Chapter XVIII: I Need an Apology
The next day, Ichigo sent the girls off for their last day of school, opting to skip his own. There wouldn't be much for him to do, and he'd see his friends later that day, as he'd be seeing them off to a trip to Myrtle Beach. He was on the fence about whether he'd be joining them. It really depended on his dad.
Speaking of his dad, he'd been trying his hardest to figure out what was going on with him. There could only be so many things that he could have been doing, and he hoped against hope that his father hadn't pulled a Walter White and started cooking methamphetamine. That was drama that none of them needed in their lives. Honestly, it seemed that they had more than enough of that already.
"Ichigo! I've got clothes for you!" Nel called from another room. The teen rose from the bed where he'd been sitting and padded down the hall. He found Nel and Véronique in the parlor with clothing spread out all around them. Nel held up a pair of deep purple jeans that were certainly not meant for males, and Ichigo frowned slightly.
"Uh, those aren't -"
"Yeah, I know. My company doesn't make clothing for males yet, something I've been working on for a few years. Can't make any progress when the board of directors is a group of old fuddy duddy grandmas, but I digress." She handed him the jeans, which he then realized were actually faux pants. "Now here, try these on, dear. They're the largest junior size, so you should have some room in them."
Ichigo nodded and left the room after he took the black v-neck shirt she was handing him. He returned to the room he'd stayed in, and pulled on the pants over his navy boxer briefs. He looked at himself in the standing mirror, smiling slightly and shaking his head. He was wearing girl pants; who was he, Shinji? He chuckled and picked the shirt up from the bed, sliding it over his head. He tugged at the hem, but it refused to budge, stopping just above the waistband of his underwear.
"Gross," he mumbled, before he grabbed his Vans and slipped them on. He checked the clock on the wall, seeing that it was about time to pick the girls up from school. He grabbed his gym bag and his phone and left the room, heading back to the parlor where Nel still sat. "Hey, do you know if Szayel is here?"
"I don't think so. Grimmjow said something about having him take Tier to some doctor's appointments today."
"Damn," Ichigo said, with a sigh. He checked his wristwatch once more. "It's almost time for me to get my sisters from school."
"I'll take you to get them," Nel chirped. "It's no problem at all."
"Okay, thanks."
After she'd returned all the clothing to their proper bags, Ichigo followed Nel out to Grimmjow's garage where they got into her car. She strapped Véronique in before moving around to the driver's side while Ichigo slid into the passenger's seat. The teen was putting in his earbuds when his phone started to ring, his dad's contact information displaying on the screen. He quickly answered as Nel pulled out of the parking garage.
"Hey, Dad. Are you on your way back yet?"
"I've just touched down in Raleigh," the elder Kurosaki responded. Ichigo frowned.
"Why are you there?"
"I had a layover here. I should be back at around five. Is Renji's mother expecting us?" An orange eyebrow raised up at that question.
"Us?" the teen asked. His father cleared his throat.
"I meant me."
"Yeah, sure." The oranget rolled his eyes. His father was obviously hiding something. He didn't have long before he'd find out exactly what that was though. "She said we can stay as long as we need to."
"Well, hopefully that won't be very long. I'm going to contact the insurance company tomorrow. I'll see you soon."
"Yeah, bye."
"That your dad?" Nel asked, and Ichigo grunted in the affirmative. Nel chuckled as she turned the air conditioning up. "I can definitely understand why you're so pissed at him. What was he thinking about, just disappearing like that? I know I'd be really mad too. Hopefully he has a valid explanation for you."
"I don't even know if anything will be a valid enough explanation, but we'll see," Ichigo grumbled.
"You know, from the talks we've had, your dad seems like a great guy. Don't hold this against him for too long."
"I'll do my best," the teen responded, slipping in his earbuds and turning to stare out the window.
"I don't need another car."
"Okay, but you don't want me driving your Phantom, you told me the Navigator was only for Ichigo, and the Maybach is only for special occasions, so that just leaves the BMW. Which you don't want Ms. Harribel to ride in for some reason. What am I supposed to do? Carry her on my back? You're not being very reasonable, sir."
Grimmjow frowned as he typed on his computer, balancing the phone between his ear and shoulder. He knew Szayel was right, but he really didn't want to buy another car. At least not yet. He sighed as he sent the email he'd been typing and leaned back in his chair.
"Fine, fine. You can use the BMW to take her. The first time she opens her mouth to complain, you have permission to tell her to get out and walk."
"Very well, sir. I should be back in time to take Ichigo and his sisters to his friend's house."
"No, no. I'm going to take them myself. After Tier is finished with her appointments, you can take the rest of the day off."
"Thank you, sir. Goodbye."
Szayel hung up before Grimmjow could say anything else, not that he was going to. The CEO pushed his fingers through his disheveled blue hair and exhaled deeply. He'd been thinking about what Isane had told him when Tier had gotten sick. He knew he had a tendency to worry over nothing, but he couldn't help himself. He'd been on edge since that day, and everyone noticed.
