Alright, so I was like DEAD TIRED when I wrote this 'cuz my body was in pain after rowing and I was having a writer's bloc along with a weeklong cold. So, please don't be harsh about how messed up this chapter is since it's almost done and I am quite proud of myself for writing this. Thanks for the reviews! And enjoy! Remember, I would REALLY, REALLY like to hit 50 reviews for this! Please and thank you!^^

Ok that was sooo Kim Possible of me-_-

'So this is what it feels like to be in a black and white movie,' Grimmjow thinks bitterly as he stands rooted in his spot in front of the door. The two men in the doorway are looking slightly uncomfortable now. Grimmjow has been staring at them blankly for the last two minutes without a reaction to what they had just said. The man called Dondochakka nudges his brother Pesche.

'Dude,' he whispers. 'Is he dead?'

'I've seen cases like these,' Pesche whispers back. 'They die on the spot but you can't tell cuz they don't move. It's like they are frozen in time, never to experience life ever again.'

'Grimmjow! What's the matter?' Ichigo says cheerily as he strolls up from the living room, quite pleased with how the party is turning out for the better. He spots Dondochakka and Pesche. 'Who are these people? Grimmjow, did you hire one of your crazy bands to perform tonight?'

'I beg your pardon, my good man,' Pesche huffs. 'But we have perfectly reasonable jobs at perfectly respectable places. If it weren't for us, you'd never get your pizzas delivered in time by 'Toppings 'N Toppings'!'

'Um, okkkk,' Ichigo says, his voice indicating how weird he thought they were while raising an eyebrow to enhance that assumption of his.

'Ichigo,' Grimmjow croaks. He's surprised he can even talk considering his throat feels like it's swollen. 'These are Nel's brothers.'

Ichigo's face goes pale.

'Well, foster brothers,' Pesche corrects. 'We got adopted into her family when we were young and when our foster parents died in a train wreck, we had to take care of Nel. But we were pretty young at the time so we gave her in to an adoption agency, hoping that someone can give her a better life than us. Except now, we own 'Toppings 'N Toppings' and were more than ready to take Nel back to her real home!'

'You can't do that!' Ichigo says shrilly almost immediately. Pesche, Dondochakka and even Grimmjow stare at him. Ichigo just glares back.

'Nel is living with us now,' he insists and he almost sounds like he's pleading. Grimmjow's heart aches when he listens to him. 'You can't take her away from us…'

His voice falters. He seems to be shaking now. Grimmjow takes his hand and when Ichigo raises his head to look at him, Grimmjow is startled. His brown eyes are chocolate puddles, literally melting due to the tears cascading down his cheeks. Pesche clicks his tongue.

'I'm sorry, you guys,' he says but he doesn't seem to be sorry. 'But Nel is our sister. And you can't take her away from her real family, can you?'

'Grimmjow?' Aizen comes up from behind them, looking concerned.

If it had been any other day, Grimmjow would have been thrilled that his father was showing some interest in his life and problems. But today just didn't seem like a good day to enjoy this moment. His boyfriend was falling apart along with his newly mended family and it was threatening to break him now. Ichigo is already on the verge to collapsing and Grimmjow can't risk seeming weak right now. Not to his father.

'Nothing, dad,' he says, trying to seem casual. But his father doesn't look like he's buying it. He looks beyond his son's shoulder to look at the two brothers still standing in the doorway.

'Doesn't seem like nothing,' he points out.

'Dad…' Grimmjow says half-heartedly. He doesn't have the energy to shoo him away. Ichigo is clinging to his hand and he needs him. And he's through with pretending. He'd promised to be more close to his father and that's what he's going to do. He takes a deep breath.

'They've come to take Nel away,' he whispers so softly his father almost didn't hear him. That's when Grimmjow notices that Nel is right behind Aizen, clinging to the pant leg of his suit.

Nel…

She looks so confused right now. She doesn't remember who the two people in the doorway are. She was probably very young when they left her in the adoption agency.

'What is it, Gwimmjow?' she queries, gazing at him with perplexed hazel orbs. He looks at her helplessly.

She looks so innocent. She's just a child, with no real parents or siblings. What is it that every kid wants anyways? Truth be told, it's not toys or games or cavity-giving candy. What they want more than anything is love and attention from people very near and dear to them. To deprive her of her real family would be just plain cruel.

Grimmjow glances at Ichigo who is just looking at Nel with so much love Grimmjow is surprised he isn't jealous. Nel pads up to Ichigo and tugs at his pant leg now.

'What is it, Itsygo?' she asks and hugs his leg now. Ichigo absent-mindedly picks her up and begins to stroke her hair.

'Nel!' Pesche says joyfully and Nel looks at him curiously. She unconsciously holds on even tighter to Ichigo's shirt. 'It's me, Nel! Pesche! And this is Dondochakka!'

'Doncha know us, Nellie?' Dondochakka says as he tries to scoot into the penthouse but just gets stuck.

