Chapter 2:
Study Buddies?
OR,
"I think I like you!"
It did not take long for the student body to adjust to their respective schedules, no more than a week for most. Lilynette adapted especially well to life as a freshmen. Starrk was pleasantly suprised with his younger sister's progress. Every day she would eat lunch with her new friends Momo Hinamori, Kiyone Kotetsu and Sentaro Kotsubaki. A couple of days after the school year started, the four friends decided to hang out after school and help each other out with their homework assignments, if Kiyone and Sentaro weren't too busy arguing with each other of course. Starrk was more than happy to drive his little sister to these study sessions.
However, while Lilynette was quickly settling into her life at school, Starrk was having a bit harder of a time. He found himself becoming more and more intrigued with the mysterious girl ever since he first laid eyes upon her at the opening assembly. In the classes he had with her, it became increasingly difficult to keep his eyes off of her. While this had no negative effect on his school work, it did have an adverse effect on his circle of friends.
Yylfordt would sometimes give Starrk some good natured ribbing over it, but he was rather concerned, especially considering Starrk's track record with relationships. Even though Grimmjow shared Yylfordt's concerns, he was more irritated with his friend than concerned.
"Dude, if you're not careful..." Grimmjow said.
"I know, I know," Starrk replied.
"Yeah well... just so you know. Anyways, why the hell haven't you introduced me to Nel, yet?"
"I... I guess I keep forgetting."
"Yeah, no shit, and I'm pretty sure I know why."
"Oh really now? And just what is your theory, Sherlock?"
"That's an easy one, it's that girl you're constantly staring at."
"Alright, alright, I get the point."
"I dunno man, I don't think you do, Starrk. Look, I'm worried that if you keep going on this way, something bad's gonna happen to you. The last thing I want is for you to get hurt again."
Starrk tried his hardest to not stare at the new girl, but he failed from time to time. Starrk didn't fully comprehend just how severe his problem was, at least until that Wednesday. It happened during Shunsuei Kyoraku's class while Kyoraku was taking one of his "powernaps". His excuse for the nap this time was that he needed to leave the class so that they could work on their essays on A Tale of Two Cities. It was then that the new girl's friends spotted him staring at their friend. Even though the trio argued and fought amongst themselves over nearly everything, they did agree on one thing and that was protecting their friend.
"HEY!" one of them shouted. "What the fuck is your problem? You bloody creep!"
Starrk looked at the girl who was standing before him, glaring down with a sharp look. She was wearing the standard school uniform, but instead of wearing a skirt, she wore a pair of dark gray pants and the sleeves of her white dress shirt were rolled up to her elbows.
"I'm sorry," Starrk said, rather confused.
"Don't you DARE give me that fucking bullshit. You've been staring at my best friend for over a goddamned week."
She leaned forward until her face was almost touching his. Starrk noticed that she had heterochromia. The right eye was an icy blue and her left eye was amber, but both eyes burned with rage. Starrk was fully awake by this time, but still didn't know how to react to this girl, let alone answer her queston.
"Well... I'm waiting," she said. "Are you going to apologize or are you just going to sit there like the drooling pervy fucktard you are?"
Starrk felt his face turn red at the girl's outburst. He didn't know what to say, and the girl leaning closer to him made him feel even more nervous.
"Get over yourself, Apacci," One of the other girls said. The girl who was approaching was dark-skinned with long wavy, dark hair. Her white dress shirt was unbuttoned almost halfway and her blazer was open, showing off a great deal of her impressive cleavage.
"Fuck off, Mila Rose," Apacci growled. "I'M Lady Harribel's best friend, not you!"
"Ugh... you're so pathetic," Mila Rose said, grinning. "Just keep telling yourself that, Apacci. I'm sure that Lady Harribel will take pity on you."
Apacci looked at Mila Rose with an almost murderous intent, Mila Rose looked at Apacci's expression and simply smirked at her, which only further infuriated the hot tempered girl. Then Mila Rose turned her gaze over towards Starrk, whose face had grown even redder. Her eyes narrowed and a dangerous gleam entered her eyes.
"As for you..." Mila Rose growled. "What the hell is your problem anyway? Are you another stalker who's trying to get into Lady Harribel's pants?"
Never in his life had Starrk felt so embarrassed, he wanted desparately to disappear. The blonde student looked over and only shook her head. She turned her focus on her essay, trying to drown out the shouting match her two friends were having.
"So help me GOD if you are another fucking perverted stalker," Apacci said, "I'LL RIP YOUR FUCKING NUTS OFF! Now, do you understand me, you little fuckhead?"
"Alright that's enough Apacci," Grimmjow said. "What the fuck crawled into your panties? My buddy ain't a fucking pervert."
"Oh is that so?" Mila Rose said, moving forward until she and Grimmjow were almost nose to nose. "Well then smartass, what the hell DO you call someone who's been staring at a girl for OVER a fucking week?"
"Butt the fuck out Mila Rose!" Apacci shouted. "I'm taking care of this!"
That was when the argument became a three-way shouting match between Grimmjow and the mysterious student's friends. The other students in the class were already staring at them, and Starrk felt even more embarrassed. All he wanted to do was sink through the floor, but the best he could do was sink lower into his seat.
"Um, if I may ask..." a much calmer voice said, "Why have you been staring at Lady Harribel for over a week?"
"Starrk looked up and saw the third girl standing over him. She was rather slender and had long flowing olive-green hair. She wore a faux silver and diamond feather-shaped barrette on the front right-side of her hair. Unlike Apacci and Mila Rose, her face said that she was truly curious and simply wanted an answer as opposed to killing him outright.
"I... uh... well, honestly... I don't really know," Starrk replied, his voice sounding weak. "I guess... I guess it's just something about her."
"Hmmmm, I see," the girl said. "You have a crush on her don't you? Well, I can't say that I blame you. She is very beautiful after all. Many men and even a few women lust after her like you wouldn't believe."
"I can understand that," Starrk said. He found that was regaining his composure, albeit slowly. It was reassuring that this girl, at least, understood what was going on. "I mean, she does have a beautiful body, but that's not the only reason, the only thing that captivates me about her."
"Oh? the girl said, her left eyebrow rose slightly. She was rather surprised by his answer, but she wanted to know more about Starrk's intentions. "Well then, what is is about her that you find so captivating?"
"Well, I would have to say... her eyes," Starrk said, blushing. "There's... there's just something about her gaze that captivates me.
"Hmmm, I see. You know, if you're really in love with her, then perhaps you should try to get to know her a little more. Does that help?"
"Uh... yeah... yeah, it does," Starrk said, smiling at her. "Thanks."
"No problem," the girl said, smiling cryptically and heading back to her seat next to her friend.
Starrk smiled. He thought that it was reassuring that at least one of them would take the time to find out about why he stared at the blonde student. Despite this peaceful resolution, the argument between Grimmjow, Mila Rose and Apacci raged on.
"HE'S A MOTHERFUCKING PERVERT!" Apacci roared.
"Stop being such a bitch, Apacci. I've known Starrk for years and he's NOTHING like Spoon Fucker over there!" Grimmjow then pointed to Nnoitora who was too busy looking at the newest issue of Best of Boobies Magazine that he smuggled into school.
"FUCK YOU, GRIMMJOW!" Apacci yelled. "He's been staring at Lady Harribel for more than a WEEK! As far as I'm concerned he IS a fucking pervert!"
The calm, sensible one, watching the debacle, began to think about everything Starrk told her and decided it was best to tell her friend about her admirer's true intentions. She thought that Starrk was sincere in his attentions, so should have at least a chance. Whether or not he would have a chance, however, would be up to her friend.
