It's been a long time huh? Sorry. I've been caught up in schoolwork and I even got asked out on a date. Apart from my social life, school and work have been not coinciding too well but I'm managing haha. Anyway, I had a BUNCH of free time so I wrote this chapter and the next. I had a hard time writing this one since it's the one before things get real. I'll have the next one posted probably on Monday. I have a lot of editing to do. Anyway, enjoy!

Rays of Sunshine

Some people become clear skies in another's fantasy or reality.

Friday evening.

Ichigo stared blankly out his window as he lay in bed pondering where his life was heading. Things were getting serious now. High school would be drawing to an end after this year which meant college. Everyone would be split apart as they went their separate ways.

It was an unwelcome thought to say the least. His thoughts were anything but steadfast right now. When he began thinking of Grimmjow, he felt he was losing sight of what they had together.

But why? Did Ginjo's insistence and vigor really have such an impact that it would make him question all that he had built with Grimmjow over the past year?

And why was he so interested in repaying a debt to his mother when she wasn't the kind of person to have wanted such a thing? His whole premise was faulty.

"Is he just playing that card to get me to lower my guard or something?" he asked himself.

It would make sense. The quickest way to get past Ichigo's defenses was to talk about his family. Especially his mother.

Biting his fingernail, Ichigo turned and noticed the time.

"Shit! I need to meet everyone!" he said, hopping from his bed and running to get a change of clothes.

For some reason, he felt the need to clean himself.

Renji's soccer match was tonight at six. That's why Grimmjow wasn't at the clinic. Ichigo had told him he was going to the game and suggested he go too but Grimmjow promptly denied his invitation.

It was hard having to deal with two overgrown babies all the time. Really hard.

"I don't see him anywhere!" Inoue puffed as she sat back down on the bleachers.

"The question here is, do we want to see him?" Senna asked, head rested on her hand as she leaned forward lethargically.

"There he is! He's standing in the doorway of the locker room!" Shuhei said enthusiastically.

Renji was standing in front of the coach and it looked like they were having a very intense conversation. He was only doing this because, as he had desired, he had been chosen to be the captain of the Varsity team. He spread the news almost minutes after he found out to every contact in his cell phone.

It was something he had aimed for since he started high school. At one point, it was simply to impress the ladies, but that faded away soon after he met Ichigo and his merry band of misfits.

Rukia was the first to congratulate him. She even threw him a party in celebration of this crowning achievement. He loved the attention it gave him. Growing up, he was never the important one. He lived in a foster home most of his early life.

But now he had his support. Looking over to bleachers, he saw them. His boyfriend, his best friend, his hater, his busty eye candy, and…

When he noticed Ichigo was not among them, he was thoroughly disappointed and shocked. After all the emphasis he had put on this match, no, his soccer career, not seeing Ichigo here was like a punch in the face.

"Where the hell is he?" he asked himself.

Automatically, he assumed it was Grimmjow's fault he wasn't presently at the game.

Ichigo had been on his way to Renji's match but he was currently faced with a small obstacle. He stood in place on the sidewalk as a tall, thin, black haired man blocked his path.

"I have somewhere to be. I don't have time to play games so step aside." He ordered.

"I'm certainly not here to block your path. My reasons for halting you are to the contrary actually. I came to intervene in your relationship with Ginjo. Or perhaps that was the wrong word…"

Ichigo's eyes went wide and the man had his full attention now.

"I understand he has some very strong feelings for you, and that's acceptable from a man in his position. If I'm correct, he's told you his story has he not?"

"That bunch of bullshit he spat to me as he forced himself on me? Yeah, I heard it."

"You may not believe it, but it is true. Finally, I offer you this advice: Don't turn your eyes away from reality, let alone Ginjo because in the moment you least wish him to, he will strike. In your case, you'll probably have no other choice but to be his forever without a glimpse of freedom…"

"Just what are you saying? Am I supposed to be afraid of Ginjo now? I thought he wanted me to love him? And who are you anyway?"

"I'm no one of importance to you at this moment. Let me tell you this: In this world clouded in darkness, you are Ginjo's light which is why I support his efforts to claim you. After all, all I want is for him to be happy."

"Whatever… Tell me your name. I'll remember it so I can find you once I've taken care of Ginjo."

The man smiled and turned to leave, but before he did, he spoke this last word, "Tsukishima."

Frozen in thought, Ichigo wondered what Ginjo had said and doing to those around him. After all, this man had to have been some form of an acquaintance with him to know he was amorously pursuing him.

In any case, one thing was for sure. Ginjo was going to visit their clinic again. And the next time he did, he wasn't going to be leaving too happy.

