ikkaku rubs his head. "Okay then…I guess I'll take an old fashion. Don't go easy on the whiskey." "Let's see. I'll start out with just a simple but beautiful Gimlet. Vodka instead of gin please." Yumichika says. "What!? Again?" Ikkaku yells out. "Look we have work tomorrow morning. Gin never settles with me so yes I'll go with Vodka again." Oichi giggled at them. "How about you Kira?" "I'll take a Sazerac" Oichi nodded and looked at Renji. "Anything for you?" "…A…Martinez…" "Okay I will be back with your drinks in a second."
They watched her go down to another person and quickly pour him a drink. The man smiles at her and handed her a few dollars. He rubs the back of her hand before stumbling away. Oichi kept her smile as she grabbed four glasses. As a quick learner she was getting the hang of the different drinks. People kept ordering the same thing. With all of these different brands of liquor and they only wanted a few combinations. 'I can't wait to test some drinks out. I just need to find a good test subject.' When she was done fixing the drinks she placed them on trays and walked back to Renji and the others. She placed them down in front of them. "Please enjoy!" She says. "Thanks…" Renji says. "Oichi let me take a picture of you! Rangiku is going to flip her lid about this! I told her she was going to miss out." Yumichika says taking out his phone. "I'd rather you not…you know I hate it when you take pictures of me." Yumichika took one anyways. "It's not my fault your so cute in uniforms!" Yumichika says sending it almost everyone in his contact list. "It's because you share my pictures with all of you friends that I get noticed so much." Oichi says pouting, which caused him to take another picture. "Don't blame your cuteness on me."
Oichi sighed. "I can't with you…" "Oichi! I need another drink!" Oichi looked down the bar to see Shinji waving at her. "Shinji you had 5 glasses and your face is red. Are you sure you want another?" Shinji sat on the stool and put his chin on the counter. "I don't careeee I need another drink!" Oichi shook her head. "Alright Shinji but this is going to be your last one. You need to slow down, or you won't even be able to enjoy your drink." She makes him another drink, stronger then the last one and places it in front of him. Shinji grabs it and drowns half of it. "You don't understand! I need this drink! If I don't then I will lose my mind to that brat!" Oichi was cleaning her glasses. "Brat?" "My stupid partner really. She's a fucking brat and she's so annoying and loud! I can barely think when she's going on and on and on about nothing!" Oichi smiled. "I guess I understand that a bit. Maybe you should try talking to her about it?" Shinji sat up. "No way! That's like me asking her to kill me with her shoe! I love my life to much Oichi and there are plenty of cute girls that I need to hit on and stuff." He sighs and sinks into the car. "I hate thissss…." "I'm going to get you a glass of water." She pats Shinji on the head and walks off.
Hisagi walked out in his uniform. "Hisagi! Hi!" Oichi says walking to him. Hisagi smiled. "Hey Oichi. So how are you doing on your first day?" "I got a lot of tips and a lot of guys flirted with me. Other then Apacci upset at me for taking one of her regulars it's been ok. I still need to work on my drinks though." "Don't worry I'll help you. Since I'm here why don't we try working on your specialty drink. You know what that is right?" Oichi nodded. "Yes, Shinji told me earlier." "I see. Well come on. I got the perfect targets for you." He led her back to Renji and the others.
"How am I supposed to relax and drink my worries away when Oichi is here…I can't even talk about Rukia with her around." "Why not?" Kira says. "Oichi isn't your woman anymore, so why would you be upset with anything you say? She's not the type to go gossip about you." "Yeah so just spit it out. Besides Oichi might can even help you if she chooses to." Renji sighs out again as Hisagi and Oichi walked up. "Hey, you guys are going to be used as test subjects for Oichi. While things are slow she's going to try making her first specialty drink." "Oooo make it sweet Oichi!" Yumichika says. Oichi smiled. "That's what I was going to go for! I mean there is so much stuff here, but I don't know what is sweet other than the ones I know personality and it's not a lot." "Don't worry I'll help you." Hisagi says grabbing a few bottles. While Oichi and Hisagi worked on the drinks, Renji decided to just let out his frustrations.