"Hey, Harribel?" she asked.
"Yes Sung-sun, is something the matter?" Harribel asked.
"Well, you may have noticed that young man over there," she said, pointing to Starrk.
"You mean the one that Mila Rose and Apacci are making all that noise over?"
"Indeed, that's the one."
"Well yeah I've noticed him. He's kinda cute, though a little odd. What about him?"
"Well, I managed to talk to him for a little bit, I think he really likes you. After all he hasn't taken his eyes off of you all week..."
As Sung-Sun continued talking, Harribel couldn't help but smile. She knew about Starrk looking at her long before the others did. She could have sworn she caught him looking at her during the assembly, but she hadn't been sure. It was until the third day of school that she was sure.
"I wouldn't worry too much about him," Harribel said, smilng to Sung-sun. "He seems to be pretty harmless."
"Do want to know what I think Jaggerjaques?" Apacci shouted. "I think he's WORSE than that walking Satellite Dish."
"Are you fucking KIDDING me?" Grimmjow shouted.
Mila Rose had quickly grown bored of the argument, deeming it no longer worth her time. She decided to return to her seat, shaking her head as Grimmjow and Apacci continued their yelling match.
"I wish Apacci would calm down already," Harribel said. "If that guy really was a pervert, then he would have already tried to make his move on me, and he would have failed miserably like the 'Spoon Cheerleader'."
Later at Lunch...
"Aw man bro, I can't believe they ganged up on you like that," Yylfordt said, taking a bite out of his sandwich.
The cafeteria was filled with students who were busy eating their lunches amd talking amongst themselves. Word about the incident in Kyoraku's class had spread among the students like wildfire. Yylfordt decided to sit with Grimmjow and Starrk so they could discuss the events that had transpired earlier. Of course, some nearby students were trying to eavesdrop on their conversation.
"No shit, that damned Apacci," Grimmjow said, "she ALWAYS does shit like this."
"I swear bro, that girl's a closet case if you know what I mean." Yylfordt said.
"Maybe, but at least the third girl in that group seemed to understand the situation," Starrk said.
"Woah, hold up... Are you saying that you actually got to talk to one of those Amazon wannabes?" Grimmjow asked.
"Well... yeah," Starrk replied. "She simply asked me why I've been staring at her friend, and I told her. She seemed rather surprised by my answer though," he added as an afterthought.
"Yeah, bro, I've been curious about that too. Why have been staring at that babe over there?" Yylfordt asked.
"Well, it's just something about her eyes that intrigue me. I don't know exactly what it is, but that's why I find myself staring at her."
Grimmjow let out a low chuckle at Starrk's answer. It wasn't due simply to the fact that Starrk was a romantic at heart, but because he thought that Starrk was hiding other reasons. He knew Starrk wasn't a pervert, but that didn't stop him from being a straight, physically healthy male of the species.
"Oh come on Starrk, you KNOW you were staring at her figure! You KNOW you want her bod!" Grimmjow said, laughing.
"Eh, you caught me, Grimm," Starrk said, a slight smile forming on his face. "However they were quick glances and it's not her body I'm captivated with."
Grimmjow was about to open his mouth to offer a rebuttal to Starrk's claim, but before he could, Nelliel walked over to them. Grimmjow's mouth simply hung open and he lost his train of thought. She was carrying her lunch, putting it onto their table and sitting next to Starrk.
"Hey Starrk," she said cheerfully. "I heard about the verbal bashing that you got this morning. I'm so sorry that happened to you."
"Hey Nel," Starrk replied, "Don't worry about it, it's over and done with. It's really no big deal," he said in his usual carefree manner.
"I thought it'd still bother you." Nel said.
"Eh, it's all water under the bridge now," Starrk said.
"Well that's good, so, what were you guys talking about?" Nel asked.
Starrk knew that she was obviously curious about the current topic at hand. However, he had a suspicion that she was also curious about what his "verbal bashing" was over. Even though they had been good friends since kindergarten, he wasn't sure he wanted her to know.
Being aware of what kind of guy Grimmjow was, he was waiting for him to say something just to embarass him. For once, however, Grimmjow was stunned into silence, having slipped into the same euphoric trance that Starrk entered whenever he saw Harribel. Starrk raised his eyebrow, watching his friend and wondering what was going through Grimmjow's mind at the moment. He knew Grimmjow had a thing for Nel, but he wasn't going to tell Nel that.
Yylfordt, on the other hand, was filling in Nel on all the juicy details of what they were talking about, mainly Starrk's "verbal bashing". As she listened, she smiled and looked over at Starrk. Starrk felt his face becoming red again.
"Oooooooooooooooooh!" Nel exclaimed. "So li'l Starrkey here has a li'l crush eh?" It was clear that Nel's joy and excitement was growing.
"Oh yeah, bro," Yylfordt added, "He's got it bad, REAL bad."
"Well, come on, Starrkey, who's the lucky lady?" Nel asked, growing more and more excited by every passing minute, "I wanna know all about it!"
Starrk knew that whenever Nel got excited about something, her enthusiasm levels could approach truly frightening levels. He could try to withhold information from her, but Nel always had a way about finding things out with a speed proportionate to her level of interest. Starrk's love live, it would seem, was of the paramount interest to her.
"She's the girl over there," Starrk responded as he pointed towards the table where Harribel and her friends were eating lunch.
"Oooooooh so you've got a little thing for Tia Harribel eh?" Nel asked.
Starrk blushed and nodded his head, then looked at her, shocked that she knew the girl's name. He watched as a very wide grin appear across her face. Starrk also noticed that the certain, mischieveous gleam Nel got whenever an idea pops into her head made an appearance. The last time that look appeared on Nel's face, she was coming up with the idea of dressing Nnoitora in the cheerleader's uniform and tying him to the flagpole.
"So," Nel said. "What? Are you surprised that I know Tia?"
"Well, yeah... I mean, she's a new student and all... and well... I've never seen the two of you hang out before." Starrk said.
"Oh Starrkey, come now, you shouldn't be surprised," Nel said, still smiling. "After all, I've known Tia for a few months now. I met her when she moved here around the end of school last year. In fact, I was one of the first friends she made, aside from Apacci, Mila Rose and Sung-Sun."
Starrk was surprised by the sudden bit of information. Upon further reflection, however, he didn't find it to hard to believe. As long as he had known her, Nelliel Tu Odelschvank was the type of person who could make friends with pratically anyone, so long as they weren't anything like Nnoitra.
"You know, if you want, I could introduce you to her" Nel said.
Even though Nel had that sweet innocent smile that threw many people off guard, Starrk knew something was up when he saw that mischevious look in her eyes. Whether he wanted her to or not, she was going to introduce him. All Starrk could do was nod his head in agreement. His face grew even redder as Nel's grin widened even more as she got up and started walking over to Harribel's table. As soon as she left the table, Grimmjow was able to regain his composure and then noticed the look on Starrk's face.
"Dude, she's gonna introduce you to her, you'd better not fuck this up." he said.
"That's easy for you to say," Starrk muttered, "You're not the one Nel's playing 'matchmaker' for
"Seriously man, this might be good for ya." Grimmjow continued, trying to rally some confidence in his friend.
"Hey Tia," Nel shouted in her usual cheery tone.
"Oh, hey, Nel, how have you been?" Harribel asked.
"Oh, I'm doing great," Nel replied.
"I imagine so. Hey, I saw what you did to that creeper. Great job," Harribel said, smiling.
"Aw, it's no biggie. Nnoitra had it coming and I simply delivered. Anyways, I wanted to introduce you to a very dear friend of mine," Nel explained as she pointed at Starrk.
