Chapter XVI: I Need an Explanation
Ichigo paced back and forth across Grimmjow's living room floor with his phone pressed to his ear. After the sixth ring, his father's voicemail began, and he fought the urge to throw his poor phone across the room. He couldn't help feeling an overwhelming amount of anxiety; his father was - for all intents and purposes - missing. He couldn't believe that his father would lie to him like that. Thank goodness for Grimmjow, or he and his sisters would be all but stranded.
Speaking of Grimmjow, the man watched Ichigo from the sofa, a worried look on his face. He hadn't meant to cause the teen so much distress, but he completely understood it. It just seemed so odd to him that a father would just disappear without letting his kids know what was happening. Usually it wouldn't be such a big deal, but this time something life-threatening had actually happened. He shook his head slightly as Ichigo continued to pace, tugging at his bright hair as he dialed his father's number for what had to be the three hundredth time.
"Dad, where are you? I need you to answer please. It's an emergency, and I'm worried about you. Why did you lie about where you were going? Please just -" The teen pulled his phone away from his ear looking absolutely destroyed. Grimmjow's frown deepened as Ichigo slumped down on the couch beside him. His brown eyes were cast down at the floor as he spoke, "The voicemail's full now. I just don't get it, Grimm. How could he be so irresponsible? I don't even think I can file a missing person's report because I don't know if he was ever even in Charlotte in the first place. This is so messed up."
Grimmjow laid a hand on the younger male's back as he leaned over and put his head in his hands. The blue-haired man couldn't stand to see Ichigo in such an unravelled state.
"We'll go down to the police department anyways and see what can be done. In the meantime, let's just make sure you and your sisters are taken care of," he said, and Ichigo sat up, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears.
"Thank you," he said, sliding closer to Grimmjow and wrapping his arms around the other male's waist. "Not just for that, for everything. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Grimmjow smiled and brought his hand to soft orange locks, tousling them gently.
"No thanks necessary, Ichi. I'd do anything for you." The orange-haired male felt the warmth of his blush spreading across his cheeks, and he hid his face within the crook of Grimmjow's neck, taking in the man's pleasant scent.
Just then, there was a loud commotion as three giggling girls ran into the room, circling the couch where the two males sat. Ichigo quickly pulled away from Grimmjow, but definitely not fast enough for the two older girls to miss it. Karin smirked at them while Yuzu continued to giggle behind her hand. Véronique climbed into Ichigo's lap, tugging at his hair, like she'd grown accustomed to doing.
"Ichi, your sister taught me a word!" she chirped, cheerily. Ichigo smiled and ruffled her dark locks.
"That's good. Tell me what it is."
"Ichi's hair is orenji, and my favorite color is orenji."
The older people in the room praised Véronique as she beamed, just as proud of herself as they were of her. She wiggled her way out of Ichigo's lap and skipped over to Karin who took her small hand in her own larger one.
"Is it alright if I take her outside? She wants me to teach her some soccer stuff," the older girl asked. Grimmjow nodded.
"No problem. Just be sure to stay on the main lawn where someone can see you." The girls nodded, and trotted out of the room. Ichigo had expected Yuzu to go with them, but instead, she glided over to the sofa where he and Grimmjow sat and plopped herself down right in between. An uncharacteristically smug look crossed her features as she looked at the both of them, first at her brother and then at his "friend"; Ichigo felt extremely uncomfortable, and from the older male's posture, he would surmise that Grimmjow felt the same way.
"So, Mr. Grimmjow, how did you meet my brother?"
The two males stiffened even more, if that was possible, and Ichigo began to stutter until Grimmjow's phone rang in his pocket. The blue-haired male immediately stood and excused himself, leaving the room with his phone pressed to his ear. Ichigo exhaled and was almost relieved until he felt Yuzu's big doe-eyed stare burning a hole in the side of his face. He turned towards her only to be met with the same smug look.
"I'm still waiting for my answer, nii-chan."
"Well, it's uh - it's a little complicated, Yu. Maybe I'll explain it when you're older."
"Ichigo, I'm thirteen years old, and I had to figure out menstruation with an insane father, apathetic sister, and prudish brother instead of a mother. I think I'm ready for just about anything." Ichigo cringed a little, still freaked out by the fact that his little sisters were going through puberty. He still wasn't ready to reveal the whole truth to her though.
"Alright, fine. Grimmjow and I met through his sister. I babysit Véronique as a second job." Yuzu appeared a bit skeptical before she smiled.
"Is she the pretty woman with the green hair that I saw in the photos in the family room? I suppose I should have figured that out since little Vé has the very same big grey eyes as her. Do we get to meet her too?"
"Sure," Ichigo said, with a smile. "She's pretty busy with her company, but she'll be here around seven to pick Vé up."
"Cool. Say, do you think Mr. Grimmjow will let me cook? I know people are weird about their kitchens sometimes, but Vé wants to try Japanese food, and I'd much rather make it than have someone buy her Hibachi Express or something."
Ichigo thought about it for a second before he answered.