"I just don't get why she's angry all the time. I do everything she wants without questioning it. I deal with her weird ass cravings and her mood swings. Did you know that she woke me up a 3 in the morning asking if I could get some ice cream? I told her we had some already, but she didn't want that one. She wanted a new type!" Renji groans. "Then the pressure from Byakuya is hell. The baby isn't even here and he's been asking what school she will attend and activities and learning process we will be providing for her and Rukia is just hanging off his damn words like he's the one who made the baby!" He drowns his glasses and slams it on the counter. "I need another drink!" He yells out. Oichi sighs mentally but said nothing as she grabbed his glass. She made him another drink and placed it in front of him. He snatched it and started to drown it. "I mean fuck! She chews my head off every fucking day! It's so annoying…" He rubs his face. "I love her but the constant arguing about the littlest thing is getting to be to much. Hell we had an argument on the way over here. I'm losing my mind a bit."
Oichi was listening to Renji and she would have given him some advice, but she was enjoying watching him suffer. 'Oh gosh…Grimmjow is rubbing off on me…' "Oichi?" Oichi looked at Hisagi. He handed her a drink. "Try this." Oichi sips on the drink and a rush of fruity flavor hit her tongue. "Mmm! This is really good!" Hisagi smiles. "Are you looking for this type of flavor?" Oichi hums. "Its fruitier then sweetie but…" She licked her lips. "Now I'm taste the alcohol. Like a sneak attack. Okay! Yes, I'd like something like this to start out." Hisagi nodded and went to the bottles. "I'll get you some good combinations." "Thank you Hisagi."
"Hey Oichi?" Oichi looked to see Renji holding his empty cup. "Can you make me another drink please? Something stronger?" Oichi sighed. "Sure." She takes the empty cup and fixes him a different drink. She placed it in front of him. "How have you been?" He asked. "Just fine as you can see." Oichi says walking away. Ikkaku shook his head. "Focus Renji." "How? I'm complaining about my fiancé to my ex fiancé. Kinda hard to focus with that." Kira sighed. "We can just leave. There are other bars around here." "No, it's fine." Renji says. He was looking at Oichi as she smiled at another customer who gave her a tip. 'That smile…' He says to himself. He felt his heart do a small flutter. He looks down at his drink. 'I remember that smile. It hasn't changed since high school. I wish she will smile for me like that one more time.' He sips on his drink.
At Nel's she was doing more job applications. She was quitting the café place. Luppi was running that place to the ground. He had lost more workers and the profits were falling quick. They weren't getting as many customers as they use to. Those who was still working were only there because they really needed money. Nel wasn't going to stay on that sinking ship. "Mama…" Nel looked to see Grayson walking out in a blue beetle one piece and a blue teddy bear. "What are you doing up sweetie." Grayson walked to her. She bends down and pick him up and watches him cuddle into her arms. "Auntie." He says. "Aw you miss her? Don't worry she'll be back soon." "Papa?" He looks up at her. Nel smiles. "He…He will be back soon to." She closed her laptop and got up. "Let's get you back to bed sweetie. We can cook your auntie a big breakfast when she gets home." Grayson giggled. "Food!" Nel smiles and kisses his forehead.
In jail, Grimmjow had his eyes closed as he listened to the various sounds going through the jail house. He was alone in his own cell. He could hear a few voices ringing out. Some were talking there were others who were mostly having a personal moment together. He sighs and turns on his side. He looked at the wall. He missed Oichi. At night he would usually wake up earlier then her and watch her sleep. She would have a peaceful smile on her face. He would rub her cheeks causing her to shift a bit in sleep. She would mumble his name out and turn on her back. Grimmjow chuckled. Sometimes on days where they went at it like bunnies she would be dead to the world. No matter what he did to her while she slept she wouldn't move or twitch and that scared him at times. He had to make sure she was breathing.
He sat up and looked down. 'Shit…' He was getting hard thinking about his cute girlfriend. He lays back down. Like he'd jack off in here where praying eyes were in every corner. There were some sick fuckers in the place and they had done a hell of a lot messed up shit then he has done. Speaking of messed up shit he still had to explain to Oichi about everything he did. He still didn't know where to start. From the beginning? From the middle? No, he wanted her to know everything about him. Just like he wants to know everything about her. Now knowing that Dante was her father he had questions of his owns. He rubs his head. 'Oichi…' He closes his eyes. '15 years. I can't leave her for 15 years. I'm gonna have to behave no matter how bad it gets.' As soon as he said that to himself he heard foot steps coming towards his cell. He opened one eye to see a few inmates crowding around his cell. "You look a little lonely in there." One guy said. Grimmjow sighs and closes his eyes before sitting up. 'They must be on Aizen's pay roll. It was about that time.' There were at least six guys. One of the smaller ones had the keys to his cell and were swinging them around his finger. "We just wanted to wish you a good welcome beating. I sure you won't fight, back right? I mean if you do then you might get you more years. Do you really want to risk that?" Grimmjow pops his neck. "Look, I'm tired. If your coming in then come in and get it over with already. I don't feel like listening to your petty threats." The men chuckled and opened his cell. "Oh, we are going to enjoy this more then you can…" "Shut up and bring it on already!" Grimmjow yelled. The men frowned. "Fine. Since you asked so nicely!"
