Twas the night before Christmas.
All that day and into the evening, the kitchen had been a mess with Nel and Nnoitora's bantering and cookie baking, and last minute groceries were being bought. Nnoitora, the de facto resident chef, was making cinnamon rolls in the morning, and the pantry had been scraped of flour and yeast. Dazed, Izuru tried his best to stay positive and out of the way, as he was unused to the busy home life that the Estate employed. Gin swept around with the family members and boarders in a friendly manner, smiling breezily and helping out here and there by taste-testing the cookie dough and spilling the vanilla. Izuru watched as he danced away from Nnoitora's flailing electric beaters and made off with a handful of chocolate chips. He pranced up to Izuru and stuck a drop of chocolate between his pouting lips. The sweet chocolate melted on Izuru's tongue, and Gin skittered away in a flighty manner.
Ulquiorra appeared over Izuru's shoulder, coffee in hand. Taken by surprise, Izuru gasped and laid a hand over his chest. "Have you gotten a gift for Gin yet?" He asked, staring placidly forward.
Izuru's eyes widened and he whirled around. "I can't believe I completely forgot!" He smacked his hand to his forehead. "I haven't gotten him a gift yet!"
"I'll take you shopping." Ulquiorra said, and ghosted into the kitchen to put his mug in the spotless steel sink. Izuru watched as Ulquiorra stopped next to Grimmjow, who was seated at the kitchen's island, twirling a compass on a blueprint and measuring angles. Ulquiorra stood on tip toes to whisper in Grimmjow's ear, grasping his left shirtsleeve with a pallid hand. Grimmjow nodded, and Izuru was mesmerized by the domestic interaction.
When Izuru and Ulquiorra went to the four-car garage to get the car, Izuru was surprised to find that the car Ulquiorra went to was the last type of car he'd expect a high-end furniture designer to drive. Compared to the line-up of foreign, sleek compact cars, Ulquiorra's choice was a white tin can. Ulquiorra unlocked the rusting old minivan, and motioned for Izuru to get in the passenger seat. Still caught off guard, Izuru fumbled with the door handle and crawled in the van. "About the van; I'm a parent," Ulquiorra explained as Izuru buckled his seatbelt. "I need a car that can get dirty and hold a lot of things." He revved up the gasping engine and slowly backed out of the garage. He pressed what looked like a garage door opener, and the wrought-iron gates squealed open.
"I see." Izuru nodded, watching suburban houses become more frequent as they drove away from the Estate's somewhat rural location.
"Do you have any idea of what you want to get for Gin?"
"Not really." Izuru scratched the side of his head, puzzling over a good gift for his significant other. He was having difficulty coming up with something Gin would like to have and would use.
"Do you have any pictures of each other?" Ulquiorra niggled his way into the flow of traffic on a fast-moving motor-way, glancing out the window and at the rear-view mirror, which had a pink Hello Kitty charm dangling from it.
Izuru shook his head. "No."
"Then get him a digital camera."
Izuru thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "He would like that, I think."
"I know where to get one." He made a sharp turn out of traffic, and Izuru clung for dear life.
Finally, he skid to a stop in front of an electronics store. They both disembarked from the van and strolled into the high-tech store, Izuru's eyes growing wide.
"You'll probably want a point-and-shoot that's small and very durable." Ulquiorra immediately gravitated towards the digital cameras, motioning for the techno-dazed Izuru to follow. He preened over the display, and Izuru picked one up to look closely at it. It was connected to a cord tethering it to the display shelf. Clever, Izuru thought, noting how it could easily prevent theft. Suddenly his lack of technology-savvy was a hindrance, and he was lost as to which to buy.
As if on cue, a pink-haired store clerk sauntered over, pushing his white-framed glasses further up the curve of his nose. "Are we finding everything all right?" He inquired, folding his arms loosely over his chest.
"We're hunting for an affordable point-and-shoot digital camera that can withstand drops out of the hands of someone who's very tall and spills." Ulquiorra replied to the androgynous staff's inquiry. He set down and a camera he was inspecting and gave a dead stare.
"Then you want this one." Unfazed by Ulquiorra's blatant unintentional glare, he meandered over to a compact camera on the other end of the display, and laid a lank hand on top of it. "It's one of the market's most durable. It can withstand drops from up to 50 feet, and is virtually water resistant. I wouldn't submerge it, though. It's very affordable, and takes lovely photographs."
