CHAPTER 8

Gin Ichimaru walked down the long, dark hallway to Aizen's throne room, where he had been summoned by the man. Gin had no idea what this was about, but he was sure it was not that good, as far as he himself was concerned. He was suspicious that Aizen-sama had seen him spying on his former love, as he had a habit of doing since he was told of Aizen's plan. Although he still loved Toshiro, Gin was sure that the boy did not love him back, especially because of how he had left Toshiro for Aizen those five years ago, telling Toshiro that he had become trash in Gin's life that needed to be thrown away. Of course, he had not wanted to say those things to his little lover, but he had to. There was no way around it… was there? Could he have done something to get around Aizen…?

No. There was no way around a man like that. A man like Sosuke Aizen, who would deceive so much that his whole life was a lie through his teeth. A man who would cheat and use your own life against you, making you do his bidding in fear of exposure… that's what had gotten Gin. Aizen had threatened to expose Gin as well as his relationship with Toshiro, threatening to kill the white haired taicho if he did not come along. What Gin had always suspected was that whenever he had became the squad three taicho and formed his bond with Toshiro, he could sense his former taicho's jealousy. Although it was subtle enough for Toshiro not to notice, but he was thankful for that fact.

Standing outside the throne room door, Gin remembered what he was going to do the night before Aizen would blackmail him. The never ending smile suddenly disappeared for an instant as he reminisced. I was gonna ask 'im to marry me…

Suddenly, the doors swung open, revealing to the red eyed man a room void of everything but Aizen himself.

Aizen looked up from where he was sitting and motioned for Gin to come forward, a wicked grin spreading across his face. "Come on in, Gin. I have some things to discuss with you."

Gin slowly made his way towards the brown haired bastard, wondering what the surprise summoning would be about, all while trying to maintain his usual fox like appearance to not draw suspicion. "Watcha need, Aizen-sama? Did I do somethin' bad?"

Aizen folded his arms across his broad chest, showing no other emotion besides the sly smirk on his face. "I paid someone a visit this afternoon. You'll never believe who it was! We had so much fun…"

Gin's face, for the first time in the longest time, became a mix of worry and anger. No! He couldn't mean… what did he do?

Kurosaki Clinic

Ichigo sat next to his little boyfriend's bed in the clinic, of course having left school early to get his yuki no hana proper medical attention after he found Toshiro bound in the bathroom stall, a sight he would never be able to erase from his memory for the rest of his life. He stared down at the battered boy, his physical appearance an exact image of Ichigo's soul at the moment. Ichigo would always remember how his lover looked at that moment, that fact haunting him. Toshiro's face was swollen, the usually soft pink lips now red and chapped. His arms and legs had cuts up and down their whole length, severe bruises where he had been tied. There were also open wounds all the way from his neck down to his…

It's my fault! I wasn't there when he needed me! Why am I such a failure as a boyfriend? Why in the fucking world can't I do anything right! Why can't I even protect the ones I love?

Somehow during his mental abuse, Ichigo had started screaming and beating himself, turning the abuse from mental to self inflicted physical injuries becoming more apparent. These little "seizures" had first begun after that fateful night a year ago. Ichigo would get so mad at Toshiro that he would scream, but then become so furious with himself for being mad at Toshiro that he would turn on himself and start injuring himself. What made matter worse is that Ichigo would not be aware of what he was doing to himself. His father had once told him that it was a good thing he screamed while having these outbursts, otherwise no one would know when he had an attack. On more than one occasion, one of his family members had heard him screaming and found Ichigo trying to cut himself with a razor. He had succeeded a few times on almost killing himself, although never aware of what he had done. The only proof the strawberry had were the severe scars and the extreme pain he felt afterwards.

Now, thrashing around next to Toshiro's bed, beginning to beat himself to a bloody pulp and still mentally cursing himself, Ichigo felt utterly hopeless, fading deeper into the blackness of oblivion.

Suddenly, he felt strong arms grab him, trying to help him stop from killing himself. Along with the arms came a familiar voice.

"ICHIGO! Damn, he's not listening! Come on Chad, smack him awake! ICHIGO KUROSAKI, YOU WAKE UP THIS MINUTE BEFORE I KICK YOUR ASS!"

Ichigo's mind became blank as the effects of his seizure dissipated from existence once again. It took him a minute, but he could make out six other people in the room besides Toshiro and himself. He could distinguish voices he had not heard in a long time.

Slap!

Ichigo's mind was pulled back to reality as he felt the sting of the slap across his face, still extremely flushed and now severely broken. He lifted his eyes to stare into another pair of dark brown eyes belonging to a face that he hadn't seen for years. "That's it Ichigo, come back to us. Damn, that was close. I'm glad we arrived when we did."

Ichigo wracked his brain for the man's name, finally finding it when he was about to break down again. "Jushiro… Jushiro Ukitake!"

The fatherly taicho smiled brightly, feeling extremely at ease as Ichigo remembered his name. "That's right, I'm here. You're lucky Rangiku and I got here when we did. We were coming over with Rukia, Uryu, Orihime, and Chad when we heard violent screaming coming from in here." Ukitake's smile instantly disappeared as his eyes rested on the person lying on the bed. "But now I see what might trigger such aggression from you."

Ichigo absorbed all the information he had just received. His eyes suddenly widened with recognition. "You said Rangiku was here! Where is she? I have to talk to her!"

The busty fukutaicho ran across the room, putting her hands on Ichigo's broad shoulders, staring into his chocolate eyes with misty gray ones. "Sssshhh, it's okay, Ichigo, I'm here. Calm down, don't beat yourself up again." She waited for the fellow strawberry to calm down and asked, "What do you need to talk to me about?"