2 am came and Oichi and Hisagi were walking across the street to the parking lot. Oichi had her phone and was reading a message from Nel, telling her that the door was unlocked. Oichi put her phone in her purse. She also took all the tips out of her shirt and stuffed it in her purse. "Careful. Don't want anyone to get the idea." Hisagi says. Oichi smiled. "Sorry. I didn't think I would make this much on my first night." She digs in her shirt to reach her bra and pull more tips out. Hisagi blushed a bit and turned his head. "Yeah, usually you can put those in your purse before you come out here." "I was in a rush. Having Renji as a last customer really soured the mood for me." Oichi says frowning.
Renji had drunken down many of Oichi's drink to the point where Oichi didn't care how much alcohol she was pouring in the cup. His face was red, and he was nearly in tears. He had gone on and on about how sorry he was for hurting her but Oichi toned it out. Learning that she was only used to further his life with Rukia was like hitting the last nail on a coffin. Though she didn't mind getting all the tip money he gave her. Just from him alone she made well up to 100 dollars or more. Ikkaku and Kira finally had to drag him out, fearing he would spend all his money and slip up and say something.
"That was a bit intense to my liking." She says. Hisagi chuckled. "You will get used to it but at least you got a lot of tips, right?" "A lot of phone numbers to…I did enjoy working on my drinks with you so that was good." Hisagi pats her on the head. " I have to apologize to you." Oichi looked up at him. He removed his hand and rubbed his hair. "I should have told you about how Renji was a regular here…This place is where we came to drink and just let go. It wasn't fair to you that…"
"No, it's not your fault." Oichi says cutting him off before he said anymore. "I can't blame you for something Renji did back then. Anyways I don't plan to be here forever. It's a nice place to start out with but once my sisters get here I'll be working with them." "Your sisters? Florina and Izzy, right? How are they doing?" "They are okay. Florina is working in bakery and Izzy is finishing up with collage. She wants to be a photographer. Those two want to open a store together but we each have different ideas. I wonder how it's going to turn out to be honest." "What would you like to do?" Oichi smiles. "I'd like to go back to my roots and get back into fashion. I've been doing a few side projects on Florina's and Izzy's website and I've been making a bit of money on the side." "Hmm so a baker, a photographer, and a fashion designer. A lot of things could be done with that. If you ever need any help just let me know okay?" "Yeah, thanks Hisagi. You have been doing a lot for me. I have to find a way to repay you one day." "Think nothing of it. We are friends and even though I know your heart belongs to someone else I couldn't just leave you like you were. I know how hard it is for something to be taken away from you and I know what its like to hit rock bottom." He places a hand back on her head. "I couldn't let that darkness take you away from me and everyone else. You work hard and you try to land on your feet all by yourself and I think you forget that you have friends that you can reach out to. Don't be afraid to ask anyone of us for help understand?" Oichi smiles. "Yes, I do. Thank you Hisagi."
Oichi waved good bye to Hisagi and got into the car. She watches him get in the car and drive off, leaving her in the parking lot by herself. Oichi rubs her head. "He's like a big brother. Like Ichigo…oh speaking of Ichigo." She grabbed her phone and dialed his number. While it run she turned the car on and drove out of the parking lot back home. Ichigo picked up after the fourth ring.