Apacci looked at Starrk and simply grunted something unintellagable under her breath. Mila Rose on the other hand, tried to supress a giggle after she saw how red Starrk's face was, something she didn't notice when she and Apacci were shouting at him. Mila Rose was the type of girl who thought that guys who blushed a lot were kinda "cute". Sung-Sun merely sighed and remained silent, although she did have a small smile on her face.
"Oh, you mean him? He's the guy who's been looking at me for a little over a week now." Harribel replied.
"See how much he's blushing?" Nel inquired, trying her best not to giggle.
"Yeah," Harribel added, sounding a little nervous. "He does that whenever he looks at me. I thought it was kinda cute at first, but now..."
"Now now, he's not what you think. Starrk's just a tad shy, he's nothing like Private Pervo over there," Nel replied as she gestured at Nnoitra who was sitting with Tesla.
"Well... I'm not sure," Harribel said.
"Don't worry, if that creep tries anything, we'll kick his ass," Appacci added.
Harribel was reluctant at first, but then she recalled what Sung-Sun told her in class. She decided that it might be interesting at least, to talk to her admirer. Plus, she wished to know what he was staring at her. She never got a straight answer from Sung-Sun regarding this matter.
"Oh... alright," Harribel replied as she got out of her seat.
"Oh no... oh crap..." Starrk muttered when he spotted Nel and Harribel walking towards them.
"Come on, dude, get a hold of yourself. She's coming this way," Grimmjow whispered. "You don't want to look like a dumbass."
"Again... that's easy for you to say," Starrk muttered.
"Hey Starrk, this is Tia Harribel," Nel said, a little too gleefully. "Tia, this is Starrk. He and I have been good friends since kindergarten, so I can vouch for him."
"He.. he... hello," Starrk said.
"Um, hello," Harribel replied, glancing at Nel who simply nodded at her. "I've noticed that you've been staring at me for sometime. While I'm flattered that someone like you would notice me like that, I'm a little confused. Why would you spend so much time looking at me?"
"Well, uh.. um..," Starrk replied, trying to regain his composure. "It's... it's just... there's something about you that... that just enchants me."
Harribel looked closer at him. Despite her physical beauty, she was far from lacking in brains. She had heard more than her fair share of pickup lines back at her previous school and here at Hueco Mundo High, especially from the likes of Nnoitra. However before Starrk could continue the conversation, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch.
"Come on, bro, we have to get to class," Yylfordt stated, placing a hand on Starrk's shoulder.
"Oh... uh... alright," Starrk replied. "I... I guess I'll see you in class, Harribel."
Before Harribel could respond, Starrk grabbed his bag and rushed out. Grimmjow rolled his eyes and grabbed his own bag before jogging after him. She looked over at Nel who simply shrugged.
"See, I told you he was a bit shy," Nel stated.
"Yeah, you weren't kidding about that," Harribel replied.
"Oh well, at least you have Science with him, right?"
"Yeah... I guess I can ask him about it then."
"I just remembered, isn't today the day when Mr. Urahara assigns lab partners?"
"I think so... why?"
"Well, you might get lucky and Mr. Urahara will pair you up with him. Well, I better get going myself. I don't want to be late for class."
"Ok... sure," Harribel said.
Meanwhile with Grimmjow...
"Gah... Damn it, Starrk, way to blow it man!" Grimmjow muttered under his breath.
While Starrk was heading to Urahara's Science class, Grimmjow was heading to Ukitake's History class. Grimmjow couldn't believe that Starrk choked and lost his composure. He only wanted the best for his friend, but he felt that Starrk had missed an excellent opportunity. As such, Grimmjow was in a rather foul mood, and it was only going to get worse as he saw an all too familiar student at their locker.
"Well, well, well," Grimmjow said. "If it isn't the Emperor of the Bats, how's it going your majesty?"
"Stifle yourself, Grimm-Kitty," Ulquiorra replied in his usual monotone voice. "I have far more important things to do than focus my time on trash like you."
"Kiss my ass, Emo!" Grimmjow snapped. "Or perhaps you'd like to blow me."
"How vulgar..." Ulquiorra replied.
"Stop being such an arrogant li'l rich bitch Zombie Boy. Oh... that's right... you've always been a li'l rich bitch with no personality, and you'll always be such."
"And you will always be a pathetic little dirt-eating bumpkin, living in a shack. Now then, you will excuse me, Sir Blueberry Muffin, I must get to class."
This little exchange only infuriated Grimmjow even more. As Ulquiorra made his way to Urahara's class, Grimmjow headed to Ukitake's class. He was so irritated by Starrk blowing his chance and now Ulquiorra's insults that he failed to pay any attention to his surroundings.
"That motherfucking, walking, little pile of bat shit. Who the hell does he think he is? He thinks he's better than the rest of us... one of these days... I'll show him..." Grimmjow muttered.
Grimmjow fumed his way down the hall. He was mumbling about all of the things he wanted to do to Ulquiorra and failed to see the girl in front of him. They collided and both Grimmjow and the girl were knocked to the floor. The girl's books came flying out of her hands and crashed onto the floor, a few of them striking Grimmjow on the head. Grimmjow got up, rubbing his head and having finally had enough, wanted to snap. He opened his mouth to shout, but when he saw that the girl he ran into was Nelliel, he remained silent.
"Ow... that hurt," Nel said, looking up at Grimmjow.
"Oh... uh... I'm... are you alright? You know, you should watch where you're going."
"Ha! You're a fine one to talk. You're the one who ran into me."
"Oh... I'm... I'm sorry," Grimmjow said and helped Nel up off the floor. He then proceeded to pick up her books. "So... anyways... I never caught your name."
"That means that you weren't listening when I was talking with Starrk. Well... I certainly hope you're listening now. My name is Nelliel Tu Odelschvank, but you can just call me 'Nel' for short, okay?"
Nel held out her hand to Grimmjow and he took her hand and shook it.
"I'm... uh... my name's Sir Blueberry Muffin... SHIT!"
Grimmjow could not believe he had introduced himself to Nel with one of Ulquiorra's ridiculous nicknames for him. He felt a rather odd combination of confusion and embarrassment. Nel, however, was unable to control her giggling. She was amused at Grimmjow's embarrassment, which only further embarrassed the normally confident Grimmjow.
"Surely that's not your actual name," Nel replied, still giggling.
"It's not, that's just something Batman calls me," Grimmjow replied.
"Oh, I see, so you know the Caped Crusader?"
"Not that Batman, I meant Ulquiorra."
"Oh, that's too bad, I would have liked to meet the Dark Knight sometime. So... what's your real name?"
"It's Grimmjow, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, but my friends call me 'Grimm' sometimes."
"Well... Grimm... I'm heading for Mr. Ukitake's History class and I'm kinda running a wee bit late."
"Oh man, funny you should mention that I've got the same class next. Mind if I walk with you?"
"Sure, I don't mind at all. You seem kinda a nice in a rough and off-beat kinda way. Plus, you're one of Starrkey's buddies, and a friend of Starrk's is a friend of mine."
Grimmjow wasn't sure how to respond. However, the smile on Nel's face told him that he probably struck something.
"Well... we'd better get going," Nel said. "We don't wanna be late."
"Yeah, and we better hope like hell we don't run into Rudobon and his squad of 'Exequias'." Grimmjow replied. With that, the two walked side by side towards Ukitake's History class.
Elsewhere with Starrk...
"Alright class, now that we've gotten into the swing of things, I think it's time that I announce your assigned lab partners," Mr. Urahara announced. "Now, bear in mind that you will have the same lab partner for the entirety of the school year."
