Byakuya woke to sound of the squealing hinges of his cells door. He wasn't surprised when all the guard did was dump the body of his former lieutenant on the floor before leaving; they'd taken Renji three days ago, he was starting to wonder if they'd ever bring him back.

He waited with patient breath for the red-head to say something; to exude his usual aura of 'bad-ass-tough-guy' that simultaneously amused and offended him. He counted on it, relied on it. It was how he knew Renji was okay.

When the only noise Renji emitted was a thick, gargled breath, the dark haired man was by his side instantly, hauling the broken form of him friend into his arms.

"Abarai?" he hissed softly, slapping the man's face. His hand came back wet and warm.

"Are…?"

A low moan answered the man's question. "Hey, Byakuya..." Renji forced a grin on his face, even though what he really wanted to do was throw up from the pain coursing through his body. "Did... you miss me... that much?"

"Idiot." Byakuya breathed, hiding his relief. "I wouldn't want you in here if you'd died, you'd start to smell..."

The joke was hollow, empty even by his standards. Despite the fact that Renji had responded to the sound of his voice, the Kuchiki felt worry wash through him again when he noticed three of the other man's fingers were missing from his right hand.

He felt like he was holding a limp bag of rice - it didn't take a genius to realize they'd shattered most of the bones in the red head's body.

"What did they do?" he whispered.

Don't die, I couldn't stand it if you died...

Renji took in a shuddering breath. "You know... the usual. Bone breaking, putting hot metal on my skin..." He let out a hollow laugh. "They really need to spice it up a bit."

"You're such a..."

Byakuya shook his head; he wouldn't insult the man, get him riled up and keep him talking. Talking would only make it worse, especially if one of the man's ribs had punctured a lung.

"Why didn't they heal you?" he asked instead. The torturers had been instructed to hurt and then heal, only if they'd done life-threatening damage. It kept the prisoners alive long enough to get information out of them.

Renji was quiet, looking up at the ceiling. He knew why he wasn't healed this time. He just wasn't going to tell Byakuya that. "Guess... they want me to hurt for awhile..." he finally said. "Maybe they think... they'll get more out of me... that way..." Renji started coughing violently, something wet hitting Byakuya's cheek. "S-sorry Byakuya..." he said after the coughing fit passed with a weak laugh. "Guess you'll need your bath early this month..."

"Quit talking, it'll only make it worse." the dark haired man demanded, wiping at the back of his cheek with his hand.

Renji was quiet for a bit after that. After some time had passed, Byakuya wasn't sure how long, Renji spoke again. "Hey, Byakuya..."

Byakuya sighed, frustrated that the man insisted on talking.

"What?"

"Don't... give up on finding Rukia, okay?" Renji said softly, his voice horse. "She's still out there. I can feel it."

"Ru...? Idiot. Don't talk like you're going somewhere."

"You're right... I'll always be beside you, Taichou, just like I always have been..." Renji's voice faded as he said those words, his body becoming light in Byakuya's arms.

Byakuya didn't have to check Renji's pulse to know that his friend was gone. It was just the sort mellow-dramatic thing he'd say with his last dying breath.

The dark haired man allowed himself to run a dirty hand through the red head's matted hair, to trace a single finger over the tattoos above Renji's eyebrows. He couldn't bring himself to be sad, not when he knew, despite the sudden, biting loneliness, that where ever his friend was, it was far better than where he had been.

He didn't know when he stopped thinking of Renji as the idiot, and more of a lovable oaf. He didn't know when his casual language stopped being offensive and became a comfort. He didn't know when he'd become so attached, that he started thinking of the loud, brash red head as a friend.

"You will be forever missed," he whispered, leaning over to place chapped, stiff lips to Renji's forehead.

When Byakuya woke the next morning, his friend's body was gone.