"Hey Oichi. You heading home?" "Yeah. Did I wake you?" "Not really. I was up waiting for you to call. I was about to come and find you." Oichi laughed. "You are such a worry wort. I'm fine and I was with Hisagi the whole night. I meet a guy name Shinji. He was funny and gave me a lot of tips. "Shinji? I didn't know he went there?" "You know him?" "Meh…somewhat. He likes to proclaim him love to random girls every now and then so be careful around him." "I…I also saw Renji. I didn't know he was regular there." "Seriously? Ugh I swear that guy. Did he bother you?" "Not really. I just listen to him rant about Rukia. Nothing that I haven't heard before from a man dealing with a pregnant woman. Kinda sad really. I hope you aren't like that when Orihime gets pregnant." Ichigo coughed out like he was drinking something. "D-Don't say something like that." Oichi laughed. "You will be a great father Ichigo! I can see it now with all those cute features he baby will get." "Come on Oichi…" She giggles. "Sorry, just knowing that you found someone to make you happy makes me happier. I'm super happy for you and Orihime." She heard him chuckle. "Thanks. Now I need you to focus. If it comes down to it are you really going to wait 15 years for Grimmjow?" Oichi sighs. "Yes I am. I don't want anyone else but him Ichigo." "Yeah but, what if he doesn't something stupid? Like get in a fight and get more years added on." "Don't say that Ichigo. Grimmjow promised me he would behave. He wants to be with me." Ichigo groans. "I get that he sacrificed a lot for you but I just don't want you to have to wait until its to late. I know how much you want children and waiting for Grimmjow…that might be a lost cause." Oichi bite her lip. "Good night Ichigo." She says. "Oichi wait I didn't mean…" Oichi hung the phone up. She tossed it in the seat. She was getting so sick and tired of everyone trying to down play Grimmjow. She tightens her grip on the wheel. He already gave up his job, money, and power for her. He's already proven enough to her that he wants to be in her life. Why couldn't everyone else see that. What was everyone seeing but her?
Days flew by and it was now December 21th a few days from Christmas, and Oichi was back in the club on a Sunday night. Strangely the city wasn't getting much snow, like the weather reports said, but it was very chilly outside. They were a bit slow thanks to all the Christmas shopping that was going on. Oichi was watching the girls dance in matching cow girl outfits as a techno song came on. Oichi nodded her head to the beat as she cleaned up the bar. The song reminded her of when she and Grimmjow went out to club for the first time. She didn't remember much but did remember having a fun time. She was going to go see Grimmjow tomorrow evening. They had started sending letters to each other and she had learned that he had been getting it pretty rough in prison. He had gotten job weeks before and he said in his letters that he didn't want to hide anything from her anymore. He also wanted to make sure that no matter what they have a normal conversation when she sees him. It worried Oichi. She wondered how badly he got beat up. She sighed. "Oichi can we have some drinks please?" Oichi looked down to see a few customers walking in. "Sure, anything special?" "Nope, just surprise us!" They said. Oichi nodded. "Alright, give me a few seconds."
She turned to bottles and grabbed two and a few glasses. With Apacci not working behind the counter tonight she was able to use the shaker. The customers watched her mix drinks and pour them in the cup. She put a small straw in each cup. "Here you guys go! Enjoy!" Oichi says with a smile. One of the female customers gave her a 5 dollar tip. "Thanks doll!" They walked off to the side of the club to dance. Oichi put the money in her purse. She then placed the bottles back on the shelfs. The tone of the music then changed to a slower pace allowing everyone to sit down and settle. The girls in the tubes collect their money from inside the tube and switched out with the next group. As Kisuke said, the girls were stripping or anything. They just dressed in very erotic ways for their customers. The tubes kept them safe from any prying hands and the money was kept safe until it was in their own hands. It was kind of like the voting idea Oichi had for the café back then. She would place the names a few outfits she would wear, and the customers got to vote on to see who wore what. It brought in a lot of business at the time. 'Dressing up and dancing…it doesn't seem like it would be a hard job to do and the girls do make a lot of money…mmm…' She shook her head. 'No, Grimmjow would kill me if he found out I did that. I need to hurry and save up as much as I can so I get up out of here.'
"Ho! So it is true!" Oichi perked up and turned to see Nnoitra, Yammy, Harribel, and Ulquiorra walking in. They sat at the bar. Oichi sighed mentally. These guys were suppose to be Grimmjow's friends but then again he did say none of them saw each other like that. She learned that every now and then that they came here for cheap drinks. "Hello! Its been a while. Can I get you anything?" Nnoitra looked her up and down and licked his lips. "You look pretty sexy in that uniform. To bad Grimmjow can't see this. Being in prison and all." He says smirking. "Yes, well, I'm sure he would be glad to know that I'm working more then anything else." Oichi responds to him, rolling her eyes. It was the same bad comment every time. Nnoitra chuckled. "Does he know your working in a place like this? I mean no man would really want their girl to be working here." "Did you want a drink?" Oichi says smiling and cutting him off from saying anymore. Harribel sighed. "Men…Oichi how are you faring here? I heard that Apacci is training you?" Oichi nodded. "Yes, her training method is a bit weird but I kind of get it. I think she is upset with me though. She thinks I'm here to take her job. I tried explaining to her that I'm just here to work." Harribel crossed her arms. "Yes, that girl is quite a heated sometimes. I hope the other two give you a warm welcome. If you have any issues with these men in here just let them know. They watch out for all the women here." "Thank you. I will be sure to let them know."