Hearing this announcement cause quite a bit of excitement. Starrk looked at Harribel, hoping that he would be assigned with her. The first pair that was formed was Avirama and Findor. The duo gave each other high fives.
"LET'S DO THIS!" Avirama cried out. "I CAN DO THIS! I CAN DO THIS! I CAN DO THIS!"
"EXACTA!" Findor shouted out.
"Alright, settle down you two," Urahara replied, waving his fan at them. "Alright, the next pair will be Ulquiorra and Sung-Sun."
Ulquiorra was surprised to find himself paired with one of Harribel's friends, but he simply shrugged it off. Sung-Sun however was pleasantly surprised and blushed slightly. Very few knew that she had a small crush on the pale complected student since middle school, but knowing his standing in life and the rumor that he already had a significant other, she never tried to pursue him. She still enjoyed the fact that he was her lab partner though. With Ulquiorra she could at least get her assignments completed with little to no distractions.
"Alright, moving right along, Mila Rose, you'll be partnered with Ggio."
"WHAT?!" The two shouted simultainiously.
"Now, now," Urahara replied, waving his fan at them. "I'm well aware of how much you like to argue. This might actually be a good thing for you. You never know, you might actually get along."
"Pfft, yeah, right." Ggio snarled.
"No way that's gonna happen," Mila Rose grunted.
"Anyways," Urahara announced. "Shawlong, you'll be paired with Yylfordt."
"Right on bro," Yylfordt said, attempting to give Shawlong a high five.
"Do not call me 'bro'," Shawlong said, clearly not pleased.
"Continuing forward, our next pair will be Nakeem and Di Roy."
When Urahara announced that the two school idiots would be working together in lab, the other students began to feel really uneasy. Ulquiorra simply stared at the apparently deranged teacher and began eyeing the exits, preparing for the eventual explosion/mutation. Urahara continued to list the pairs and he paused at the final two, thinking and then nodding to himself.
"Alright, our next pairing will be Nirgge and Edorad. That brings us to our final duo: Starrk and Harribel," he stated, with a slight grin on his face.
Starrk was excited about being paired with Harribel, but he was also rather nervous. On one hand, it was a great opportunity for him to learn more about her, but on the other hand, it would give her friends plenty of reasons to yell at him and threaten him. He saw Yylfordt grinning at him and giving a thumbs-up while Mila Rose glowered at him.
Harribel looked at Starrk. She had to admit that from what she saw of him, he was one of the calmer students that attended Hueco Mundo High. For some reason, though, he was obviously shy around her. Harribel thought that this would provide the perfect opportunity to find out why. All that Sung-Sun told her was that she thought Starrk liked her, but she wanted to know why, which meant spending this time to learn more about her lab partner.
"Alright, now that we got that taken care of... are there any questions?" Urahara asked.
"Yes," Ulquiorra replied. "Why... in the name of all that is holy... did you put... THOSE TWO TOGETHER?!"
Ulquiorra pointed to Di Roy and Nakeem, who were laughing continuously.
"Huh huh huh, we get to blow things up, huh huh huh," Nakeem said inbetween bouts of laughter.
"And burn stuff! Heh heh heh FIRE! FIRE! FIRE! heh heh" Di Roy shouted.
"Oh... I'm just curious to see how those two will fare. That's all," Urahara replied.
"You are aware that if they happen to burn down the school, you will be held responsible, right?" Ulquiorra inquired.
"EXACTA!" Findor cried out.
"Now, now, why would a handsome, sexy and young Science teacher like me be held responsible for a small accident?" Urahara asked in response.
"EXACTA!" Findor shouted again.
Starrk felt uneasy about the sly and mischievous smile on Urahara's face. From what he heard from his Uncle Shun, Kisuke Urahara was not like most teachers when it came to dealing with students like Nakeem and Di Roy. While other teachers would make sure that if there was even the slightest chance of danger, they would make sure the two were separated or not even participate. Urahara, on the other hand, preferred to have them learn the hard way: if they didn't listen, then they would have to deal with the consequences. However, Starrk had a suspicion that Urahara did it for his own rather twisted sense of amusement.
While Ulquiorra continued to question Urahara's sanity, Harribel observed her other prospects for lab partners. She quickly found that Starrk really was the best option. He would probably be more fun to work with than the over-calculating Ulquiorra, nor would he try anything funny on her like Ggio would. She didn't even want to consider a thought about being paired with either Di Roy or Nakeem.
"Your concerns are much appreciated, Mr. Schiffer," Urahara stated. "But, I think everything will be fine. Anyways, I would like you to get with your lab partners. The first lab exercise you'll be doing together is on pages 5 to 8 in your lab books. Alright, you will have the remainder of the class to work on your assignment."
When Urahara finished speaking, the students got up from their seats to meet with their lab partners. Everyone made sure to get a table as far away from Di Roy and Nakeem as they could.
"So... um," Starrk spoke, nervously as he walked to Harribel's table. "Looks like we're lab partners."
"Yeah," Harribel replied. "Although, before we begin our assignment, let's finish our little conversation."
"What conversation?"
"The one we had at lunch. You told me that you found something enchanting about me. What I would like to know is: what is it about me that you find so captivating?"
"Oh... that, well... I..." Starrk muttered, blushing. He thought about it for a moment and then he found the courage to answer her. "It's your eyes. You have the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen, and there's something about them that I find enthralling."
Harribel was surprised at his response. She had never met a guy who told her that her eyes were the reason for their attentions. She had expected Starrk to be like so many other men she encountered before and only be interested in her body or other stereotypical male observations. Sometmes guys would tell her that they were "attracted to her mind" but in reality they simply wanted her for her body. She looked at Starrk, searching for any of the tell-tale signs that her mother told her to watch out for. However, she didn't see any of those signs.
"You're captivated by my eyes? Why would you say that?"
"Well... because, your eyes exude an air of serenity. When I look into your eyes, I see more than a young woman who is physically beautiful and strong, but someone who is intelligent and who cares for others above herself."
Harribel felt a surge of heat across her face. She just couldn't believe what she was hearing. This was so unlike her previous experiences with men that she was taken back. If not for the sincerity conveyed in his words, Starrk's comments would seem to be the same empty praise she had encountered so many times before.
She couldn't help but smile a little bit. This was the first time she had encountered someone who seemed to adore her for her heart and mind, and not just for her physical appearance. For the first time in a long time, she felt comfortable around a guy. This was a massive leap forward for her, especially since she had previously been in a relationship that was absolutely hellish. Little did she know that Starrk, too, had a previous relationship that was very toxic. As the class continued, the two became more comfortable around each other, the initial awkwardness dissipating quickly.
Sung-Sun looked over at Harribel and Starrk and smiled. She wanted to run over to Harribel and Starrk and hug them both. Even though she didn't know Starrk that well, she thought, overall, that he was a good man. She felt that Harribel deserved a man like him, and so chose to keep many details about him to herself. Despite Harribel wanting her to explain things in more detail, Sung-Sun decided not to. She wanted Harribel to get to know Starrk by any means necessary at this point.
"They look so adorable together," Sung-Sun muttered.
"Hmmm... what are you mumbling about?", Ulquiorra muttered quietly.
"Oh... ummm," Sung-Sun replied, slightly blushing, "I was just saying that Lady Harribel and Starrk look like they're getting along."
"Hmmm, so it would seem. How... interesting... Now then, let us proceed to step 14 and be sure to take notes on the outcome."
"Indeed," Sung-Sun replied. "That way we can reach our overall conclusions for the experiment."
"Agreed," Ulquiorra said as he added the last group of chemicals. The two watched as the chemical reaction took place and took very detailed notes on their observation.
