Hiiii,

Well here is chapter 3, so I hope you enjoy it.

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Chapter 3: Ichigo.

Ichigo paced nervously in front of the dining room table, stopping every minute or so to straighten and adjust the table settings. For some reason there was one set of chopsticks that just did not sit right next to its plate no matter how much time Ichigo spent trying to correct its position.

He might have been a touch paranoid about it.

But everything had to be perfect tonight. Like, really perfect.

He wanted Toshiro to become part of his family and to feel comfortable in his home. He wanted to show him that telling everyone had been a good idea.

WHACK!

As if to totally counter his point, his father came barrelling through the door and landed a solid punch on Ichigo's cheek.

"What the hell, Old Man?!" screamed Ichigo from his sprawled out position on the floor. He held his burning cheek in his hand as he glared daggers up at his idiot father, who was prancing around the room having just landed the first good hit in months.

"Sorry, Son, but you must be prepared for an attack at all times!" Isshin wagged his finger at his son while still grinning manically, "You need to pay attention to your surroundings!"

"Dad!" Ichigo growled, "You know I have Toshiro coming over tonight!"

He couldn't let this be Toshiro's first proper impression of the man. They'd met briefly last week, but this was a whole night of getting to know each other. He could not afford for his father to be acting like such a lunatic.

"Ahh, yes, little Shiro-chan," Isshin put his hand to his chin as though he was deep in thought, "It has been a long time since you've brought a friend around for dinner…besides Rukia of course."

"Yeah well, we're very close," Ichigo mumbled quickly before standing up and striding straight over to his father, "but for the love of all that is good, Dad please do not call him 'little' or 'Shiro-chan', he will absolutely lose it, and I really need him to have a good time tonight."

Isshin simply stared at him for a while before asking in his 'serious father' voice, "He is very important to you, isn't he?"

Ichigo could only nod. His dad probably knew already, but it didn't matter since they were announcing it officially tonight anyway. His father's eyes bore right into his own as if searching for their own answers; it was unnerving the way he did that. Ichigo always did appreciate when his father was in his serious mode though; they actually had some good conversations.

As if he had jinxed it with the thought, Isshin suddenly snapped back to the idiot goat-face he normally was, throwing his hands up, fingers forming peace signs, and smiling widely.

"Oh don't you worry about me, Ichigo! I'm a real charmer! That's how I got your mother to fall in love with me!"

Ichigo sweat-dropped. The crazy man ran past him, towards the over-sized poster of Masaki, Ichigo's late mother, and hugged it.

"Isn't that right, my lovely wife? I was the most charming man you had ever met!"

It was going to be a long night, Ichigo realised.

Half an hour later and Ichigo was standing uselessly in the main hallway, unsure of what to do. Toshiro would be here any minute and Ichigo wanted to be the one who answered the door, while at the same time not wanting to appear so desperate as to wait by the door for his arrival.

He saw Karin smirking at him from her place on the living room couch, positioned perfectly so she could see him in the hallway. Did she know? Or did she just think he brother was being a weirdo?

"Ichigo, haven't you heard that a watched pot never boils?" She teased him.

He grumbled a quick "shut up" before stalking over to the couch and sitting beside her. He stared at the TV; too caught up in his own thoughts to pay attention to whatever show was on, and played with his owns hands.

Ding, dong!

Ichigo was up before the 'dong' and sprinting towards the door. Unfortunately, in his haste, he had slipped, his socks not gaining enough friction against the smooth floorboards as he rounded the corner and he hurtled straight into the wall.

In a tangle of his own limbs, he heard Karin chuckle and head for the door. His shoulder throbbed with a dull pain as he slowly worked on picking himself up, no longer trusting his feet to successfully hold him in place.

"Hey Toshiro! Come in," Karin opened the door and in stepped his gorgeous boyfriend. Toshiro returned her greeting before catching sight of Ichigo's dishevelled form. He frowned.

"What happened to you?"

"I, uh…well, you see, I…um…"

"He slipped over!" Karin supplied, smirking at her older brother, "He was running to see you and he slid straight into that wall, it was hilarious."

Ichigo glared at his sister, who only smirked in response before rolling her eyes and walking away. He turned to Toshiro who had raised an eyebrow at him while attempting to hold back his own laughter.

"Don't say anything. Just don't," Ichigo pleaded with his boyfriend. He knew that Toshiro was going to remember this for a long time.

Toshiro came to stand in front of him, raising his hand to ghost over Ichigo's cheek. Ichigo thought he saw a flash of concern cross his lover's features but it disappeared too quickly for him to be sure.

"You must have hit the wall hard; your cheek is already bruising."

"Huh? Oh no, that was my father earlier," Ichigo explained, but seeing the confused expression on his lover's face, he decided to expand on that account, "Yeah, he does that sometimes…out of love, he reckons, to prepare me for a real attack. Don't tell him this, but it really has come in handy since I got my soul reaper powers."

Toshiro frowned and Ichigo could tell he was wondering exactly what he had gotten himself into.

"Come on, dinner's almost ready," Ichigo pulled his lover into the house.

Finishing off the last of his dinner, Ichigo decided now was the right time to tell his family. The evening had been going well so far; his father hadn't acted too ridiculous, Karin had entertained his lover with stories about her soccer team and Yuzu had cooked the most fabulous meal. Most importantly, Toshiro seemed to be comfortable; he was making polite conversation with his father and complimenting Yuzu's cooking.