Yammy was looking up at the bottles and saw a bottle of Armstrong. He slapped 35 dollars down. "Hey girl! Give me that whole bottle of Armstrong! No cup!" Oichi frowned. "It's Oichi and you know that..." She grabbed the money and went to fetch the bottle. She handed it to him. "Whatever! Just keep the drinks coming. I made a huge bonus and it's my treat!" He turned to everyone. "You here that everyone! Drink are on me!" Oichi's eyes widen as people cheered and rushed to the bar ordering left and right. She was the only one on duty right now. Yammy snickered along with Nnoitra. Oichi sighed. Of course, they were there to make things hell for her. She walked to the crowd. "Please one at a time. I'll get all of your drinks if you just wait a second." She says smiling at everyone.
Ulquiorra watched her as she quickly started to make as many drinks as she could make. She took 10 glasses, spread them across the counter, put three cubes of ice in each one. She then grabbed some ginger ale and two bottles of whiskey to make her highballs. She ran the ale across, pouring them in the cup and did the same to the whiskey. As she did this the music changed and Oichi couldn't help but to bounce with the beat. Once the first round was gone she started on the second round and the third and went to the fourth. More so she was welcomed with tips. She allowed them to put them in her shirt pocket since her hands were full or place it on the counter. She kept count with every drink she made and didn't forget about Yammy and the others. When it was slowing down she made them each rum and coke until she could get to them.
While this was going on Ulquiorra was looking her up and down. He watched the way her uniform lifted up just a bit when she was reaching for something. He watched when she bends over to get more glasses. He watched her breast as the bounced with her movements and he got a clear sight of her butt when she was walking back and forth. His eyes went to her lips. She was smiling brightly as she went on making shots. It was something about that smile that was messing with him in the back of his mind.
Oichi could feel his stares and it was uncomfortable as usual. He might look like he was checking her out but to her he was doing a bit more. She ignored his looks and tried not to look at him eye to eye. He was just weird in general. He just stared at her. No talking no body movements, he just stared, and it was creepy. She one time caught him taking her napkin that she used to clean up some spit drinks. It sent a weird vibe go down her back.
By the time that whole rush was starting to slow down Kisuke and two more workers came out. They took over for Oichi.
Oichi sighed grabbed a piece of paper. She handed it to Yammy. "Since your paying for everything, this is your bill…Sir…" She says smirking. Yammy looked at it and his eyes widen. "What the hell! I don't have this much!" Kisuke, who was holding fan eyed him. "Hoo? Did my ears hear wrong?" He walked up to Yammy. "It's not good to think you can walk out for free. Despite you being friends with Harribel or not." Yammy gulped as he started to pull out his wallet. Oichi chuckled as she heads back over to the other workers. Nnoitra laughed. "A slick chick. Grimmjow must have trained her well." He turned to Ulquiorra. "Good luck Mr. Steal your girl." Ulquiorra ignored him as he continued to watch Oichi.
In the jail cell, Grimmjow was in the doctor's office getting his head bandage. He was caught in the bathroom and he would have let the beating go on, but they tried to take it a bit to far and he had no choice but to show them who was boss. Hanataro, one of the nurses in the prison, was changing his bandages. He had gotten a bad bump on his head, a black eye, a few patches here and there over his body and his hair was growing a bit longer.
"Hey." Grimmjow says making him jump. "U-Uh yeah?" "Those other guys I fucked up. How bad are their injuries?" Hanataro gave him a confused look. "Those guys who attacked you? They got off with a few bruises. Nothing to serious but you…shouldn't you be worried about yourself?" Grimmjow sighs out. "Good so I didn't beat them to death like I wanted to. As long as they are able to walk and breath like usual it should be fine." Hanataro frowned. "Usually…Usually you don't care about the people who you hurt…" Grimmjow smirks. "Yeah, I have a reason to get out of here in a year or so on good behavior. I wasn't going to kick their asses but once they tried that soap shit I had to let lose a bit. See I got a sexy woman on the outside that is waiting for me. I'm not trying to sit on my ass for 15+ years and keep her waiting. I can handle the beatings. I just need to wait it out now." Hanataro eyes widen at this. Grimmjow chuckled. "I hope she's doing okay. She can be quite clueless sometimes."
