I DON'T OWN BLEACH

All Hail to Gloaming Grove the uber beta! Thank you doesn't seem enough! I realize now, thanks to you, I'm comma deficient. (and just lazy) She probably wishes she is not my uber beta now!

Quick note Kenseikan; is the name of the white thingy in Byakuya's hair. And Nemaki are p.j.'s They are thin and made of a very soft cotton.

Chapter 3; Swimming in secrets "Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired."
Robert Frost

The sunlight hits his face; Ichigo wakes up with a groan, remembering he is on the floor. Standing up and arching his back in a deep stretch, he looks over to his bed, finding it empty.

"Good morning Onii-chan."

"Good morning Yuzu." Ichigo glances at the table noticing a lack of a plate for Byakuya. "Seen Byakuya this morning?"

"Yeah." Karin walks in with her book bag over her shoulder and a soccer ball in her hand. "He left about twenty minutes ago. He said he had something to do."

"Oh, thanks." He goes back to his room to get his badge and knocks over a paperback book. Turning it over, he recognizes it as the same book Byakuya was reading the night before. Flipping through it for a moment Ichigo reads an underlined section on treading water. The flash of the light bulb in his head could have powered a small mid western city for a year. Running out the door, he punishes his legs in a furious sprint. Turning the corner to his high school, Ichigo ignores the many greetings of his classmates. Widening his stance, climbing the steep stairs leading to the gym he skips three steps at a time . Dashing past the bouncing basketballs and ignoring the teacher's orders to change his shoes, Ichigo jumps over the locked gate of the swimming pool.

"Shit!" There, floating face down in the pool was Byakuya Kuchiki. Ichigo dives in with clothes and shoes on and his heart in his throat, and grabs Byakuya's chin. Tugging him to the edge, Ichigo yanks him out of the water and pulls himself over the side. Flipping him over on his back, he cringes at his blue lips. "Damn it!"

His mind in a daze, Ichigo holds his head to Byakuya's chest, hearing nothing. He pushes on his chest, then wraps his lips around Byakuya's to force air into his lungs. After a minute, Ichigo's hands begin to shake as fear sets in. Byakuya is dying...

"Come on! You've got more fight in you than anyone I've met!" Touching his neck, Ichigo closes his mouth over his again. Ichigo hears it, the faint pulse, and Byakuya's shoulders lurch as he coughs up water.

Byakuya turns over on his side and struggles to breathe in as much air as possible to force the water out. His dark blue eyes focus on Ichigo who is kneeling down next to him holding his hair back from his face.

"You can't swim?" Ichigo asks, his voice low and soft.

"No."

"What were you thinking?! You could have died!" His right hand moves through his orange hair while his left was touching Byakuya's hair. Byakuya's gaze never left the smoldering amber eyes pointing daggers at him. Ichigo let go of him and stood up with his hands on his hips. Water falls through the air as Ichigo moves hand from his hair to his sides. Dripping on the ground under his shoes and streaking down his angry face, it soaks everything. "Why didn't you tell me? Ask for help?"

"I… have never had to before." Only then does he allow his gaze to fall and the humiliation starts to sting his pride.

"Welcome to the human race, where you have to fight and claw your way through everything." Ichigo sighs and holds out his hand to Byakuya. "I will teach you. Come on, let's go get changed before we are late." Byakuya takes his hand, stands up and shivers slightly from the cold.

"I have spare clothes in the locker room. You are a little bigger than me but, I think they will fit." Ichigo replies releasing the cold hand and leading him into the boy's locker room.

Byakuya sits on the bench, watching Ichigo from behind his long, wet bangs. The way his fingers move the padlock and open the locker door, the pensive wrinkle of his eyebrows, and the way he gets angry when people around him get hurt. Is it this side of him that people gravitate to? He is also becoming affected by him, drifting toward him like a comet caught in the suns pull. The towel Ichigo tosses lands on Byakuya's head, yanking him out of his thoughts. He slips it off his head and lays it over his lap, then looks at his hands. Holding them up, he can see the slight tremor in them and frowns. Ichigo steps next to him and looks down at the long shaking fingers. Water drops from his long black hair fall and glides down his large hands.

"Is it always like this?" Byakuya asks, looking up at him with a soft expression. "The fear...it's stifling."

"The fear you feel now, it's nothing. The fear that chokes at you and keeps you awake at night, is when it's the people you care about that are bleeding." Ichigo pulls his towel from around his neck and rubs Byakuya's hair.

"Will I ever get used to it?" Byakuya's head drops to give Ichigo room to rub the towel on the back of his hair. "Have you?"

"Notice how much I sleep at night?" Ichigo replies patting Byakuya's shoulder dropping the towel over Byakuya face. Students begin to filter in the locker room and Ichigo walks away, chatting with some friends.

"I notice everything." Byakuya whispers, buttoning the slightly tight shirt without his eyes looking away from the orange haired shinigami.

"Yo, Byakuya! Meet me here after classes." He waves and vanishes behind a blue painted cement wall. Byakuya can still hear his voice thundering and his occasional laugh above anyone else's as he dresses in Ichigo's old uniform.