Ichigo's face grew sullen as he stood up from his chair, dropping down to his knees. His face was pressed up against the floor, bowing in front of Rangiku, gripping the hem of her pants. "Rangiku… please forgive me. I am an utter failure as a friend and a lover. I vow I will never let your taicho leave my side again, and I know just how to do that when he wakes up, if he'll still have me after I abandoned him and left him to that…" His voice faltered as he remembered how he had found his lover and the familiar, overwhelmingly evil reiatsu he felt lingering in the bathroom.

Ichigo did what he would never do again for the rest of his life. He threw his arms around Rangiku's legs, begging and weeping. "Please forgive me! I let Toshiro get brutalized while I sat there and did nothing! I will kill myself if you wish me to, all I ask is that you forgive me before I do!"

Chad, Orihime, Rukia, Uryu, Ukitake, and of course Rangiku stared wide eyed at the normally brash and stubborn substitute shinigami, now on his knees begging for forgiveness for something he had no control over. There was a sorrowful silence, except for the sound of Ichigo's whimpering as he sobbed.

Rangiku was the first to break the silence, bending down to lift Ichigo from the floor. When he was finally standing, she looked into his eyes with a softness that no one knew she had. Suddenly, she pulled Ichigo into a soft embrace, contrary to the bear hugs she always administered to everyone.

"You listen to me, Ichigo Kurosaki," she whispered into Ichigo's ear. "It's not your fault that taicho is hurt like this. Whoever did that to him is who you should be blaming, not yourself. You're taking on a burden that you should not even have to think on carrying." Rangiku released the embrace and looked Ichigo over with a slightly concerned look. "Now, if Toshiro wakes up and sees you like this, what will he think? You have scars all over yourself, Ichigo. You look almost as bad as taicho."

Ichigo knew she was right. How can I let him see me like this? He'll blame himself, and he doesn't need that. "Thank you, Rangiku. I'll try." He then suddenly brought a small smirk across his face. "Jushiro, you were the one who brought me back, right? What was with the 'wake up this minute before I kick your ass' business about?"

That certainly helped lighten the mood. Ukitake laughed when he heard Ichigo ask that question. "Well, it wasn't entirely my idea. Rukia said she uses it on you all the time, and it normally works, so I thought I'd give it a try!"

That elicited a laugh from everyone in the room, a good change from the dampening sadness.

"…hey… what did I miss?" whispered a hoarse voice.

All eyes in the tiny room turned to the hospital bed to see Toshiro with a slight smirk on his face, trying to keep the good mood in tact. Although, it didn't last for long.

Of course, Ichigo was the first to be beside his lover, his larger hands cupping the boy's abused cheeks. "Hey there, yuki no hana. How are you feeling? I was worried sick about you!"

Toshiro's dull teal eyes scanned his boyfriend's face and arms. "I can see that. Ichigo, what happened? You look worse than after you defeated Aizen."

Oh shit! I didn't have time to fix myself. What should I say? Should I lie? Tell him the truth? If I lie, he'll hate me! If I tell the truth, he'll blame himself! Ugh!

"Well, ya see…" Ichigo began, but stopped right in the middle of his thought. I can't do this anymore! I can't hold it off any longer!

The orange headed man bent down on one knee beside his lover of five years. "Yuki no hana, I almost lost you today, and I almost died when I found you. It's my fault for not being there to protect you, and I never want to be apart like that again. I know it's kinda selfish, but it's true! I want to be with you for the rest of my life! I love you more than I love life itself. Hell, I love more than I love my own soul."

Toshiro looked at his boyfriend with a slightly confused look on his face, trying to figure out what was going on. Damn, I'm a freaking prodigy, and after five years, I can never figure out what's going on in that head of his.

Ichigo looked up at Toshiro nervously, trying not to think about the consequences of what he was about to ask. "What I'm trying to say is…" He brought his hands from behind his back, revealing a small box. When he opened it, everyone in the room gasped. "Toshiro Hitsugaya, my yuki no hana, will you marry me?"

Toshiro's eyes went as wide as tennis balls, but gained their sparkle back. Tears started running down his face, but this time they were tears of joy. Tears that felt good to shed. He sat up from where he was lying and threw his arms around Ichigo's thick neck, half crying and half laughing. "Well, it's about time, baka."

Ichigo looked his boyfriend in the eyes, the shine returning to his own brown orbs. "So, is that Toshiro talk for 'of course Ichigo, I will'?"

Instead of smacking the strawberry across the head, Toshiro leaned forward and kissed his lover tenderly on the lips. It was not a heated, rushed kiss, or even a battle for dominance. It was a kiss that sent sparks up and down the couples' spines, a passionate lingering one that was one worthy of envy.

When they finally broke, Toshiro spoke, arms still wrapped tightly around Ichigo's neck, never wanting to let go. "Of course it's yes. I would love to marry you, Ichigo Kurosaki."

This time it was Ichigo's eyes to water up with joy, but was interrupted by the enormous "aaawww" of Orihime and Rangiku.

Suddenly, Ukitake remembered the reason why he had come. "Ichigo, before you get to comfortable, you need to stay on high alert, especially since you two will be getting married soon. Yamamoto-sotaicho is sending Soi Fon and Byakuya Kuchiki here to retrieve you and Hitsugaya-kun. They'll take you back and put under arrest for treason."

Meanwhile… as Always

"Aizen-sama, don't tell me it was…" Gin began.

"But of course it was, Gin," Aizen chuckled. "I visited little Shiro-chan this afternoon at the university. And boy, did he and you have fun."

It took a minute, but the Gin suddenly realized what Aizen was talking about.

He had used an illusion of Gin to rape Toshiro!

Well, I hope you guys enjoyed this chappie! I wanna thank all of you who have been reviewing, especially Ebbie54 and Toshirokun13! You guys rock my socks off :D