Grimmjow looks on all of this quite bitterly. He can tell by the look on Ichigo's face that no matter how much he wants to keep Nel, he knows it's the right thing to give her back to her real family. If Nel was older, she would understand and respect them for their decision. It's for the best. But then, why does Grimmjow feel so reluctant about giving her up? A month ago, he would have handed her to these strangers without even hesitating or even asking if they actually were her brothers. Wasn't Nel the one who messed up his CD collection? Got him in trouble with Ichigo every time she messed up the penthouse? Almost killed him in a car accident? If she was the root cause of all the problems in the penthouse every since she got here, why doesn't Grimmjow just let her go?

Because there were good times too.

The way she would laugh whenever Grimmjow would hurt himself. When she would make a mess of her face whenever she ate cereal. When she would play hide and seek with them after coming back from school. And when she had asked Grimmjow for advice when kids at school picked on her because of the colour of her hair.

In many ways, no matter how annoying Grimmjow had found her, he had actually grown to like her. To be a parent, you need to make a lot of sacrifices. But there's more to it than just being a responsible adult. You realize that your heart gets bigger and that little tyke that has been ruining your life has actually been making it worth living in. Maybe this is why Ichigo had always wanted a kid. You get to bring up that little bundle of joy into the world and teach it the tricks of trade. But more than that, you get to call that little bundle your own.

'I don't think,' Grimmjow says out loud, taking everyone present by surprise. 'That we would like to give her up just yet.'

Pesche raises an eyebrow at him and puts his arms akimbo.

'I don't think I follow you,' he says flatly.

'I think you do,' Grimmjow says firmly. 'And I think you'd better follow that hallway 'cuz that's the last thing you'll see of this place.'

Pesche doesn't lose his temper. He doesn't look like a strong-willed character either. In fact, he looks devastated.

'You don't understand,' he says desperately. 'Nel's our sister. For years we regretted leaving her there and felt guilty about not taking care of her! We finally get the chance to right our wrong! Please don't take that chance away from us!'

'No, you don't understand,' Grimmjow says softly. He places a hand on Ichigo's forearm, who is now looking at Grimmjow with wide eyes. So are Nel and his father behind him. He is really doing something quite extraordinary and although Ichigo feels like he should stop him, he wants to know where Grimmjow is going with this.

'You gave her to the adoption agency for a reason,' Grimmjow says gently. 'You wanted to give her a better life. And can't you see that you have? Can't you see that not only is she happy, but the people you gave her to are happy as well?'

Pesche still looks like he's going to cry. Dondochakka looks like he doesn't know what to feel.

'I never wanted to be a parent,' Grimmjow admits. 'Trust me, if you had come a month earlier, I wouldn't mind you taking her away. But, (he looks at Nel and she looks back) over the days, I've realized that I like being a dad. It's tough raising a kid (he turns around to smile at his dad) but someone once taught me that there is no such thing as the perfect child. The greatest gift is to know that they are yours and no one else's. So please understand when I say don't take her away from us. We love her too much. She's become our world. Don't you want her to be with people who love her?'

Pesche's uncertain face has become a frown. Dondochakka is looking at his brother, as if waiting for him to come to a decision.

'Pesche?' he says quietly.

Then, Pesche smiles slightly.

'I suppose,' he murmurs. 'That we did the right thing when we gave Nel to the adoption agency. She found people who truly love her and will take care of her.'

He sighs and ruffles his hair.

'C'mon, Dondochakka,' he says listlessly. 'Let's get out of here.'

Ichigo exhales. He realizes that he has been holding his breath. He then buries his face in Nel's hair.

'Itsygo!' Nel cries out. 'You're messing Nel's hair after you brushed it for so long!'

'Hush, Nel!' he whispers and kisses her head. Grimmjow comes around and wraps his arms around his lover.

'You were brilliant,' Ichigo gushes and lies back into the embrace.

'Tell me something I don't know,' Grimmjow smirks. Then, he looks up at Dondochakka and Pesche leaving and feels a little guilty. Ichigo realizes how he feels and looks at where he is looking.

'Hey! You two!' he calls to the two brothers as they wait for the elevator. They turn around. 'Would you like to stay for the party? We have plenty of refreshments?'

The two look at each other, grin and march back to the penthouse.

'I do like to par-tay!' Dondochakka says as he shakes his hips and almost knocks a table over.

'And maybe you'd like to visit Nel once in a while?' Ichigo adds. Pesche stares at him.

'You know,' he grins. 'I like you. We should totally do something together.'

'Hands off,' Grimmjow says possessively as he draws Ichigo closer. 'He's my boyfriend!'

'You have a child in your arms,' Aizen coughs as he breezes past them. He's still getting used to having a gay son.

'I think you're the one who's more disturbed by this, dad,' Grimmjow teases.

'You know me too well, son.'

'It's why we're family.'