"You know, you could ask Grimmjow, but I think he'll just tell you to ask his chef." Yuzu's eyes widened and she clasped her hands under her chin.
"He has a chef? Like a real chef?" Ichigo nodded. "Oh, nii-chan, do you think he'd mind me cooking with him?"
"I don't think she'd mind at all, Yu." Yuzu's smile brightened even more and Ichigo couldn't help smiling too. "Just ask Grimmjow when he gets back from his phone call." Yuzu nodded furiously and Ichigo turned on the television. They sat watching Avatar: The Last Airbender, until Grimmjow returned to the doorway and gestured for Ichigo to step out into the hall. The younger male rose and walked over to Grimmjow, a look of worry crossing his features.
"What's wrong, Grimm?" he asked. Grimmjow ran a hand through his disheveled blue locks.
"That was Isane. T is in the hospital, so I've got to go and check on her." Ichigo nodded, placing a hand on Grimmjow's shoulder.
"Do you need me to go with you?" he asked. The older male grasped Ichigo's hand and brought it to his cheek.
"No, it's fine. You need to be here with your sisters. I'll go there and make sure she's fine and that nothing is wrong with the baby and I'll be back before dinner." Ichigo brushed Grimmjow's cheek with his thumb, and smiled.
"Okay. Speaking of dinner, do you think Yoruichi would mind if Yuzu cooked with her tonight? Vé told her that she'd like to try Japanese food."
"I don't think she'd mind at all, but she's already here, so you can go and ask her." Ichigo nodded once more, and Grimmjow leaned down, pecking him softly on the lips. "I'll be back soon."
"Ki o tsukete."
Grimmjow made his way to the reception area, regretting not asking Isane what room Tier was in. He'd hired her as a midwife about seven days prior and she seemed to be doing a very good job. He wasn't really sure, but he thought Tier liked her, or at least tolerated her. He honestly didn't think Tier liked anyone, but he digressed. He came to a stop in front of the reception desk, the same nurse from when he'd came with Ichigo looking at him over the top of her glasses.
"Can I help you?" she asked, stoically.
"Uh, yeah. Tier Harribel, please." The nurse raised an eyebrow but turned to her computer and typed away nonetheless.
"She's on the third floor, room 316."
"Thank you," Grimmjow said, with a nod. He hurried over to the elevators, glad to be free from the woman's gaze. If she ever felt like giving up on nursing, she could definitely go for being a Catholic nun, since she already had the penance stare down. Once the elevator stopped at the third floor, he got off and followed the signs to find Tier's room. Isane stood outside the door, smiling once she spotted him.
"Hey there, Mr. Jaegerjaquez!" she called, cheerily. Grimmjow smiled slightly and gave a short wave. "The doctor says she and the baby are going to be just fine."
"Well what exactly happened?"
"She was throwing up a lot more than is normal, and her skin was very pale. I wanted to bring her here sooner, but she refused. Then I noticed that her eyes were losing pigmentation, so I told her I didn't care what she wanted, she was getting in the car and we were coming to the hospital."
"Well that's good; thanks a lot. Has the doctor come up with any diagnosis?"
"She's a bit dehydrated from all the vomiting, and she also has Waardenburg syndrome." Grimmjow raised an eyebrow at that, so Isane continued to explain. "Don't worry, it isn't anything life threatening. It's just what's causing her eyes to lose pigmentation. Some sections are turning blue. The doctor felt it was best for her to know, since there's a very high possibility that the baby will have the disorder too."
Grimmjow frowned at that. He'd never heard of this disease before, and Tier hadn't ever said anything about having any medical issues that he recalled. He remembered seeing spots of blue in her vibrant green irises, but he just thought it was another thing that made her beautiful.
"Like I said, nothing life threatening, but one of the symptoms is moderate to profound hearing loss, which means Tier will go deaf at some point; it's very possible that the baby could be born deaf or eventually go deaf if he or she is diagnosed with Waardenburg."
Now Grimmjow was extremely worried. He barely understood the ins and outs of raising a child, so how was he supposed to handle raising a child with special needs, especially since he would be on his own? Isane noticed the worry etched into his features, and she smiled gently, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, don't worry about all that right now. At this moment, the baby is just as healthy as can be, so cheer up. These are simply precautionary things that I'm telling you so that you can be prepared just in case. If worst comes to worst, I'll help you; my little sister is deaf."
"Thanks for this, Isane."
"No problem!" she said with a bright smile. "It's what I get paid for. They're keeping her overnight for observation since she's pregnant, but they'll let her go tomorrow morning. Go on in and see her now." Grimmjow nodded and stepped into the room.
Tier sat in the bed, messing with her phone. Isane was right when she said Tier was pale; her usually caramel colored skin was a blanched beige color. She was still undeniably beautiful though, and Grimmjow sighed as he closed the door behind himself.
"Why didn't you call me?" he asked. Tier looked up from her phone then, her blue-speckled eyes rolling in their sockets.
"I did not want to interrupt." It was Grimmjow's turn to roll his eyes.