He moved his hand, and Izuru hefted it off the display, its retractable cord extending. Pushing the power button, the camera started up with a short jingle. The screen on the back showed a clear image of the display ahead. Impressed, Izuru turned it off and set it back down, looking at the price tag. It was affordable. "I don't know much about technology, but it looks like a good camera. I think I'll get it."
The clerk nodded, satisfied. "I'll run to the back and get one for you."
Once checked out, Izuru and Ulquiorra slunk back to the van, and crawled in. Buckling up and starting the white tin can, Ulquiorra turned his unnerving eyes on Izuru. "Do you suppose Nel would like a Christmas cake?" He asked, tapping is nails that were coated with chipped black polish on the worn steering wheel. "There's a bakery I know of right around the corner that has very good confections, that's open today. Would you mind making another stop? Because I think that Nel would very much like a cake on Christmas."
Izuru shrugged, as he was fine with it. "Sounds good to me." Secretly, he was hankering for a slice of good old strawberry cake.
"Excellent." Ulquiorra nodded, and lay his foot on the gas, drifting around the corner. And he parked. We could have walked, Izuru thought.
They got out again, and Ulquiorra pushed open the door to the well-lit and festive bakery. Bells clanged on the door handle, and Izuru's eyes widened at the vast array of baked goods. Truffles and tarts, cakes and cookies, you name it. Izuru's stomach growled, and he unconsciously drew nearer to the glass display cases. With folded arms, Ulquiorra dissected the cakes behind the glass with his acid green eyes, and the girl behind the counter came forward to greet the duo.
"Hi!" She exclaimed in a peppy voice. "Welcome back, Ulquiorra-san. How can I help you?" She fiddled with her burnt orange hair.
"What do you have by the way of cakes, woman?" Ulquiorra asked. Izuru was taken aback by his brusque way of addressing the girl.
"Oh, well, a lot of our cakes were bought up, but we still have a red velvet cake, a lemon crème cake, a strawberry cake-" Izuru's eyes lit up at the mention of strawberry cake. "-a chocolate almond cake, and a spice cake." She pointed at each cake in the case in turn, and Izuru's mouth watered.
"Inoue, there's also a vanilla cake in the back." Added a man about Izuru's age, who had black hair parted slightly off center and tucked behind his left ear, and glasses. His nametag pinned to his raspberry-colored apron read "Ishida", and a silver charm dangled from his bracelet.
"Thanks, Uryuu-kun." Inoue said with a broad smile. Ishida blushed and ducked into the kitchen through a set of two-directional double doors. "So those are the choices!" She said, turning back to Izuru and Ulquiorra with a grin.
"What kind of cake do you like?" Ulquiorra asked of Izuru, his arms still folded.
"Strawberry," he answered a little too quickly, then glanced around nervously. "I like strawberry."
Ulquiorra rubbed his chin in contemplation. Obviously deliberating, he covered his eyes with his hand. "Let's get the strawberry cake." he said finally, his hand flying away from his brow. "Decisions are grueling."
"It is traditional to have strawberry cake on Christmas eve!" The girl chirped. "Uryuu-kun said he'd make me strawberry cupcakes when we get home tonight." Happily, Inoue boxed up the red and white strawberry cake, whole strawberries standing like turrets on a castle in the fluffy whipped cream frosting. She closed the lid, and ever so carefully tied the sweet shop's signature deep rose colored ribbon around the brown box, sticking down the ribbon with a gold sticker emblazoned with the shop's name and phone number. With the same kind of care, she put the boxed-up cake in a brown paper bag, and handed it very carefully to Izuru as Ulquiorra fished his wallet out of his back pocket.
"Oh, so you finally moved in with the glasses kid?" He handed Inoue a large bill, and she popped open the cash register.
"Well, his daddy found out that I lived alone and immediately arranged for me to stay with Uryuu-kun." She glanced down in a modest fashion and pink tinted her cheeks.
