Thought I'd show a bit of Grimmjow's life in Tokyo. After all, he is a pivotal character to the story lol.

A Matter of Patience and Effort

If one applies as much effort as they never knew they could, they could be rewarded.

Wednesday evening. Grimmjow lay under a car he had worked on all day. It was now about to drive him insane. Of all things, he hated working on older cars. They were so out of his range of knowledge he sometimes wished it was illegal to drive them.

Kurosaki would scold him for even thinking something like that. He'd probably go on and on about how not everyone was as privileged as he was so they had no choice but to drive an older model vehicle.

With one last turn of the wrench, the car was now out of his hands. Just then, oil began leaking.

"Damnit!" he shouted angrily.

A foot stepped on his creeper and slid him from under the car. And they had good timing too. Oil began spewing to the ground almost right after he was slid out.

"Who the-?"

"I thought I recognized that voice of yours, Grimmjow."

Blue eyes went wide with surprise at the man standing above him.

"Y-Yylfordt?! You son of a bitch!"

"So you haven't forgotten me huh?" the blonde man asked.

"Fuck no!"

Grimmjow quickly sat up from his rested position.

"Same old rambunctious Grimmjow."

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Yylfordt smiled and flashed an employee badge, "I'm a sales rep see?"

"Can't take the wear and tear of the mechanic's work, huh?"

"No, grease monkey. I don't have the slightest interest in what lies below the hood of a car."

"Tch. That's what makes the car what it is."

"Anyway, what brings you to Tokyo? I thought you were in Karakura."

Grimmjow shrugged his shoulders, "I needed the pay."

Yylfordt leaned in and whispered into the bluenette's ear, "I heard about Aizen. It was all over the news a few months ago. I was wondering what happened to you since they only mentioned him and his arrest. And what about my little brother?"

"Szayel is fine. Same weirdo he's always been. As for Aizen, I don't really wanna talk about that ass."

"I gotcha, I gotcha. So…"

"So what?"

"How are the pickings in Karakura? Get with anything worth mentioning in that town?"

"Heh, I'm locked down."

Maroon eyes went wide and blonde eyebrows shot upwards.

"What? The untamable Grimmjow has been tamed?! Am I living in a different universe or something? Maybe I should go visit sometime!"

After that outburst, Yylfordt walked around the man a few times to make sure he was the real Grimmjow.

"Who was it?" the slender man asked, jumping into Grimmjow's face, "It must have been sex on legs or a greek god to put a leash on your ass."

Grimmjow smirked and closed his eyes momentarily. Then he pulled out his phone and flipped through his pictures until he found a decent one of himself and Ichigo.

"What a pretty guy… His hair stands out just as much as yours does." Yylfordt said with a smile.

"Pretty?"

"Yeah. He's a pretty boy. Seems kinda preppy too. Or maybe it's just his outfit in the picture… Anyway, I thought your dad hated you dating guys…uh…well, seeing guys. You've never really had a relationship because of him, huh?"

Grimmjow's expression changed from a boastful one to a serious one.

"Grimmjow…?"

"Yeah. My dad found out about Kurosaki and he wasn't too happy."

"Really…?"

Flashback

Ichigo sat and texted on his phone while Grimmjow lifted weights in the workout room of his mansion.

Grimmjow inhaled and exhaled heavily with each thrust of the bar. He looked over to Ichigo and smirked, "Giving up already?"

"Not everyone can work out for hours on end. Besides, I did more than you." Ichigo said, looking up from the screen in front of him.

"You did the elliptical and hit the punching bag. Wow." Grimmjow spoke with each breath he exhaled.

Ichigo rolled his eyes and looked back to his messages. Then he noticed it was past five o'clock.

"You don't have to deny you want to watch me, Kurosaki. I would too if I was in your shoes."

There was no response given to that. And so the room became quiet other than the noises the weights made as Grimmjow lifted them.

Brown eyes slowly looked over the figure rested on the weight bench. Grimmjow was wearing athletic shorts that were slightly tight, running shoes, and socks that went up to his calves. He had taken his shirt off earlier when they started.

This wasn't something they did often. Actually, this was only the second time Ichigo had worked out with him.

It was interesting to watch Grimmjow that was for sure. Especially his clothes. They always gripped his body the right way. And right now, he had a good view of the man's bulge through his shorts.

"Wanna spot me, Kurosaki?" the bluenette asked when he heard footsteps coming his way.

"Sure."

Once the weights were rested on the holsters, Grimmjow's arms fell quickly and swayed while suspended above the ground. He panted and closed his eyes tight, feeling pain coursing through his biceps.

A hand on his chest surprised him. Ichigo was now kneeling beside him smiling.

"What's that smile for?"

"I'm just surprised that even after all this weight lifting, your arms don't look as repulsive as some people's."

"What?"

"It's a compliment. I'm glad you don't look like a monster."

"Doesn't really sound like a compliment to me..."

Slowly, Ichigo leaned over and stopped right in front of Grimmjow's face. Their noses made contact for a moment before the boy brought their lips together.

One thing he liked more than anything was how sweaty Grimmjow looked. Sweat. On the right person, it could be an attracting feature.