"Mr. Jaegerjaquez, your sister is on line two," Momo spoke through Grimmjow's intercom system. He sighed before he picked up the phone and placed it against his ear.
"Helllllllllllooooo! My darling little brother~!" Nel chimed, giggling when Grimmjow groaned.
"What is it, Nel? I'm busy."
"Oh, yeah? Busy doing what? Playing solitaire?" Grimmjow glanced at his computer's screen, exiting out of the game of solitaire that he'd been playing.
"What do you want?"
"I want you to come out of that stuffy old office and have lunch with us!"
"No."
"Oh, don't be that way! C'mon, Vé misses you," she said, and he could hear his niece's voice in the background confirming it. He sighed before looking at his schedule. A few meetings that could stand to be pushed back, an interview that he didn't want to do in the first place, and nothing else.
"Fine. Where are you going?" He held the phone away from his ear as Nel squealed.
"Meet us at the pizza place near where Itsygo used to live. Vé loved it last time, so we're going again."
"Alright, I'll see you there."
He hung up before Nel's squeals could assault his eardrums again and pressed the button to page Momo. The timid assistant stepped into the office a few seconds later.
"You wanted to see me, sir?"
"Cancel the rest of my afternoon schedule. Reschedule the meetings, but forget the interview. I'm not doing it." Momo nodded and scribbled his instructions down on her clipboard.
"Anything else?"
"No. When you're finished, take the rest of the day. I'm not coming back, so I won't make you stay."
"Okay. See you on Monday, Mr. Jaegerjaquez."
With a nod to his assistant, Grimmjow gathered his things and left his office. Though his sister could be a real nuisance when she wanted to be, he had to admit her big sister-sense was superb. There wasn't anyone who could tell when he was upset or when he needed a distraction from his own thoughts more than Nel, and for that he was truly grateful. Not that he'd ever tell her that and risk having to hear about it for the rest of his life.
As he cruised down the freeway towards Smyrna, his thoughts wandered to his. . .damn. Even after all the time they'd spent together over nearly six months, he still had no clue what to call Ichigo. This was getting a bit ridiculous in his opinion, but he knew he had to wait. With the way things were in the country they lived in, he could be arrested just for having a suggestive photo of the teen in his phone. That wouldn't be such a huge issue once the other male's birthday came around. Grimmjow smiled to himself, knowing he was probably making the "rape-face" that Nnoi was always scolding him about. He couldn't help himself though. He was ready to make things official between them. After what happened the previous night, he didn't even know if he'd be able to control himself until Ichigo's birthday. Virgin or not, the orange-haired male had skills. Grimmjow was getting turned on just thinking about the way Ichigo had smiled at him and asked "How am I doing?", teasing the fuck out of him. I'm gonna die before this is over. I just know it, he thought. He took a deep breath as he pulled into the spot next to Nel's car in front of the pizza parlor. Alright, calm the fuck down. Can't go in there with a boner.
Once he was inside, he spotted a familiar head of green hair at a table with another familiar head of orange. He felt his heart skip a beat at the sight of Ichigo's genuine smile as he laughed at something Nel said. He shook his head, trying in vain to shake off his excitement, so as not to show just how happy he was to see the orange-haired teen. Didn't want to freak the kid out. He made his way to the table, his young niece being the first of the group to spot him.
"Oncle!" she called, hopping down from her chair and running towards Grimmjow. He caught her in his arms and spun her around as she squealed in delight. "I missed you!"
"I missed you too, petit monstre. Have you been a good girl?" he asked, as he sat down next to Ichigo, balancing Véronique in his lap. She nodded happily, clutching at his hair.
"I helped Maman pick Itsygo's clothes!"
"Really?" Grimmjow asked as he glanced at Ichigo. The male sipped on his soda, not realizing that the conversation had shifted to him. Grimmjow took in his appearance, noting how the tight-fitting black v-neck hugged his slim figure. He couldn't really see his pants, but he knew they probably weren't loose. Ichigo had a tendency to wear tight pants, not that Grimmjow was complaining. All in all, from what he could see, it was business as usual for the orange haired teen; he looked fine as hell.
"Maman, do they really have to go to that other place? I want Rin to stay with me," Véronique whined. Nel smiled and shook her head.
"I'm sorry little girl, but they have to go for now."
Ichigo's dark-haired younger sister smiled at the small girl on Grimmjow's knee.
"Don't worry, Vé. I'll come back to visit soon." Véronique squealed and wiggled her way out of her uncle's lap. She skipped around the table to where Karin sat and hugged the older girl tightly.
"Speaking of that, have you heard from your dad, Ichi?" Grimmjow asked. Ichigo nodded.
"Earlier. He should be here in another hour or so."