Mila Rose stopped arguing with Ggio over what to do at step seven in the lab exercise long enough to observe Harribel and Starrk. She could not understand how Harribel could become so comfortable around him so quickly. She would have to explain things to Apacci, because if Sung-Sun's expression was anything to go by, she wouldn't be of any help. The mere thought of going to Apacci to help her with anything made her sick to her stomach. However, her pride and her rivalry with Apacci took back seat to protecting their friend.
At their corner table, Di Roy and Nakeem decided that they wanted to do their own little "experiment". They picked up random chemicals and metals to see what "nifty colors" they could make. When Nirgge and Edorad saw what was going on, they immediately backed away, and it was good they did. Shortly after their "experiment" began, they succeeded in blowing up most of their table.
"Woah!" Nakeem exclaimed, "That was cool!"
"Heh heh heh! FIRE! FIRE! FIRE! HEH! HEH! Di Roy shrieked in delight.
"OH, SO THAT'S HOW YOU WANNA PLAY?" Avirama shouted. "WE'RE GONNA BEAT YA! WE'RE GONNA BEAT YA! YOU CALL THAT AN EXPLOSION? THAT AIN'T CRAP! C'MON FINDOR, LET'S SHOW THESE TWO GOONS WHAT WE'RE MADE OF!"
EXACTA!" Findor shouted in agreement.
"SHIT!" Mila Rose and Ggio shrieked simultainously and took cover under their table as another explosion occured, this time from Findor and Avirama's table.
"YEAH! TAKE THAT BEAVIS AND BUTT-HEAD! WE BEAT YA!" Avirama shouted.
"EXACTA!"
"THAT TEARS IT! I'M GONNA KILL YOU BOTH!" Ggio yelled.
"NOT BEFORE I DO!" Mila Rose shouted.
Urahara reached under his desk and brought out his fire extinguisher. His grin was even wider than it was before. Di Roy and Nakeem were laughing even harder and Avirama proceeded to perform his "ritual", which consisted of nothing more than jumping and shouting.
"Those fools are trying to kill us all..." Shawlong said.
Yylfordt didn't bother paying any attention to what Shawlong said. He was looking over at Harribel and Starrk who were watching the chaos that unfolded as a result of the actions of the two teams of lab partners. He smiled when he saw that the tips of their fingers were touching.
"Way to go, bro," he whispered to himself. "It's about time."
Meanwhile with Grimmjow...
"Alright, class," Ukitake announced. "Over the year, you will be assigned class exercises that will require another pair of hands. I have already made up the list of 'study buddies' and who the pairs will be for the year."
Grimmjow was intrigued by this idea of Ukitake's, for he was sitting next to Nel. Ever since the "Spoon Cheerleader" incident, he had begun to develop feelings for her. However, he wasn't quite sure what exactly these feelings were. All he knew was that there was something special about her. Grimmjow quickly found himself wishing that he would be paired up with Nel.
"Alright, let's see. The first pair of 'study buddies is Tesla with Apacci."
Tesla looked up in shock and horror, then he glanced over at Apacci. Apacci was glaring at him.
"If you even think about touching me... I'll fucking kill you," she stated, still giving Tesla a death glare.
"This should be very interesting," Nel whispered.
"Yeah, no shit," Grimmjow replied. "I wonder what will come first? Apacci killing Tesla or Tesla killing himself since he can't be with Spoonhead."
"Alright, our next pairing is Szayel Aporro and Charles Cuuhlhourne..."
"AHEM! That's Charlotte Cuuhlhourne, Mr. Ukitake."
"Oh, sorry, I meant Szayel Aporro Grantz and Charlotte Cuuhlhourne," Ukitake replied as he corrected his slight error. He double checked to make sure the roster said "Charlotte Cuuhlhourne."
"Much better," Cuuhlhourne replied as he looked at Szayel Aporro. "Oh GOD, I have to be paired up with THAT philistine? He has no sense of beauty what so ever!"
Szayel Aporro, however, was too busy working on another one of his inventions to even notice that he was paired with Cuuhlhourne. Ukitake simply smiled at them and read the next pairing: Grimmjow and Nelliel. Grimmjow was surprised, pleasantly surprised of course. This would give him the opportunity to spend more time with her.
"Well, Grimm," Nel said nudging him in the shoulder with her elbow, "looks like you and I are gonna be spending a lot more time with each other. Think you can handle it?"
"Oh yeah, I know I can handle it," Grimmjow replied, smiling. Grimmjow was the kind of guy who didn't mind being with a strong woman. Even if it meant taking a few playful jabs or a few knocks on the head. Ukitake finished reading off the pairings with the final pair being Yammy and Poww.
"Hmmm... you know... I wonder how Szayel Aporro will react when finds out his parter is Cuuhlhourne," Nel said, putting her right forefinger under her chin and glancing up at the ceiling.
"Oh God..." Grimmjow replied, laughing, "The look on his face will be PRICELESS! I can hear him now: 'Dear GOD WHY? Why do I have to be with THAT monstrosity? He's nothing more than an over grown clown with no sense of fashion at all!,'" Grimmjow added, performing a rather good impression of Szayel Aporro.
Nel couldn't control herself at that point and she ended up going into a laughing fit. If there was one thing Nel enjoyed, it was a good laugh. After all that was one of the reasons she was friends with Starrk and his younger sister Lilynette. Of course Grimmjow enjoyed a good joke as well, but it usually came at the expense of Szayel Aporro or Ulquiorra.
Though the chosen pair of Szyael Aporro and Cuuhlhourne was a potential nightmare, Nnoitra perhaps had the worst luck. He was assigned to a fairly effeminate looking and very flamboyant, sadistic student known as Luppi Antenor. Unfortunately, the "Spoon Wonder" failed to realize that Luppi was in fact a male.
"Heh, heh, hey there sweet cheeks," Nnoitra said, a smirk clearly visible on his face. "What do you say that we get to know each other a little better? How about you and me get together and have a real wild time tonight?"
Luppi looked at Nnoitra as the lanky student made his proposition. He initially wanted to tell him that he was actually a guy, but then he came up with rather nasty idea. Luppi had gained a reputation for his mean streak and got a sick kick out of making people miserable. Some even said that he actually got a sexual thrill out of it. He viewed of Nnoitra's advances as a perfect opportunity to have some real fun.
"Oh my..." Luppi replied, giving the "Hooded Horror" a rather seductive smirk in return. "I would simply LOVE to go out with you tonight, Nnoitra. You're just so tall, dark, and sexy. I find you TOTALLY irresistable."
"Aw yeah... someone's gettin' lucky tonight!" Nnoitra shouted as he made pelvic thrusting motions, pumping his fist in the air at the same time.
Grimmjow laughed like a hyena at the exchange taking place between Nnoitra and Luppi. Nel glanced at him, confused and then over towards Nnoitra and Luppi.
"Grimm, why are you laughing? Aren't you worried for that poor girl?" Nel asked. "Knowing Nnoitra, she might get hurt or worse, raped."
"Nah, I wouldn't worry to much about Luppi. I'd worry more about Nnoitra's sanity after tonight." Grimmjow replied, trying his best to control his laughter.
"What are you talking about?" Nel asked, still confused.
"Well... you see..." Grimmjow replied, and then burst out into more laughter. "Luppi... Luppi's not really a girl, he's actually a dude. Nobody... hahahahaha... nobody even bothered to tell Baron Overbite over there that critical piece of information."
Nel looked at Grimmjow, her eyes wide and then she joined him in a fit of wild laughter. She knew all too well just how much of a pervert Nnoitra was. Nel just couldn't hold in the hysterics thinking about the look on Nnoitra's face when he would eventually learn that Luppi was in fact male.