Ichigo sought out his boyfriend's hand under the table. He found it on Toshiro's knee and gripped it firmly, signalling what he was about to do. His eyes locked with Toshiro's, seeking silent permission. The captain understood immediately, gripping his hand back and giving him the nod to go ahead.

"So everyone," Ichigo began, getting his family's attention, "Toshiro is actually here tonight for a reason…"

Ichigo trailed off, suddenly nervous, unsure of how to word the next part of his sentence. His family stared at him in expectation. Toshiro urged him to finish what he started by running his thumb gently over Ichigo's knuckles.

"…he is here tonight because…uhhh…"

"BECAUSE HE IS YOUR BOYFRIEND!"

Ichigo and Toshiro whipped their heads towards Isshin faster than a bullet train, their shocked expressions identical. Isshin was once again beaming insanely at his son. Yuzu just smiled sweetly at her brother and Karin looked bored.

"Don't look at me like that, Son!" Isshin chuckled, "It was obvious. You haven't stopped talking about the poor kid for months now!"

"If you knew, why didn't you say anything?" Ichigo questioned his father, still completely dumbfounded. He could see Toshiro smirking beside him at his father's explanation.

"I knew you'd tell me when you were ready!" Isshin winked at him, before turning to Toshiro and pulling the little captain into a tight embrace, "Welcome to the family, Shiro-chan!"

"We are all really happy for you, Ichigo," Yuzu chimed in, pretending not to notice Toshiro struggle against the tight hold of their father.

"Yeah, Ichigo, you didn't have to be so nervous," Karin added, also ignoring the scuffle beside her.

"Thanks, guys," Ichigo mumbled, standing up to rip Toshiro from his father's grasp and punch the stupid goat-face in the throat.

With one arm around Toshiro's waist, Ichigo glared at his father, their earlier positions reversed as he now stood over the wailing man.

"We are going upstairs," Ichigo growled, his eyes remaining locked on his downed father, "Thanks for dinner, Yuzu."

Toshiro nodded in agreement, still a little dazed and dizzy after that surprise attack.

Ichigo whipped around and pulled his boyfriend towards the stairs. Behind him he could hear his father running over to the poster of his mother and crying into it, "Masaki! My beautiful wife! What have I done to deserve such a violent son?!"

As soon as they were in his room and the door was locked, Ichigo pulled Toshiro to sit on the edge of the bed and wrapped him in a warm, comforting cuddle.

"I apologize for my father," Ichigo groaned, "I probably should have seen that one coming."

Toshiro scoffed, "Don't worry about it, it's just like have a second Matsumoto around…well, a stronger, more manly version."

Ichigo cringed, "Well I'm still sorry."

"At least your family are accepting of us, that's all I care about," Toshiro reached up to peck him on the cheek but Ichigo turned his head to meet him lips to lips.

Ichigo hummed in agreement as he deepened the kiss, running his tongue across his boyfriend's closed lips, looking for entry. His request was accepted and he moved into Toshiro's mouth. It started slowly, two velvety tongues simply enjoying the moment, stroking each other lovingly and gradually it turned playful. Said appendages began playing a game of tag between each other's mouths.

Ichigo's hands came to rest on his lover's hips, while Toshiro's arms came up to circle his neck, pulling him deeper into the kiss. Ichigo gasped at the action, and suddenly felt Toshiro climb onto him, straddling his lap for better access to his mouth.

Nothing was soft or playful about this kiss anymore. Tongues fought for dominance and hands moved feverishly over their partner's body. Teeth nipped at lips and eventually Toshiro won supremacy when he rocked forward in Ichigo's lap, forcing a loud moan out of the strawberry's mouth.

"Shhh, Kurosaki, your family is down stairs," Toshiro smirked against his lips, rocking again.

Ichigo threw his head back and bit his lip in order to stop the pleasured sound from coming out.

"It's not fair, we haven't been able to be loud in so long," He sulked, "Someone is always home and I just want to hear you, Babe."

Toshiro rolled his eyes and kissed him lightly on the lips.

"It's time I left now, anyway," Toshiro said, climbing off Ichigo and getting to his feet, "you better walk me to the door, I don't think it will be easy to explain if I left out the window,"

"What? Aren't you staying here tonight?" Ichigo reached out, grabbing Toshiro's thin wrist and pulling him back.

"I can't," Toshiro replied, clicking his tongue, "Ukitake called me this afternoon, and Kuchki and Inoue will be returning later tonight. I have to go make sure Matsumoto hasn't destroyed the house in my absence."

Ichigo frowned at the thought, but then beamed at his boyfriend a second later, "This means we can tell Rukia and Orihime now!"

Ichigo mentally cheered. Oh, he was so happy! His family knew and soon his friends would too. He was glad they wouldn't have to sneak around anymore.

"Yes," Toshiro agreed, voice a little solemn, "but not tonight. I think your family was more than enough for one night."

"Tomorrow?" Ichigo asked hopefully.

"Sure," Toshiro choked out, "Now come walk me out."

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PLEASE REVIEW so that I can understand what people like or don't like. Any tips would be greatly appreciated since I am the sole editor of this piece and I am not sure if I am doing anything wrong or not.