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Toshiro didn't know what was worse, the mental or physical pain. How could something like a broken heart physically hurt? It didn't seem possible. When Ichigo had first started talking, he had thought it was a joke. Then, once he realized Ichigo was serious, it seemed to be more of a guilt driven action, which Toshiro had expected. Then when he had said those three words, it had crushed him. He himself hadn't even realized until that moment how much he cared about Ichigo. Then all of those emotions came crashing down, almost as if it was shattered glass. He hadn't even been able to keep eye contact with Toshiro and it just proved Ichigo had been lying this whole time.

He lost track of how much time passed. Realistically, he knew it had only been a few hours, but in his mind it felt a lifetime. The same phrase kept running through his head. Ichigo doesn't love me. Toshiro saw nurses come and go but he didn't acknowledge them. The great irony was all of Toshiro's thought were of Ichigo, the one person he wanted more than anything to forget. He relived memories and conversations, only now they were viewed with a devastated heart.

Sometime after Toshiro's mind wanderings, his room was bombarded by people, mainly redheads, led by Byakuya. They all wore various degrees of concern upon entering which worsened when they saw Toshiro's face. Rangiku immediately ran over to hug him, but refrained at the last minute, probably fearful of hurting him more. Renji deferred to Byakuya, who looked as if he was trying to figure out the cause of Toshiro's new demeanor.

"Oh Toshiro!" Rangiku wailed. "You got hurt again! Who would do this to you?" She continued crying, but no one paid attention to her. He could feel Byakuya's eyes on him, but he didn't acknowledge it, the other man would figure it out eventually. Which, as it turns out was sooner rather than later.

"Toshiro, where is Ichigo?" The older man asked, his dark eyes never leaving Toshiro's face. Gradually understanding seemed to come to the man's face, but he continued to wait for an answer.

"He's gone okay! He left!" Toshiro burst out, pain lacing every word. Somehow, even though he thought his eyes had dried out before, the tears started flowing again. Renji seemed shocked, whether at his words or breakdown, Toshiro didn't know. Rangiku looked shocked at first but it blended into confusion.

"Why would he do that?" Byakuya's voice had altered slightly to the cop tone, like he was investigating a case. That case was Toshiro's broken heart.

"He doesn't love me! He's loves Shiro! He wanted to go back to him…" Toshiro couldn't continue as he started sobbing. Full, gut-wrenching sobs that brought tears to the eyes of everyone in the room.

"Do you really believe that Toshiro? After everything he went through and the relationship you two had, do you really think he would mean that?" The cop asked him, his voice softer but no less determined to find the truth. Toshiro was still crying and couldn't say anything so he just gave the man a confused look. He didn't want to know more about Ichigo's motivation for dumping him, why couldn't Byakuya realize that? "Toshiro," He began gently, "how did you say Ichigo would react if he heard what you told me?" Toshiro simply stared at the man, unsure of what he was getting at. Byakuya sighed. "You said he'd be selfless Toshiro, that he would give himself of to Shiro."

He was shaking his head before the man finished talking. His tears had mostly dried but he was still visibly shaken. "That's not what happened Byakuya. He left. Told me he loved Shiro. That he wanted to belong to him." Toshiro firmly said.

This time his friend was shaking his head. "And he just suddenly felt this way? You know he was scared of Shiro before, why would that change now?" Toshiro still refused to accept that. Again, Byakuya sighed, knowing that while Toshiro was hurting he wouldn't accept any other possibilities. He still had to tell him, though, what he thought. "He let you go." Toshiro gave him a pained look. "He let you go so you wouldn't follow him or try to stop him from going to Shiro." When Toshiro continued to ignore the comment, Byakuya gave him a sad look before leaving.

"Wait, you're leaving?" His assistant asked, surprised. Her gaze jumping between the two old friends.

"Yes. I need to find Ichigo before he gets himself killed." He said this looking at the small man, but Toshiro didn't respond to it or him. Byakuya gave up, turning to Rangiku instead. A message seemed to pass between them before he left, with Renji following.

Rangiku watched her close friend. While he was a small man, he had never seemed more vulnerable than he did now, lying in the hospital bed, his body wracked by sobs. It made Rangiku want to grab and smother him with hugs, but she knew that would make him shut down further. Instead she took his small hand in hers, trying to give what little comfort she could.

"Toshiro?" She softly asked, trying to gain his attention. She saw the white head incline her way and took that as a sign he was listening. "Earlier, Ichigo, he called me." Toshiro stiffened at her words. Rangiku looked down at their hands, thinking of the best way to tell Toshiro with the less pain. She took a breath before continuing. "I think what Byakuya was saying is right." Toshiro pulled the hand away, betrayal evident in his face. But she continued, knowing he had to hear this. "I was grilling him about what he felt for you. He said you were the most important person in his life." She took his hand again, gripping it hard to get her message across. "He loves you. You. Not Shiro. All he wants is to protect you, Boss." She purposely used the affectionate nickname. At first she thought he ignored her, but the shaking in his body increased until he was sobbing again.

"What do I do Rangiku?" The quiet whisper made her tears fall. Rangiku gave up on not hugging her friend, now she hugged him as hard as she could, her tears mixing with his on the wet sheets.

"We believe Toshiro. We believe Ichigo will come back to you."

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Last note: THE END IS NEAR! So I need to know if you guys want a sequel?