Elsewhere in the classroom, Szyael Aporro was still tinkering around with his newest invention.
"AT LAST, MY LATEST WORK IS COMPLETED!" Szayel Aporro shouted. "And this time... this time I shall not be made to look like a laughing stock."
He beheld the pair of goggles in his hand that he labeled as "The Pleasant Sight Goggles" and then put them on. They were not only a perfect fit, but they also seemed to actually work. The "Pleasant Sight Goggles" had the ability to make everything the wearer saw fit his or her aesthetic tastes. Unfortunately, it worked too well, for it also affected the other senses as well. It caused the wearer to smell what they thought were pleasant smells and it caused them to hear what they thought were pleasent sounds.
Soon Szayel Aporro was face to face with the most beautiful, stunning girl his eyes had ever beheld. The girl smelled of his mother's perfume and bore long, full purple hair which shined in the light. He felt his heart skip a beat just being in her presence.
"Oh, Szayel," the girl said in a rather musical tone, "We're supposed to be lab partners."
"Oh, but of course," Szayel replied, "It would be a pleasure to work with such a beautiful young lady such as yourself."
Szayel then took the "girl's" hand and kissed it. Just as his lips touched the back of his partner's hand, Yammy looked towards him, eyes widening in horror as he saw what Szayel was doing.
"GOOD GOD MAN!" Yammy shouted in a frightened tone. "SZAYEL, WHAT ARE YOU DOING? TAKE OFF THE GOGGLES!"
Szayel Aporro was confused by Yammy's request, but he simply shrugged it off. He thought of it as nothing more than an attempt at a pratical joke by a "simpleton". However when Poww walked past, he simply grunted and took the goggles off of Szayel Aporro. The boy genius blinked and looked around. He saw that the beautiful girl was gone, and in her place stood Cuuhlhourne smirking at him.
"WHAT TRICKERY IS THIS?" Szayel Aporro shouted, clearly infuriated. "WHERE'S MEIN QUEEN BUTTERFLY?"
"Oh honey, I'm afraid that I'M your 'Queen Butterfly', my dorky little friend," Cuuhlhourne replied, winking and blowing a kiss to Szayel Aporro.
The entire class erupted in laughter at the ridiculous scene taking place. Ukitake tried to calm everyone down but ended up having another coughing fit and had to step out of the room.
"GYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Your invention might have actually worked, but you're still a failure Nerd Boy," Nnoitra bellowed, laughing like a lunatic. What he didn't realize however that he would be in for his own little "rude awakening" at the hands of Luppi.
When Ukitake returned, he was able to get the class to settle down. However, Szayel Apporo was still angered at Cuuhlhourne's "deception" and still hadn't calmed down. Mr. Ukitake had to enlist the aid of Yammy and Poww to finally settle down the agitated boy genius.
"Hey man, I tried to tell ya." Yammy said, restraining the ranting Szayel. "At least your gizmo works."
"Hmmmm..." Szayel Aporro thought, "This is true, the Pleasant Sight Goggles DO indeed function properly..."
After that little thought, Szayel Aporro finally settled down and Ukitake could proceed with his class. Before long the bell rang once more, signaling the end of class. Ukitake gave out the class assignment before the students left for their next class.
"Now, now," Ukitake said as he heard some collective groaning from the students. "I don't like giving out homework either, but I have to do my job. Look at the bright side, this will be a great way for you all to get to know your 'study buddies'."
"What the hell's up with you, Blue Balls?" Nnoitra shouted, seeing a grin appear on Grimmjow's face. "The fuck you smiling about? I thought you of all people hated homework."
"First off, you're a fine one to talk about blue balls, Piano Mouth, second, you'd be smiling too if you were paired up with a hottie like Nelliel Tu Odelschvank."
"Listen up you fucking pussy," Nnoitra replied, sounding angry. "I saw that bitch first, so if you know what's good for you, you keep away, or else I'll make you pay. She's gonna be one of my sluts."
Unfortunately for Nnoitra, Nel was close enough to hear him. Even though she usually had a gentle nature and was easily able to take a joke and good-natured ribbings, she had her limits, especially when it came to people like Nnoitra. She walked up to them and they glanced over at her.
"Excuse me, Nnoitra," she stated plainly, and Grimmjow immediately noticed that her usual cheery tone had been replaced with one that was far more serious. "I was curious, WHAT exactly did you call me?"
"You heard me, BITCH!" Nnoitra replied. "Whether you like it or not, you're gonna be one of my little pets."
Grimmjow's rage grew at each word coming from Nnoitra's mouth. Hearing Nnoitra mock and insult a girl with whom he had his own sights on was more than the self proclaimed "Punk" could take. He was about to beat the stuffing out of the tall and lanky student. However, before he could make a move, Nel struck. She kicked Nnoitra in the groin and then followed up with a headbutt that winded the Stunned Spoon. As he fell to his knees, Nel punched him in the nose with enough force to break it. Nnoitra cluched his nose with one hand but blood could be seen tricking through his fingers.
"YOU FUCKING BITCH!" Nnoitra shrieked with rage. "TESLA!"
Grimmjow, remembering Nnoitra's toady, turned around, preparing to hold the guy back if necessarry. However, he didn't need to worry about him, for he saw that Yammy and Apacci were restraining the struggling student.
"Please, let me go. I have to help Master Nnoitra." Tesla said.
"Oh no you don't... I heard what he called Nel. Nobody and I damn well mean NOBODY makes fun of a friend of Lady Harribel and gets away with it," Apacci replied.
"Uh... yeah... sure whatever," Yammy added. "Hey Grimmjow, what should I do with him?"
"Just keep holding him back, Yammy," Grimmjow said and turned back to face Nel and Nnoitra.
Nnoitra got up to retaliate, and Grimmjow was preparing to jump in, but it wasn't necessarry. Nel had things well under control, she leapt into the air and kicked Nnoitra in the same spot she had headbutted him. When she landed she grabbed hold of him by his nipples and planted one foot firmly on his groin. Nnoitra's face contorted into pain. Seeing his master in such despair and pain was too much for the struggling Tesla to take. His struggle was in vain, however, for Yammy and Apacci kept a tight grip on him.
"Listen to me," Apacci whispered into Tesla's ear. "You didn't do anything wrong, that's why I'm not gonna beat the shit out of you. However, if you don't stop struggling, I'll make damn sure you're in a wheelchair for a month or more. Got it?"
Tesla couldn't say anything and only nodded his head. Apacci felt a slight twinge of pity for the poor guy, but it was his own fault for associating with someone like Nnoitra.
"Now then, Nnoitra, if you'll be a good little boy and apologize, then I'll let go," Nel said. Her face, once again, had that mischievous grin and her eyes suddenly flashed.
"FUCK YOU!" Nnoitra shouted out in pain.
"Oooh, sorry, but that's not an apology," Nel replied.
She then tightened her grip on Nnoitra's nipples and began to turn her wrist, twisting them. Grimmjow simply stood still and watched as the spectacle unfolded. As he watched Nelliel make Nnoitra squirm, he found himself falling even harder for her.
"Come on, Nnoitra, say 'uncle'. Say 'uncle' and apologize and I'll..." she stated, squeezing his nipples tighter and twisting them even harder, "...let you go."
"ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT ALREADY! UNCLE! UNCLE! I GIVE!" Nnoitra shouted, having reached his limit. "Now let go."
"I'm still waiting on that apology," Nel added, still twisting his nipples and putting more pressure on the foot currently squishing Nnoitra's groin.