"Good!" Nel chirped, clapping her hands together. "We have enough time to take the girls to the park. C'mon, let's go!"
The green-haired woman stood and clasped her daughter's hand in her own. As the two older girls followed, she turned and winked at Grimmjow. Confused, he looked at her inquisitively. She rolled her eyes, and then turned them to Ichigo. He understood then. Her big sister-sense was definitely something else.
"You know, I don't think she paid for this," the teen said, gesturing toward the leftover pizza. Grimmjow chuckled.
"Of course she didn't," he said as he reached for his wallet. He put enough cash in the small folder to cover the bill and a substantial tip for the waitress, and gestured for Ichigo to head for the door. He followed the teen soon after, and the two walked down the sidewalk in comfortable silence. He was shocked when the younger male reached out and took his hand. Ichigo leaned closer to Grimmjow, resting his head on the blue-haired male's shoulder.
"I missed you," he said, softly. Grimmjow smiled, giving the younger male's hand a light squeeze.
"I missed you too, Ichi. I've been thinking about you all day."
"I've been thinking about last night." Ichigo stopped walking abruptly, causing Grimmjow to do the same.
"Wha-?" A heated kiss cut off the older man's inquiry. Grimmjow caught up quickly, maneuvering his tongue into the orange haired male's mouth to explore the wet cavern. They separated after a short while, Ichigo's deep brown eyes shimmering with lust. He pulled himself up to be able to whisper in Grimmjow's ear.
"I want you so bad," he breathed, and the older man found himself shuddering with desire.
"Fuck, Ichi, I want you too." He pulled the teen closer, all but losing it when the orange haired male started to grind against him lickerishly. He let out a sigh, knowing that what they were doing was wrong, no matter how right it felt. He reluctantly pulled himself away from Ichigo, almost chuckling when the teen outright pouted at his action. "Look, I promise you, we're going to get there. You just gotta be patient, alright?" Ichigo loosened up his pout and nodded, allowing Grimmjow to give him a last short, but sweltering kiss.
He let the younger male walk ahead for a bit, to give himself time to reorganize his scattered thoughts. He'd been so close to finding the nearest closed off area and destroying Ichigo. He thanked whatever deity there was out there for stopping that from happening; he did want the boy, that was for certain, but he also wanted their first time together to be more than just frantically rutting against each other in a public area. Call him a sap, but he wanted it to special; he wanted to take his time and feel every part of Ichigo, and he was sure the teen wanted that too.
Grimmjow let out a deep breath as he started to catch up with Ichigo. This was going to be a long three weeks.
Ichigo sat with his arms crossed, looking at his father with disappointment. He'd arrived when he said he would, looking a bit worse for wear, but he seemed fine. That had been a few hours ago. Isshin had spent some time with the girls, Renji's mother, Yolanda, made dinner and they ate, and then Ichigo sent them off to see a movie with Yolanda. That's when he'd sat down with his father in the living room almost half an hour before. The man had yet to begin explaining himself, and it was irking the teen to no end.
"Okay, there is a lot that I have to tell you. I'm just trying to figure out the right way to go about it," Isshin said, and Ichigo sighed.
"First things first, I want an apology."
"What?"
"You heard me. You owe me an apology and I want it before you say anything else." Isshin sighed, but he knew he'd been beat. He ran a hand over his face before he spoke.
"I'm sorry, son. I shouldn't have lied and I regret that more than anything. Now can I tell you the reason I did it?" Ichigo relaxed his tense position though he still kept his arms crossed.
"I'm listening."
"First off, I've been seeing someone." The orange-haired male raised an eyebrow.
"Who?"
"Retsu."
Ichigo was taken aback to say the least. Retsu Unohana was Ichigo's godmother and his mother's best friend when she was alive. She'd moved to New Mexico a few years back, and he hadn't seen her since, though she still sent him birthday cards every year.
"Really? How?"
"When I said I was going to conferences, sometimes I really was and other times I flew to Albuquerque to see her."
"How long has this been going on?"
"Two years."
"So instead of just telling me that, you chose to lie to me?" Ichigo said, angrily. Isshin put up a hand before the boy's temper got the best of him.
"I'm not going to try to justify that. I'll just say that I wanted to tell you, but Retsu was worried that you'd be angry with her." Ichigo tsked.
"I'm not a baby."
"That brings me to the next thing," Isshin said, scratching the back of his neck.
Ichigo drew back in his seat, hoping against hope that his father wasn't about to say what he thought he was about to say.
"You have a younger brother."
I cannot express my apologies for how long this took sufficiently. I am literally so messed up right now, and I don't want to bother you guys with all that, but I do want you to know that I'm not doing this on purpose. I'm fairly certain the only thing I can do correctly right now is cry. So again, I offer my deepest apologies, and I will try to get the next update out the best that I can. Thank you for reading :)
Until next time,
Patd06
