Title: Hanabi-taikai

Author: Evil Day

Series: BLEACH

Pairing: IchigoxUryuu

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Takes place just after Soul Society arc, before the Bounto arc. The Obon festival is upon Karakura Town, and Onose River is THE place to be for the fireworks, and of course, the floating of paper lanterns on the last day.

Spoiler for everything up to the end of Soul Society arc and the beginning of the Bounto arc.

Together we cross countless sadness.

Never stopping, we seek the both of us on that day

Until we become apologetic.

A cry of thirst.

Just take my heart.

The August sun was unbearable.

Ichigo swept his hand through the hair on the back of his head, shuffling through the strands and finding a slight dampness near his scalp. It couldn't be helped. After a frustratingly restless night, the matter had to be dealt with.

Not to say that the matter itself was clear enough to Ichigo. He couldn't help feeling a certain way, but the emotion he'd felt the night before after seeing Uryuu under the fireworks display wasn't one that he was prepared to charge into.

It wasn't even one that he wanted to think he might have.

But regardless of all the crossed lines and mismatched conclusions that swam around in his thick skull, one simple fact remained. He needed to apologize.

Which brought him to the present moment, standing outside Uryuu's apartment on the sidewalk by the street. Through the haze of city heat, he peered into the second story window as he had before with Renji, shading his eyes from the oppressive sunlight.

There was no one sitting by the window. It was just as empty as all the others.

"Well…"

Ichigo noticed the approaching voice a fraction of a second too late, and he turned his head to meet the sapphire stare of Uryuu himself.

Ichigo blanched, wondering why his mouth suddenly refused to do anything. He hadn't seen the Quincy up close since the end of the school year, and that was only briefly, in a quickly passing goodbye. The odd thing was…nothing had changed. He didn't look at all different from the way he always had. But the image of Uryuu had shifted a bit in Ichigo's mind, and coming face to face with that internal difference in reality was unnerving.

"…Uh…hey." Didn't he have something to say…? Ichigo racked his mind furiously, taking the time to face Uryuu properly and smile. "Hi."

Uryuu blinked. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing…are you busy?"

Leaning his head to the right, Uryuu brushed a thin piece of hair that fell into his eyes to the side and tucked it behind his ear. A single eyebrow raised itself in silent accusation, and his mouth twisted a bit before he spoke. "I don't know. I suppose not, according to you."

"Right…about that…" He hadn't meant for the tension to jump so high within the course of 30 seconds. "I need to talk to you. Can I come up?"

Uryuu turned on his heel and took a few pronounced steps towards the apartment building, stopping just long enough to turn his head back to Ichigo and speak.

"Thanks, but I think I've had my fill of favors from you."

With that being said, he walked off, footsteps just as silent as ever. Ichigo suppressed the chuckle that threatened to show itself and followed Uryuu up the staircase. There was nothing at all that he found funny about the situation, but he couldn't help but wonder why everything Uryuu did had to be such a well-directed production.

Instead he said nothing, and trailed behind Uryuu until they reached his apartment door. If the Quincy noticed, he didn't let on. In fact, he kept on walking up the stairs calmly, as though he was determined to continue not noticing.

"Come on, Uryuu…just listen to me."

Uryuu dug his hand into his front pocket and pulled out a set of 4 keys hung on a tiny, nondescript ring.

"…Hey!" Ichigo waved his hand back and forth a few times. Upon receiving absolutely no response, the ill-tempered claws of fury began to take hold of his stomach, but he mashed them down again. The absolute last thing he wanted was a repeat of his earlier visit. Besides, Ichigo knew why he was angry now, which took a large part of the thrill out of the whole idea. Uryuu was ignoring him, and his first instinct had been to fly off the handle. It only made his moment of clarity the night before all too real.