"Okay... okay... I... I'm sorry," Nnoitra gasped in pain.
"What are you sorry for?"
"I'm sorry I called you a 'Bitch' and a 'Slut'. Now... now please... let go."
"Well... I DID say that I would let you go," Nel replied and released her grip on Nnoitra and removed her foot from his groin.
Nnoitra limped away from her, looking back in fear that Nel might attack him again. However she just stood there as Nnoitra ran or rather attempted to run down the hall.
"Sorry about that, Grimm," Nel said.
"Huh? What?" Grimmjow replied, still in a state of euphoric trance.
"MASTER NNOITRA!" Tesla screamed.
"Oh..." Grimmjow replied, snapping out of his trance. "I forgot about that guy. Hey, Yammy, Apacci, I think it's safe to let him go now, he's harmless."
Yammy and Apacci released the struggling student who rushed down the hall in pursuit of his "Master". Nel followed Tesla's path and looked genuinely sorry for the mild mannered student. Grimmjow had to admit that he too felt pity for Tesla.
"Well... anyways, I'm sorry about that Grimm. It's just Nnoitra really irritates me."
"Eh... don't worry about it. I'd have taken care of that assclown easily," Grimmjow replied boldly. "Though, I have to admit, it was hot watching you totally humiliate him like that."
Nel giggled after hearing him say that and Grimmjow couldn't help but noticed that she was blushing a little. Nelliel was not a violent person by nature and would never use violence as a method to get her way. However, if someone threatend her or one of her friends, then she was more than willing to get rough.
This was the first time that Grimmjow had seen this side of Nelliel, but it was old news to Starrk. Later that day, when Grimmjow told Starrk about Nelliel's surprising fighting prowess, Starrk would tell him that he was wise not to get involved.
Starrk chuckled at the memories. "Whenever she gets that look on her face, it's best to keep your distance. Otherwise you might end up the recipient of 'Friendly Fire' by pure accident of course." After Starrk said that, Grimmjow was glad Starrk told him to stay put and not go out into the hall that first day.
"Well... I'd better get going," Nel said. "I don't want to be late for another class. Plus, I REALLY need to wash my hands before they have to be amputated. I'll see you later," She smiled at winked at him before making a dash towards the nearest bathroom.
"Sure thing," Grimmjow said as she went to go disinfect herself from the taint of the Spoon.
"Man..." Grimmjow thought to himself as he started making his way towards his next class, "I hate it when she leaves... but DAMN do I love the way she walks."
Back with Starrk and Harribel...
Once Urahara's Science class was over, Starrk and Harribel decided to walk together as they traveled to their next and final class for the day.
"I wonder what that strange noise was about?" Harribel asked, curious about the event that transpired earlier.
"What noise?" Starrk replied.
"That strange screaming earlier." Harribel replied.
"Oh... That..." Starrk added, "I've no idea, but I have a strange feeling that Nnoitra guy is involved somehow."
"Oh dear," Harribel added, concerned for any female unfortunate enough to cross Nnoitra's path. "I hope he hasn't been causing some poor young girl any problems."
"Eh, I wouldn't worry about it." Starrk replied, doing his best to reassure Harribel.
Harribel, noticing Starrk beginning to nod off a little, lightly nudged Starrk in his side and Starrk looked at her, slightly surprised.
"Since when did you start becoming like Lilynette?"
"Who's Lilynette?"
"Lilynette, she's my little sister."
"Oh, does she have short, light blonde hair and pink eyes?"
"Yeah, that's her. Do you know her by any chance?"
"I saw her the first day of school, during PE class. She was watching you get chased around by that adorable little girl."
"Ugh... I've been trying to forget about that."
"So, her name's Lilynette?"
"Yeah."
"Hmmmm, I wouldn't mind getting to know her a little better," Harribel replied.
"That'd be great, I'm more than sure you two will hit it off."
The two continued walking towards their next classes. Starrk had Algebra II with Miss Ise while Harribel had art with Mr. Ayasegawa. However both still had plenty of time to get to their respective classes. Harribel had even more time to spare since Yumichika Ayasegawa was known to be "fashionably late" for his classes.
"So... uh... out of curiosity, are you doing anything Saturday?" Starrk asked.
"Not that I know of, why?" Harribel replied.
"Well... I was thinking... um... uh... would... would you like to hang out?"
"Are... are you asking me out on a date?"
"Huh... what... no... well... I dunno... I.. I... was thinking it would be fun. Plus we can work on our homework and..."
Harribel couldn't help but giggle at Starrk as his face turned a deep shade of tomato red. He brushed his hand through his hair and he allowed his blue-grey eyes to look around.
"It sounds like fun," Harribel said, smiling.
"Really, well... in that case, how about I pick you up around 1, sound good?" Starrk asked, still blushing.
"Sounds great, but let me give you my address first," Harribel replied as she took out a slip of paper and a pen. After she wrote her address down, she folded the piece of paper and handed it to Starrk.
"Uh... Thanks," Starrk said.
"You're welcome, well I'd better get to my next class. I'll see you later Starrk," she replied, smiling a bit as she started walking towards the art room.
"Sure thing, Bel," Starrk replied as he made his own way to Miss Ise's class. He didn't see Harribel stop and turn around with an expression of shock on her face.
When she heard Starrk call her "Bel" she couldn't help but stop and stare at him. Harribel soon realized she was blushing. She was surprised that Starrk would even think to call her by that name. She also realized that she didn't seem to mind Starrk calling her "Bel", even though that was only reserved for her family or her closest friends. She couldn't understand why she was allowing Starrk to become an exception to this rule.
Thoughout her art class, Harribel continued to think about Starrk calling her "Bel" and how that made her feel inside. Over the course of the school week, Tia Harribel showed that she possessed a great deal of artistic talent. Despite having a radically different aesthetic value, Yumichika continually praised her work and would even display some of her drawings and paintings on the wall. Despite the other gaudy decorations, her work stood out and many of the students would find themselves staring at her pieces as opposed to Yumichika's very flamboyant decorations.
While she continued to think about the reasons why Starrk was becoming so special to her, she managed to sketch out a Victorian-era gentleman. Something particular about this gentleman was that he had shoulder-length unkempt hair and his chin had a faded goatee. When Tia noticed what she was sketching, she immediately started to blush. She looked around the room to see if anyone had noticed what she'd drawn. She was about to put it away when the drawing was taken from her. Harribel looked up and saw Yumichika examining her sketch.
"Hmmm... interesting subject..." he said, smiling slightly, and put it face-down on her desk.
Even though Yumichika was as vain as the peacocks he so adored, he was a romantic at heart. As if it were a "sixth sense" of sorts, he always seemed to know when a student was in love, and he saw that Harribel was clearly in love with someone. When he saw Harribel's subject and the slight shade of red across her face. He knew immediately that she was falling in love with Starrk.
"Now..." he said to himself, "If only she'd turn her focus to peacocks"
Meanwhile, in Algebra 2, Starrk was sleeping, as usual, and Miss Ise was begining to become very annoyed by it. Many of the other students noticed that as Starrk slept, he had a slight smile across his face. Most of these, including Shawlong, simply dismissed it as him simply having a peaceful nap. However a few others, such as Yylfordt thought that he was having very pleasant dreams about a certain girl. Miss Ise, clearly annoyed, had enough of Starrks napping. She walked over to his desk and slammed her book down. Starrk woke up although his eyes were barely open.
"Mr. Starrk," She stated, "since you slept through the lecture, you perhaps thought that you didn't need to hear me explain about how to find the values for unknown variables. Would you care to answer, for the class, the problem on the board?"