Oichi's shift came to an end early around 1a.m. Once everything was cleaned and the money was accounted for everyone cleared out. Oichi was around the building, in the alley way, waiting for Ichigo. Nel had the car tonight, working at the café. "I really need to invest in a new car. Waiting like this could be bad." She looked at her phone to see the text message from Ichigo. 'I'll be there in 15 minutes.' Oichi sighs. "He always says that." She leans her head on the wall and look up into the clear sky. 'Oh Grimmjow…I hope your doing well.'
Just then she heard a call pulling up. "Finally…" She grabbed her purse and walked out to towards the street. "Seriously Ichigo. We need to talk about your tim…" She stopped to see a person stand in front of her. It was not Ichigo. It was Ulquiorra. She took a step back. "What do you want…" Ulquiorra walked to her. "I told you I was looking for a loyal dog. You fit the bill." Oichi's heart started to beat fast. She turns around and ran for it. She didn't know what the heck he was talking about, but she wasn't waiting to find out. Suddenly she felt her hair being pulled. "Ah!" She dropped her purse and turned around. "Don't think you can run from me woman." Ulquiorra says coldly. Every nerve in Oichi's body was screaming for her to get away from this man. She grabbed his wrist and pulled away from him, despite feeling her hair being torn from her head in the process. She had to get away.
She manages to rip away from him, enough to turn around. She balls up her fist and throws a punch at Ulquiorra's face. He grabs it and squeezes it. "Ow..!" Oichi then remembered something that Grimmjow had taught her before. She wasn't no beginner in that, but she only used it once before on Renji but he had caught her before then. She took her right leg she kicked it straight out and up, kicking Ulquiorra right in his groin. His eyes widen slightly as he let her wrist and the rest of her hair go. Oichi stubbled back but she didn't waste this opportunity. She tried to run for it again but either she didn't kick him hard enough or maybe he didn't have any, he recovered quickly and was grabbed by her ankles, seconds before she could get a good sprint in. Oichi feel to the ground cutting her arm a bit. 'Tisk'
She started to kick out. "Let me go!" She screamed out as Ulquiorra dragged her back to him. He was on his knees from the kick so she knew she did some sort of damage. Just not enough. "Stop it! Leave me alone!" She screamed out some more. She did whatever she could, kicking, throwing random objects at him, anything but nothing work. Her wrist were grabbed and she was picked up by them like light weight. "Your making me mad woman." Ulquiorra said with a blank expression. With a flick of his hand he threw Oichi into the wall, next to a dumpster. He head hit the wall pretty hard and she slid down to the ground. She glanced over to see her purse. She might have had some pepper spray in there. Ulquiorra grabbed her purse and tossed it further away. She frowned and backed up to the wall. The only thing she could do now was scream at the top of her lungs and hope someone was walking by and heard her. As soon as she opened her mouth Ulquiorra grabbed her shirt and lifted her to her feet. He slams her into the wall again. "Scream and I'll kill you." He says with the coldest look Oichi has ever gotten. Her voice caught her throat, getting caught in that gaze. "I'm going to make you mine woman. If Grimmjow can train a woman like yourself to eat right out of his hands then so can I." "Wha…" "From this day on I'm going to be your master. You will plead your life to me and follow me just like the loyal dog you are." Oichi bit her lip. "F-Fuck you." She says. "I won't be yours. Not today or any other day…"
Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed. "He seems like you need to be disciplined." He grabbed her cheeks and held them tight. "That foul mouth of yours need to be cleaned." Ulquiorra forced a kiss on Oichi. Her eyes widen as she tried to push away from him. He pressed his body close to her or at least tried. Oichi kicked and scratched at him, refusing him to the bitter end. She wasn't going to let him have his way. She refused it. She would go down fighting if she had to. Ulquiorra pulled away and sighed. He tossed her to the side forcing her to collide into one of the trash cans. Oichi groans until she felt something sharp poking her.