Even though his body seemed spent, Ichigo could feel Grimmjow taking control of this kiss. It was crazy. Despite his lack of energy, he was still overpowering. But that didn't mean he was about to give in to him. Grimmjow was powerless now.

The bluenette could feel Ichigo smiling and knew he was up to something.

"Grimmjow!" Neliel called from the living room.

Said man was too distracted to even notice the girl calling his name.

Both Ichigo and Grimmjow's heads turned quickly when the door opened.

It was his father.

"Grimmjow…"

The man was surprised at the sight of the two. Ichigo's hand rested on Grimmjow's stomach now, and they were mere centimeters apart. But even in the mix of emotions showing in those deep blue eyes, there was a hint of exhaustion in them. He must have realized there was no way to control who his son was involved with after all the years of scolding.

"Still don't knock I see."

"I don't need to knock in my own house. Who is this young man?" he asked, putting a barely noticeable emphasis on the last part.

Just then, Neliel ran up the stairs and into the room, "I called you." She mouthed to the exhausted man on the bench.

If only he listened to his sister more often…

End Flashback

"So what did he do?" Yylfordt asked.

"Nothing. It was like he didn't even care."

"Isn't that what you wanted? Now you can be with whoever you want."

"It doesn't matter. He still gives me that look every time he sees me. I just hope I won't be living with him for much longer. The only reason I didn't move out here for good was because of Kurosaki."

"You must really like this kid, huh?"

"Fucking right. He's hard to deal with sometimes, but I can't help but like him. I wouldn't find another ass like that anywhere…"

"A little too much information, buddy… Back to the main point, are you dead set on staying with him?"

"Yeah."

Yylfordt sighed, "Guess I can let you know about a little secret our company has kept."

"Secret…?" Grimmjow echoed.

"Yeah. You're new here, but I don't see why they wouldn't consider you for it."

"What? Stop beating around the damned bush!"

"Branching."

"Branching?"

"Yeah," looking down at his watch, Yylfordt continued, "Let's get a drink and talk."

Neliel sat on the couch in the living room with legs up to her chest. She was wearing her signature oversized, green hoodie and nothing but her under garments.

She flipped aimlessly through the channels on the television and sighed.

"It's just the same as when he was still here every day of the week, huh?"

The girl jumped and turned her head to see her father slump down on the opposite end of the large sofa.

His shirt was open and his tie was undone. He clearly had a tough time at work today. And he had been working in his study since he got home earlier so she had forgotten he was even home.

"Yeah…"

The man looked at her and then to the television.

"You look and act just like these hooligans you watch." He said benevolently.

"Dad, do you… do you love Grimmjow?"

This drew the man's attention. He had even forgotten what he had said to her mere moments ago.

"What kind of question is that? Of course I love him. He is my son after all."

"Yeah, but sometimes, I think you really hurt him. You don't yell at him anymore, but even I can feel the disappointment you throw his way."

"What do you mean, Neliel?"

"Well, particularly the way you look at him. I remember when you found out about Ichigo and you avoided Grimm for days. But he really loves Ichigo, and Ichigo loves him too. I know about your faith, but of all people, do you think God would want you judging and disdaining your own son? Don't you think, for the deity you're so faithful to, you should love and accept others…?"

The man sat on the couch, speechless. Neliel of all people was lecturing him about Grimmjow. He never expected this. This was the second time one of his children rose against him in such a way. But when someone as innocent and free-spirited as Neliel to come to him with this…

"It's our duty as humans to love those in our lives. What does it matter if Grimm likes other boys? He's a person with feelings. The only reason he's so reluctant to show them is because of the way you and his mother treated him. I'm not trying to be disrespectful, I just want you to treat Grimm like he's a person and not a disappointment…"

"Neliel…"

"Oh, and you're right. It is the same as if he was here because he's usually gone or shut up in his room." She spoke, voice faltering and full of emotion.

"Neliel…"

Neliel stood, smiled, and said good night before quickly retreating to her room.

It wasn't like she had malevolent motives. It was just so hurtful the way Grimmjow had turned out thanks to his parents.

She turned off her light then walked over to her bed and fell over on it. The moonlight flooded through her curtains and illuminated her figure as she buried her face in her pillow. She just had to get out of that room before the tears fled from her eyes.

"Grimm… you poor idiot…" she sniffled.

Grimmjow held his half empty cup in his hand and stared at the man next to him at the bar with the most serious look plastered on his face.

"Could I be moved to Karakura?" he asked.

"Possibly. If you can prove you'd be beneficial to the company while at another branch, then yes, they'd move you. But the company actually branching is just an idea at the moment. It'll take a while for a final decision to be made."

"I gotta be moved…! If I could get back to Karakura-"

"I'll put in a good word for you. If being transferred means that much to you, I'll make sure to run it by the boss. He likes you right?"

"Che, I guess."

Yylfordt shook his head. Lifting his cup, he toasted, "To branching businesses!"

Grimmjow didn't raise his cup. He was too absorbed in the thought of going back to Karakura and back to Kurosaki.

He would need to work really hard and prove he would be valuable to a new branch. For Ichigo, he would put ten times the effort.

"Wait for me, Kurosaki." He thought.