XXXX

After the bell rings, Ichigo pushes open the door to the locker room, walking around the blue walls of the locker room he sees Byakuya. Ichigo stops near the corner and moving his brown eyes to the left they drift up from the floor halting on Byakuya's lean torso. His appearance isn't much different, Ichigo notes as his eyes travel over the pale, smooth skin of his face. He still has that superior air about him though, like the world exists for him. No, that's not it; Byakuya's pride isn't just for show. He can, and has, backed it up with some amazing skill. Ichigo looks at his hair laying across his face without his Kenseikan. He doesn't have the title or the notoriety anymore, yet his mannerisms and presence still speak for him. Byakuya sits there on an old school bench with his eyes closed in deep thought, with his back straight and his hands in his lap; he looks striking in a perfect way, unblemished by anything. Ichigo's eyes slip over his lips and he sucks in his lower lip. The dark brown eyes, full of curiosity, blink as people walk in behind him, forcing him to look away.

"Hey, you ready to go?"

"We are leaving?"

"Yeah, the pool is closed after school so I made a call to Urahara and we got full access to the underground sauna. Don't worry, they are going to get supplies, no one will know you can't swim." Ichigo whispers the last part behind his hand, leaning toward him.

"Thank you." He says quietly, and follows Ichigo to Urahara's Shop in silence. Ichigo's badge growls and flashes in his pocket as Rukia appears in the distance.

"Shit."

"Nii-sama," She holds up a duffel bag and gives it to him. "Some things from home I thought you might want."

"Thank you Rukia."

"Where's the hollow?" Ichigo pops out of his body quickly, setting it down on the shop floor.

"Not sure, the color is light pink. Fraccion or Arrancar class."

"Yeah, I feel the reiatsu, let's go." He motions to Rukia and she darts out the door. Before leaving, Ichigo turns to Byakuya and nods. "I'll be back."

Opening the duffel bag, he finds basic items: socks and his favorite pillow; the bottle of saki and his sleeping nemaki are the last items he pulls out. He pours a drink, and then slips on his sorely missed navy blue kimono. Lounging on a mat in the front room, he stretches his body out and feels more like himself than he has in days. Two, three, and four hours later he begins to get anxious and paces the floor. He considers going out to find them, but what could he do? Downing his third drink, he feels lightheaded and frowns at the weakness of his human body. Feeling buzzed and frustrated, he walks to the door to go outside when it opens. Ichigo's broken shinigami form falls inside, pale and blood pouring everywhere with his bankai still intact.

"What happened!?" Byakuya gasps, pulling Ichigo over to the mat by the arms.

"Eh, there was one, then it divided into two. Then it tried to kill Rukia."

"Rukia?" Byakuya, subconsciously reaching for his sword, growled, finding nothing. "Where is she?"

"Relax, I made her go back to Soul Society." Ichigo grins and then dismisses his bankai. "She was so pissed. I had that afro wearing shinigami open a portal, then I threw her in it. Haha." He tries to sit up and lurches forward on Byakuya. "I am going to be so sore tomorrow. Downstairs, there's a special spring down there with healing water."

"They're dead I hope?" He asks climbing down the ladder behind Ichigo.

"Yeah, Kurosaki 2 Fraccion 0. Go team!" He mumbles before hitting the dirt floor and blacking out.

"Kurosaki..." Byakuya shakes his head and drags him over to the green water. Edging him into the water, Byakuya tries to balance him in the water by draping his hands over the side, but he slips on the wet stones and falls in next to Ichigo. His hair is drenched and now his favorite kimono clings to his body and Kurosaki is passed out dangling in his arms.

Byakuya sits on the bottom of the spring, the warm water rising to his chest, and positions Kurosaki between his legs. Wrapping his arms around Ichigo's shoulders, he pulls his back against his chest and tilts his head to rest on his shoulder. Byakuya watches as the water closes up his wounds and he breathes a sigh of relief. Ichigo's long legs stretching out next to his, their thighs touching, the vibrant orange hair near enough to smell. The closeness of his warm body sends a torrent of emotions over him.

Byakuya bites down on his lip and lowers his eye lids to the neck arching near his mouth. He leans his nose down to Ichigo's neck, and closes his eyes as it lightly touches his earlobe. Breathing in the fiery scent, his lips tremble and his heart pounds in his chest. The temptation not to touch him was becoming near impossible.

"Ichigo.." He whispers and sees his head begin to move.

"Hmm?" Ichigo stirs and feels the warm water around him and a strong arm pulling him up. Opening his eyes, he sees Byakuya at his side, holding him by the waist. "Did I pass out?"

"Yes." Byakuya releases him and climbs out of the spring, his clothing heavy with water and gaping open, showing his toned chest. Both men avert their eyes and wring the water from their clothing. Ichigo notices the soaked captain's thin kimono and exposed chest. Raking a hand through his orange hair, he climbs up the ladder to find his body. Byakuya stays behind, breathing a sigh of relief that Ichigo didn't catch on to his secret. He couldn't have been more wrong......

Author's notes; Here is the new chapter! Tada! Thank you for your reviews! They are the reason I am awake right now lol! I really hope you like this chapter. I had a nosebleed just writing it! LOL! Re-edit my fault...not my betas...FYI never edit while watching a four year old dance to Lady GAGA. /sigh Reviews are love...I need love.

Chapter4 ; Sucking on strawberries.