"Look, no one said anything like that. You're free to call me anytime as long as it has to do with your health and wellbeing. At some point in this, you're gonna have to get over the fact that I'm moving on and stop being so fucking hostile." Tier glared, her eyes shining as she frowned. Grimmjow didn't back down, though he'd admit only to himself that her angry stare scared him shitless. He continued to speak, "In the future, I'd like to receive a call if something is wrong. God, what if something serious had happened? What were you gonna do, wait two months to tell me again?"
Tier crossed her arms under her ample cleavage and exhaled.
"It was not like that. I just -" She sighed again. "I just honestly did not want to interrupt. I can see very clearly that you are moving on, and I do not want to seem like I am imposing myself on that. I know I can be a real bitch, and most of the time it is intentional, but I really think you like that kid, and I can see that he requites your feelings. I know it's a little hard to believe, but I do in fact have a heart."
Grimmjow looked at her a little skeptically before he smiled.
"Alright, fine. Let's end what we had as friends and start over." He held out his hand. Tier looked at it a little funny before she took it in her own and shook. Grimmjow grinned. "Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, pleased to make your acquaintance." Tier actually laughed at that.
"Tier Harribel, very nice to meet you."
Ichigo watched as Yuzu danced around the kitchen with Yoruichi, the younger girl seemingly having the time of her life as she gathered ingredients for the meal she was going to prepare. The chef had instantly responded in the affirmative when Ichigo asked her if Yuzu could prepare the night's meal, and the brown-haired girl was ecstatic. Yoruichi had also agreed to give Yuzu lessons and pointers. Ichigo was grateful for that; he had no idea Yuzu was interested in the culinary arts but it definitely made sense that she would be, and he was glad Yoruichi was kind enough to help.
Karin seemed to have developed a very strong bond with Véronique, as she was now sitting across from Ichigo with the little girl, coloring in a picture of Elsa the Ice Queen in a coloring book. Honestly he'd expected Yuzu to be the one to latch onto the little girl, being the mothering type, but Vé seemed much more interested in Karin's hobbies, such as soccer and gaming. He was just happy they were all getting along, and even happier that both the twins seemed to like Grimmjow just as much as they liked his niece.
Ichigo pulled his phone out of his pocket to snap a picture of the priceless moment of Karin coloring in a Frozen coloring book, but was halted when the device began to ring, his father's contact information flashing on the screen. He immediately sprang from his chair and excused himself, crossing through the dining room and into the sunroom.
"Dad, what the hell?" he hissed when he answered.
"What's going on, Ichigo? What's the emergency?" Isshin asked, almost casually. Ichigo felt his blood boiling as he responded.
"Where the hell have you been, Dad? Because you sure as fuck weren't where you said you were going to be." He wasn't one to direct profanity at his parent, but he figured he had the right in this case.
"Okay, I wasn't at a conference, but I'll explain later. What -"
"NO," Ichigo nearly growled into the phone. "You explain to me where the fuck you are and why you didn't answer my fucking calls right now!" He heard his father sigh, and he knew if the situation were different, he'd get his ass kicked in.
"Look, son, this isn't something I can tell you over the phone. Just tell me what's going on for now, and I promise you that I will explain everything when I get back in town tomorrow."
Ichigo relented, though he was still fuming as he explained to his father everything that had happened. He told him how the firemen had said that the fire started from some faulty wiring in the clinic, and that Yuzu was lucky to be alive, since the house could have exploded. He left out Grimmjow, of course, opting to tell his dad that he and his sisters were staying at Renji's house. He heard the man sigh, a quiver in his deep voice as he spoke.
"I'm so sorry, Ichigo. I promise I will explain everything when I get home."
"Yeah, whatever. You better make it back here in one piece, or so help me, Goatface -"
"You'll break your foot off in my ass?" Ichigo couldn't help but to laugh, since that was exactly what he was about to say. "I got it son, I'll be back in-state by around five or six tomorrow evening."
"Better be. Love you, Goatface."
"Love you too, son."
Ichigo sighed as he hung up the phone and slid it back into his pocket. It was good to know that his father was okay, but he definitely wanted that explanation, and if he didn't get it, Isshin would have absolute hell to pay.
I deeply apologize for taking so long with this, but I had exams and then this holiday thingy. Speaking of, Merry (late af) Christmas! Is it just me, or did it not seem like Christmas at all? Anyways, here is the update, and I hope I didn't lose anyone with all the medical stuff; it's just important to the plot (like everything else lol).
Also, in case you guys haven't heard, there's a Bleach FanFiction Awards going on. Voting polls are open on Facebook and Google Plus, so please visit TigerDemonOwnz's profile for the links if you'd like to participate. I already did, and let me just tell you, it felt great to vote for my favorite stories, like Perfect Silence by The Petulant Prodigy, and my favorite authors, like honeyMellon. If you'd like to have the same satisfaction, mosey on over there and get on it! ^_^
Okay, I am done babbling, I promise. Thanks so much for reading:)
Until next time,
Patd06