Uryuu's hands fumbled with his keys, but he found the correct one and shoved it into the lock. Ichigo made no move to stop him, standing still and watching Uryuu's face. He wanted more than anything to just explain himself then and there, or shove his way into the apartment, anything at all to make Uryuu look at him and acknowledge that he was there. But none of those things happened, and he stood still and trained his eyes on Uryuu's blue ones, just watching. He didn't have a plan, or even an idea of why. He simply looked, and didn't stop.

And in doing so, he caught it.

For while Uryuu's every move and effort was directed in making Ichigo think he wasn't paying him any mind, the moment he got the apartment door open gave him away completely.

Key in the lock, Uryuu turned it to the left, unbolting the apartment door, and he pushed it open decisively and walked through. But in the moment that he took his first step and entered the room, he allowed himself one single glance at Ichigo, to see what his reaction was.

Ichigo saw it, and the action drove him forward just as Uryuu was closing the door behind him. He stepped out suddenly and placed his palm flat against the wooden door, noticing in the back of his mind the crackling of white paint chips against the sensitive skin.

Neither boy spoke or moved for a single suspended moment.

Ichigo's hand was planted firmly on one side, and Uryuu was on the other, both hands on his side of the door. Neither one pushed or pulled, or even moved at all. Ichigo stared firmly at Uryuu, and Uryuu looked back with a decidedly empty stare. He looked as though he didn't care, but Ichigo thought that maybe, just maybe, that wasn't entirely true. After all, if Uryuu really didn't care if he was left out here alone, then why would he look over at Ichigo at all? Perhaps it was wishful thinking, but it was still a thought, and one that motivated him for the time being. And that was all Ichigo needed.

He could feel the fierce determination on his face, and he knew Uryuu must have seen it plainly, because he let go of the door and walked off into the apartment, leaving the door wide open. Ichigo wasn't entirely sure if it was an invitation, but he took it nonetheless.

Shutting the door behind him softly, Ichigo watched as Uryuu took a glass out of the kitchen cabinet and turned on the tap, passing his fingers through the water a few times before the temperature was to his liking. He filled the glass halfway and brought it to his lips without shutting off the tap, drinking it to the last drop. Rinsing the glass off quickly, he refilled it and turned the water off.

With a look that held nothing but calm and stable thought, he brought the glass to Ichigo and held it up in an unspoken offering.

"Thanks…" Ichigo took the glass and drank it down in two or three huge gulps, wiping his mouth on his sleeve before handing the glass back to Uryuu. He wasn't sure if the air was supposed to feel as heavy as it did. It settled in his lungs, and he took a deep breath, trying to clear his body of the weighted sensation that clung to all sides of him.

Uryuu set the glass down in the sink, but instead of turning around, he stayed still and placed his hands on the kitchen countertop. Staring downwards, he spoke just loud enough so that the sound of him trailed over to Ichigo, still stuck to the door.

"Kurosaki…what did you need from me?"

Everything.

"Nothing…I wanted to tell you something."

"Ah. What is it?" Uryuu finally turned to face Ichigo, leaning back against the kitchen sink and meeting Ichigo's stare.

"Well, it's about before. With me and Renji."

Uryuu sat himself down in the first chair by the window, and Ichigo followed him, seating himself across the table. Clasping his hands together on the table top, Ichigo brought his eyes up to Uryuu's, who's own eyes were already watching Ichigo closely.

"I'm really…really sorry. About the whole thing. I did want you to come, I just don't really know how to do this kind of thing…you know? I just figured you wanted to come…which was dumb. And I'm sorry for getting mad and yelling at you. I…" Ichigo sifted through the possible explanations in his mind, settling on a vague ownership. "I didn't mean it."

Uryuu was the first to break eye contact, and his line of vision drifted down to the side of the table.

"…I see." His voice was still just as unreadable as ever, but most of the sharp edges had dulled.

"So…" Ichigo picked at the edge of the table, unsure of where to go next. He hadn't thought about anything past this part, no matter how many times he'd run this same scenario through his mind in the sleepless night before.

"Perhaps I ought to apologize as well."