Shishigawara sat brewing in the back seat of Yukio's limousine. He and Riruka had forced him, literally bound and gagged him, into going to the soccer game Inoue had so kindly invited him to.

They joked and laughed about how he was going to be forced to be around her and Ichigo's other strange friends.

While all this was going on, Moe was trying his hardest to get his hands free. God help the two jackals if he were able to do just that.

Unfortunately for him, the limo stopped at the entrance to the field and both Riruka and Yukio escorted him to the ticket booth.

Although it took all the effort they could manage from keeping their captive from thrashing about and getting free, they made it to the sales rep but paused.

"Did she give you a ticket?" Riruka asked.

"Mph! MMMMM!" the boy responded.

Yukio grinned. He slipped his hand into Shishigawara's back pocket and pulled out his wallet.

Said boy turned wide eyed in shock. Not only was he being kidnapped, he was being robbed and violated at the same time.

"I'll take one ticket for this guy." Yukio said to the man in the booth.

"That'll be twelve dollars."

Shishigawara was unbelievably livid by this point. Yukio, the rich little bastard, was stealing money from him to pay for something he was forcing him to go to! The least he could have done was pay for it himself.

When he turned with the ticket, Riruka squealed as Shishigawara broke free from her and he threw himself at Yukio. The trio was now drawing the attention of almost everyone in their vicinity.

Then Renji's group noticed them. Inoue smiled when she saw Shishigawara while Senna rolled her eyes at Riruka.

Yukio and Riruka were just about to guide him over to them, but they were halted by security.

"Well this was unexpected." Yukio grinned.

"Do something." Riruka said.

Just then, Ichigo approached them with a puzzled look on his face.

"What are you three doing here? Don't you go to another school?"

"It's Ginjo's boyfriend…" Riruka commented, swiftly turning away from him with red cheeks.

"Really?" Yukio asked.

"No! Stop spreading that fucking fake rumor!"

Ichigo pulled out his ticket and was about to leave the three, but he was forced to stop when Yukio stepped in his way.

"Is there a problem?" he asked.

"No, but can you do us a favor? Take this fool with you and sit him next to that orange haired girl please."

Looking between the two, Ichigo scoffed, "Why should I do that?"

"Because we said so!" Riruka yelled.

"Look, I'm not gonna-"

"Sushigawara-kuuuun!" Inoue called as she made her way over to the group at the entrance.

"Inoue…"

"Hi, Kurosaki-kun!" she smiled.

"What's going on here?" Ichigo asked.

"Oh, well I invited Sushigawara-kun to attend the match. I hope that's okay."

"I don't really mind."

And there it was again. Going out of the way of logic and what he felt for Inoue. Although he knew it was a flaw of his, Ichigo was content with it and had no desire to change.

"Yay!"

Grabbing Shishigawara by the arm, she led him up to the group in the bleachers, followed by Ichigo.

Yukio called out enthusiastically with a wave, "We'll be back for you after the game!"

Squinting angrily, Shishigawara used every swear word he could utter directing them directly at Yukio and Riruka. Unfortunately, all that came out was incomprehensible mumbling behind the gag.

When he sat down, he successfully earned the attention of Rukia, Senna, Shuhei, and Chad who had seemed to have faded into the crowd after arriving late.

Inoue smiled and introduced him to them. He received a smile from Rukia, a raised eyebrow from Senna, and indifference from Shuhei. Chad didn't seem to react, but of course, he didn't need to. Shishigawara was intimidated by him even more than the scowling Ichigo.

What was with that look plastered on his face for in the first place? It wasn't like he had ever done him anything.

What not a single one them realized was that Ichigo was in his own mental turmoil. In fact, he wasn't even looking in Shishigawara's direction.

He was thinking; stuck in the whirlwind of his conscious mind.

And it was all thanks to Ginjo.

As the match seemed to take forever to begin, everyone in the crowd had begun chatting among themselves. This included the group who had come to see Renji.

While Rukia, Senna and Shuhei began conversing, Ichigo sat quieter than Chad in his irritated mental state of mind. Inoue, however, turned her attention to the still bound and gagged Shishigawara.

After a few moments of watching him, she decided to help him out a bit. Yukio and Riruka were mean for doing something like this. Scooting closer to him, she gently pulled the gag from his mouth and smiled at his expression.

"Why did you do that? I'd be better off with it on because I don't even want to be here with you weirdoes."

"Sushigawara-kun, you should try new things and meet new people. I can't say for sure, but you seem a little closed off to everyone and that's no good! Life will seem much brighter when you open your mind and heart."