She pointed to the problem on the board. It was a fairly lengthy word problem, complete with an equally lengthy math forumla. It was one of those problems that involved finding the solutions to x and y to reach the final answer. Starrk barely glanced at it before dropping his head back down to his desk.
"14.98 or 15 if you round it up," he muttered before returning to the blissful realm of his dreams.
Miss Ise looked at him, her mouth a gape. She rushed to her notes to check his answer and see if he was correct. Much to her surprise and annoyance, he was. She, once again, looked at Starrk, still sleeping, and so shocked was she that she completely ignored the sounds of most of her students giggling and snickering among themselves. Shawlong looked at Starrk, his eyes wide, but he was quite impressed since the only other students who could have solved a problem like that in such a quick time were either Szayel Aporro Grantz or Ulquiorra Schifer. Once Miss Ise recovered from her slight embarrassment, she continued with her class, explaining how one could reach the answer for the problem that Starrk gave.
When the bell rang, signaling the end of class and the school day as a whole, Miss Ise couldn't help but look at Starrk as he left. She then looked at the problem on the board and shook her head.
"Everytime... how does he do that?" she asked herself, still confused.
At the Parking Lot...
The students left the school in varying degrees of chaos and order. Starrk met up with Lilynette, who was in her usual chipper and mischievous mood. As he walked out, he saw Grimmjow hanging out by the front door, as if he was waiting on someone. As Harribel made her way to her car, she saw Starrk and Lilynette, the latter whom she immediately recognized from her first day. Lilynette looked around and saw Momo talking with Kiyone.
"Hey, Starrk, I'm gonna go chat with Momo and Kiyone for a bit," she said as she dashed towards them.
"Okay, but don't wander off too far, alright?" Starrk replied, keeping and eye on his younger sister who was waving at her two friends. "So," Starrk said as he leaned up against the wall next to Grimmjow, "what are you still doing here? I'd have thought you'd be long gone by now."
"Well... I... er... I wanted to meet up with Nel after school. Why are you asking?" Grimmjow asked, slightly annoyed.
"Oh... I see" Starrk replied as he winked at Grimmjow, "I kinda figured that you had the hots for Nel. Would I be right?"
"Oh shut up, Lone Wolf," Grimmjow growled. "You're no better with that blonde girl."
Starrk blushed slightly at that, and Grimmjow smiled. After a few seconds, Starrk regained his composure.
"Eh... just treat her right, man. She's an old friend of mine, and I would hate to have to beat you up if you did anything to hurt her, not that she'd really need me to do so."
"Heh, Starrk, you know me better than that." Grimmjow replied, "I don't treat gals like Senor Satellite does."
"I know." Starrk replied.
Grimmjow noticed Starrk had one of his hands in his pocket and immediately a spark of curiosity entered his mind.
"Well well well..." Grimmjow began, "Whatcha got in your pockets Starrk? Inquiring minds want to know."
Starrk blushed again at Grimmjow's question.
"Er... it's nothing, nothing at all."
"Bullshit!" Grimmjow replied, "I bet you got that blonde girl's number didn't you?"
Starrk's blush grew deeper and Grimmjow smirked at the sight before him, though if his suspicions were correct, then he couldn't help but be happy for his friend. Reluctantly, Starrk removed his hand from his pocket and showed Grimmjow the slip of paper Harribel gave him, however he didn't show him what Harribel wrote.
"Well I'll be a son of a monkey!" Grimmjow exclaimed, "You actually went and pulled it off, and here I thought you fucked it up, you sly old dog you."
"Yeah..." Starrk replied, still blushing a bit, "We... we were... we were thinking of getting together this weekend..."
Grimmjow's smirk grew even wider as Starrk explained the events that had transpired through out the day, including mentioning the makeshift explosion war that Nakeem, Di Roy, Avirama, and Findor had engaged in. Grimmjow was pleased that one of his closest friends was finally moving on from what had to be one of the darker times in his life.
"Come on Grimm, it's not for what you think, it's mainly for school purposes," Starrk added, noticing the smirk. "Though we were also thinking of hitting up the mall later on that afternoon."
"Oh man, dude, hangin' out at the mall? It's TOTALLY a date!" Grimmjow replied. "How could it NOT be?"
"Well, maybe because Bel and I just met?" Starrk said.
"Seriously! Don't sell yourself short man." Grimmjow replied. "Just go with the flow and see how things pan out. Long as you don't act like Commander Assclown or the Stuck up Bat, she'll like you."
Starrk only sighed in response, many different thoughts were racing around in his mind at that point. Starrk never did much when it came to dating and his previous relationship, if one could call it such, was a nightmare.
"Well, I'd better be going. See ya tomorrow Grimm." Starrk said as he began to make his way towards his car.
"Yeah, see ya," Grimmjow said. "Good like with your upcoming date."
"Yeah I know, though I doubt it's a date" Starrk replied "Hey Lilynette, come on, we need to get going."
"Alright," Lilynette cried out to her brother. "Sorry, guys, I gotta get going. I'll see ya tomorrow."
"Yeah, see you tomorrow, Lily," Momo called out as Lilynette rushed to her brother.
Starrk playfully ruffled Lilynette's hair as she got into the car. He closed the passenger door after her and then got into the driver's seat. Harribel watched Starrk from her car when it finally dawned on her. She finally understood what it was about Starrk that she liked. She admired his compassion for his friends and the devotion he showed to his younger sister. Tia realized that she was attracted to him. She was attracted to his sweet, compassionate, and sincere nature. Of course it should go without saying that there was a physical attraction as well. After all she was a healthy teenage girl with hormones. She then shook her head, trying to focus on getting home.
Meanwhile, Grimmjow still waited for Nel to exit the building. He watched the trickle of students coming out.
"Well now, what is this? Is Sir Blueberry our school's newest security guard?" a familiar voice asked.
Grimmjow turned and saw Ulquiorra looking at him.
"I'm just waiting for someone," Grimmjow replied, ignoring him.
"Now this is certainly new... Are you not going to call me by some vulgar or moronic nickname? The world must truly be coming to an end," Ulquiorra inquired, walking towards his car.
Grimmjow growled under his breath as Ulquiorra's car drove away. Then, he saw Nel making her way to the enterance. When she saw him, she smiled.
"Sorry about being late Grimm," she said. "I... kinda got held up a little bit.
"Eh, don't worry about it," Grimmjow replied. "Let's get outta here. I'm not one who likes hanging around school after class."
"Sure," Nel added as she grinned at him, "and besides, you DID offer to drive a lady home when we were walking from Mr. Ukitake's class."
"Yeah, yeah I know. You don't need to remind me. Come on, hop in," he said opening the passenger side foor of his Jeep for her.
"Well thank you kind sir," she said as she got in and Grimmjow closed the door.
"So," he asked, "what did keep you?"
"Hmm... oh nothing important," she replied giving him her mischievous grin.
"Okay," Grimmjow added, a slight grin spread on his face.
With that, each student drove off towards their respective homes, bringing an end to another interesting day at Hueco Mundo High. For a certain lecherous, hoodie clad student, however, his day wasn't quite over yet. Nnoitra was once again tied up but this time he wasn't wearing a cheerleader's uniform. In place of it, he had underwear over his head and his body was covered in various forms of graffiti, most of it very lurid and graphic. Tesla, once again, was struggling to get his master free, but he wasn't having much success.
TO BE CONTINUED!
A/N: Once again, I want to thank all who read, review and enjoy this story and I especially want to thank MLJCoyoteStarrk, cause he's just awesome like that, and his stories are awesome. Seriously, give them a read sometime.
Next time, it's Saturday afternoon, and it's a group outing as new friends get to know one another.