Ulquiorra fixed his clothes. "I was right. Your nothing but a dog but with the right training you might become something more. I bet Grimmjow trained you in this way. Making you fall in love with him. Making you loyal to only him. If he can train you to be like that then I can to." He walked to Oichi and grabbed her hair again. He pulled her face close to his. "Now, I won't repeat myself. Summit to me." Oichi looked at him. Her eyes were burning with anger and determination. "Nobody forced me to be with Grimmjow. Nobody forced me to fall in love with him. I did that on my own. In fact, people told me the run away from him. He didn't train me to do anything!" She held up pocket knife that she had grabbed from the trash can. With the blade out, she cut Ulquiorra's face. Leaving a cut mark on his cheek. "I will NEVER summit to you or anyone else!" She pulled away and then used the knife once more, this time to cut her hair out his grip. Then using her foot, she kicked him in the stomach. She heard him make a small sound. She scrambled to get up until she felt a sharp pain in her ankle. 'C-Crap!' She yells as she fell back onto the ground. She ignores the pain it for the time being and got back up, trying to get away as quick as she could.
Ulquiorra rubbed his face and looked at the blood on his fingers. He looked in his other hand to see the remain of Oichi's long hair. He took it and stuffed it in his pocket. The blood was dripping down to his chin but he didn't bother with it for now.
Oichi was nearing the corner of the back of the alley. If she could loop around and get to the street she might can make it to the gas station and find some help. The pain from her ankle was getting worse. She leans on the wall and limps to the corner. 'If Ichigo was true to his damn word them maybe none of this would…' Once again Oichi was grabbed from behind. She was pushed the ground and turned over to see Ulquiorra. "You aren't getting away from me woman." Oichi took the pocket knife and was about to slash him up some more but he grabbed it and snapped it out her hand. He sat on top of her and then placed his hand around her throat. "You will see why you will eventually summit to me." His grip started to tighten. Oichi struggled but the more she did the more his grip got stronger. She started to claw at his hands, leaving scratches. Tears started to come to her eyes as it got harder for her to breath. "S-stop…" She wheezes out. Her vison was getting blurry. She grabbed his shirt and pulled on it. Ulquiorra watched as Oichi's eyes started to go empty. Her grip on his shirt was getting weaker. Tears were running down the side of her face. "Remember this feeling woman. At any time, I can make you feel weak as a bug. When the time comes you will eventually summit everything to me." Oichi's vision went blank as she passed out. He then lets her go. "I honestly don't know what he sees in you. Your just like all the women hes been with. Yet, he gave up his job, money, and power for a piece of trash like you." He grabbed Oichi again by her cut hair and started to drag her back down the alley. "That man would have never done something so foolish. What is it about you that would make him go to such length. I plan to find this out…"
Ulquiorra walked back to the start of their struggle. He dropped Oichi on the ground, not caring how hard her head hit the ground. He reaches down and tears off a piece of her skirt. He holds it against his bleeding cheek and walked off. Putting his hand in his pocket he got into the back of his car and was driven away.
Five minutes later, Ichigo and Orihime drove up. "Man, she's going to be pissed that I was late. If I knew working that damn job was going to take that long I would have gave her a different time or something." Orihime smiles. "I'm sure she will be okay." She looks around. "Are you sure this is the place? It doesn't look like a club." Ichigo got out. "Stay here. She might be in the back or something. Try calling her." Orihime nodded and took out her phone. She dialed Oichi's number. She watched Ichigo walked to the side of the building.
Ichigo heard Oichi's phone ring. "Bingo but in alley way? Come on Oichi." He walked down a few feet and stopped when he sees Oichi's body. "Oichi!" He ran to her. He flipped her over and placed a hand at her neck. He could barely feel a pulse, but it was there. "Dammit. What the hell happened!?" He picked her up and grabbed her purse and ran to the car. Orihime frowned when she saw Ichigo dashing to the car. She got out. "Ichigo where is?" "No time! We need to get to the hospital now!" "What do you…!?" She then saw Oichi in his arms. "Oichi!? What happened!?" "Hospital! Now Orihime!"
Orihime bit her lip and nodded. She got back in the car and slide into the driver's seat. As soon as Ichigo go into the car with Oichi she drove off speeding. She looked back into the rearview mirror to see Ichigo holding Oichi tightly. His eyes were full of concern. "Hold on Ichi. Just hold on for me." Orihime felt something in her chest. It hurt. She held that feeling in for the mean time and heading toward the hospital.