Moe raised an eyebrow at the girl. She was weird…probably one of the weirder ones of this group.

Looking around, he couldn't tell if that was actually true. There was that orange-eyed girl he didn't care for. Then there was the guy with the violet hair and scars on his right eye and tattoo of a sixty-nine on the opposite side of his face. The next one was that really short, purple-eyed girl. Plus Ichigo and the big guy who hadn't really said a word.

When his eyes landed on Inoue again, he realized she probably fit in well with these people. Something about her annoyed him just as much as the others. She was innocent, friendly, and annoying.

But more than anything, she was beautiful beyond comparison. She easily drew the eyes of those around her. There were even a few guys eying her a few rows over. But she was clearly oblivious.

"How can somebody be so innocent? Or maybe stupid…" he thought to himself.

Despite her naïvety, Moe couldn't help but want to keep jerks like the three guys still eying her away from her. This was strange for him. Never had he really known someone that he wanted to protect but Tsukishima.

The stadium lights embellished her form. Since he had met her, she had been nothing but a nuisance. But in this moment, she seemed like a goddess to him.

Suddenly, Inoue jumped in childish excitement, which caused him to jump as well.

"I can see Abarai-kun!" she said, alerting everyone else to his arrival on the field.

"It looks like the game is about to start." Shuhei added.

"Finally…" Senna said.

Ichigo looked at Renji and couldn't help but smile. His friends were his world, which was why he was here now at this game even though he was not in the mood.

He realized that he would have to tell someone about Ginjo, but it probably wouldn't be Renji.

After both teams took their positions on the field and the whistle blew, he realized just the person he would tell.

Ishida's laptop momentarily flickered, causing him to fret. Immediately saving his work, he looked out his window in the direction of the school where the stadium lights lit up the sky.

"Good luck, Abarai." He said, adjusting his glasses.

"Why go back for him anyway? He told me to swallow a cockroach!" Riruka exclaimed from across the car from her partner in crime.

"I promised him, that's why. Besides, he'd probably wind up in some bizarre situation where he has to fight for his life. You know he has issues dealing with people." Yukio commented without looking up from his PS Vita system.

"I sometimes think he deserves it…"

The window from the driver's section rolled down and the driver spoke, "Sir, it looks like the game may be over."

This drew green and magenta eyes.

Yukio jumped up through the sunroof looking around for Ichigo's group.

Riruka peered through the window that the driver had rolled down and let her eyes fly over the crowd.

"Ichigo…" she said.

She could tell something was bothering him when she first laid eyes on him. But she wasn't close enough to him to ask about what was going on. Then again, that could be the best way to get closer to him. She had to start somewhere.

"I see them!" Yukio shouted.

"Where!?"

"Hey, Shishigawara is alone with that busty girl."

Bolting up next to the blonde boy, Riruka spotted the pair and found herself shell-shocked. What was he doing with her? Of all of Ichigo's friends, he had fallen behind the group with her?

With each step he took, Shishigawara grew more and more nervous. His heart was beating a mile a second now. Somehow, he and Inoue had got stuck behind a group of teenagers who were planning to get drunk. Apparently, they were Karakura students now celebrating a dominating victory thanks to the team's captain, Renji.

Although their abrupt intrusion seemed inconvenient, it provided him with the perfect opportunity to make his move. After all, he was too nervous just around her so with Ichigo and his other buddies around, he'd never be able to ask.

As they got closer to the ones waiting, the urge to shout the question grew stronger. Once they reached them, Shishigawara realized he'd never be able to do it. Exhaling deeply, he stopped dead in his tracks and turned to Inoue. Before he could speak, she smiled warmly at him, causing him to lose his nerve and turn away irritated by his own cowardice.

"Stupid stupid!" he muttered under his breath.

"Hey, do you want me to remove those ropes around your arms?" Inoue asked.

"No! Get lost woman!"

"I think you do."

"I said-"

"Here, let me-"

"What the heck are you doing!?"

Ignoring the question, Inoue walked around Shishigawara, pulled out her hair pin, and used it to snip the binds.

She bent over and picked up the ropes after they fell to the ground, put the pin in her mouth, then smiled.

"Inoue! We're going to find Renji! Coming?" Rukia asked from the rest of the group.

"Coming!"

Just as she turned to leave, Shishigawara called out to her.

"Hm?"

He mumbled something under his breath the girl didn't catch.

"Say it again."

"I SAID WILL YOU GO OUT WITH ME!?"

Prepare yourselves for the next turn of events. And review in anticipation until then