Ichigo's eyes found Uryuu's once more, this time with a lost look to them. "What?"

"I've been…I've been dealing with a lot recently…. and I was unnecessarily rude. I apologize."

"No, it's…it's fine." Ichigo shook his head with a broad, reassuring grin. "So, we're even then, right?"

Uryuu nodded, a look of pleasant satisfaction breaking through the previous storm in his features.

Ichigo sat back in his chair, remembering Uryuu's confession. "Well, what's been going on? Can I help?"

Uryuu's shoulders stiffened slightly. "No…it's personal."

"Ahh…"

A gnawing thought chewed away at the back of Ichigo's brain, disturbing the peace he sought with Uryuu. Why didn't he feel any better? He felt absolved of what he'd done earlier, within the context of the argument they'd had, but something felt unsettled. The remembrance of the night before was shuffling back and forth through his thoughts, but what could he possibly say to Uryuu to try and resolve it? It was such an odd thing to want from someone. What was he supposed to say? Pay attention to me?

"Uryuu…" Ichigo's teeth instinctively found their way to his bottom lip. "I saw you last night."

"I know."

Of course he knew. Ichigo had always known that he knew. Still, the sound of it was odd to hear aloud.

"Why?" The single word held an infinite amount of possibility, but it was the only thing Ichigo could ask.

Uryuu drew in a deep breath. "I suppose I…wanted you to see me there."

Ichigo had no idea what to say to that. It sounded frighteningly similar to what Ichigo wanted to say initially, but had been too confused about it to express it so easily.

"I don't know why…so don't ask. I just did." Uryuu pursed his lips together. "Is that weird?"

"No…well, probably." Ichigo laughed aloud at that, wondering what was wrong with him. The thought of Uryuu feeling just as he did made the surface of his skin feel oddly cold in the awful heat. "Not to me, though."

His mind told him that he ought to leave before anything else was revealed, on Uryuu's part or his own. The two of them were dancing around something, that much he knew, and it was all he wanted to know for the moment. Ichigo wasn't much for taking himself apart piece by piece in order to figure out what was wrong with him. He much preferred to just keep rushing at life, hoping that everything would work itself out in the end.

"Tomorrow," Ichigo blurted out suddenly, catching the both of them by surprise. "Tomorrow…do you want to come?"

"There are no fireworks."

"Yeah, but we always send a lantern off for my mother." Ichigo smiled honestly as he stood up from his seat, making obvious gestures that he was preparing to leave. "It'll be fun."

Uryuu stood up as well, watching Ichigo with wide eyes. "I suppose."

"Great! Just come over around 7, okay? So we'll have enough time before dark."

"Right…" Uryuu trailed off, following Ichigo to the door. Opening the door for him, he stayed in the apartment and watched as Ichigo turned to face him again, this time with strangely mismatched features. Ichigo's face looked completely normal, wide-open grin taking up the majority of it. But his eyes were distant and evasive, and when he brought them up to Uryuu's again, they had within them an air of lingering confusion.

Ichigo shuffled his shoes and scuffed them against one another. Finally deciding, he looked up at Uryuu, putting on a normal face.

"Bye."

"Bye." Uryuu pushed the door shut as slowly as possible, watching Ichigo walk down the hallway as he closed the open space between the wall and the door.

He turned around to face his apartment but couldn't stand the sight of it, and cringing inwardly Uryuu leaned back against the closed door, putting his palms flat against the wood to support himself. It was taxing work, keeping his distance, making sure to keep an arm's length between he and any possible relationships, friendly or otherwise.

But it was safe. It had been necessary at first, to hide his secret. He'd never even dreamed there would be a day when he shared the fact that he was a Quincy with anyone. But now, there was nothing left to hide, and nothing left to train for, or do…or live for…

Was there even a point? Or was it something he'd become?

Exhaling sharply, Uryuu turned his head to the side, pressing his ear against the door. Maybe it was time to quit pushing, and start pulling.

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