"That's good. You're safer living with another person. Trust me, I live with three others and a five year old daughter. Merry Christmas." He said rather unexpectedly, and with a small salute, stuffed his hands deep into his pockets and left the bakery. Izuru followed reluctantly, giving a petite jaunty wave before he stepped out the door. He trailed behind Ulquiorra in a stumbling manner, being careful not to jostle the cake. "Are you hungry?" Ulquiorra asked, slowing down once they reached the van. He pulled his phone from his pocket and began rapidly dialing. "We'll get dinner." He held the phone to his ear, and Izuru shifted his weight to his other foot. Hungry? He was famished. "Hello? Grimm, I'm taking the man to dinner. I can hear his stomach growling from six feet away… Yes, I mean Kira-kun." Pause. "No, it's not a date." Ulquiorra hung up and looked at Izuru. "We're getting dinner." He reiterated, and got in the driver's side of the van. Izuru hurried to follow, carefully setting the cake in the back seat.
It seemed as though Ulquiorra would meander through the Yokohama streets forever. They drove by restaurant after restaurant, and each time one passed, Izuru wanted to turn to the driver with a look of disdain. When finally Ulquiorra pulled up to the front of a Chinese food restaurant, Izuru barely drug himself to the table they were seated at by a short, sharp-looking woman with short, flippy black hair, straight bangs, two long braids and stabbing ash-colored eyes. She almost slammed their menus down, but then with a curt smile, asked them what they would like to drink and introduced herself as Shaolin. "What can I get for you?" She asked, whipping out a pad of paper.
They simultaneously opened their menus, and scanned the dinner menu. Ulquiorra was first to close his, his decision made. Izuru deliberated for longer over a food choice, but finally came to a conclusion and set down the menu. "I'll have the kung pao beef," Ulquiorra said. "and an egg-flower soup as an appetizer."
"And I'll have the lo mein noodles and an egg-flower soup." Izuru nodded with a tiny smile and handed his menu to Shaolin, who spirited herself away to the kitchen to yell at the chef in Chinese.
Izuru and Ulquiorra sat in awkward silence until Shaolin brought them bowls of egg-flower soup and small cups of oolong tea. Falling on his soup at once, Izuru savored the sweet taste of the water chestnuts and the mild saltiness of the broth. "So," Izuru said rather quietly, setting his spoon down as he finished. "How long have you known Gin?" He tried to strike up a conversation with the otherwise brick wall-ish man.
Ulquiorra pushed a carrot around the perimeter of his bowl. "For ten years. We met in junior high school." He scooped up the carrot and put it in his mouth. "How long have you known Ichimaru for?"
Izuru scratched the side of his head. "Uh, since July."
"Not very long, I see."
"No, I guess not." Izuru gingerly sipped his oolong tea, embracing its bitterness.
"Careful around him, he has a bad habit of leaving unexpectedly for long periods of time. That was his thing in junior high and high school. There would be stretches of time, days long, when nobody would know where he is." Shaolin came to take away their empty bowls, scowling about something.
Izuru put his folded arms on the table. "I suppose I'll keep that in mind." He looked around the restaurant, taking in the traditional atmosphere, avoiding making eye contact with Ulquiorra.
"Do you love him?" Asked Ulquiorra, his picked-at right forefinger tapping steadily on his cup of tea.
Izuru pinkened and began to fidget. "Well, yes, I suppose I do. Love him." He yanked his fingers through his pale hair and let his hands flutter around in unrest. "He's asked me several times if I love him and I said yes, but he's never directly said 'I love you' to me. Then again, I've never said that to him, either. I don't think those are words we throw around lightly. We've never really talked about it, though." Gradually, Izuru's voice climbed upward in pitch.
"Shh," Ulquiorra soothed, and his finger ceased tapping. "I think you really do have feelings for him. What is it you like about him?"
Izuru forced himself to sit on his hands. "He's very kind to me." He said slowly, another blush edging onto his cheeks. "And of course he's very good-looking. Even though we're worlds apart in education- I'm finishing my bachelor's this year- we can talk with mountains of ease. But he's a better smooth-talker than I am."
"That's always been one of Ichimaru's strong suits. Being able to talk his way out of situations, or being able to talk people into things. His tongue is as silver as his hair."
Izuru nodded. "I guess that now I'm just curious as to why he picked me."
"Oh, that's easy." Ulquiorra smirked, leaning back against the booth's bench seat. "You're adorable."
"You're too flattering," Izuru squeaked, putting his hands on his warm face.
Ulquiorra laughed lightly. "You know, Kira, I think that you and I are a lot alike." Ulquiorra stared at Izuru with a still unsmiling face, but his killer green eyes conveyed a tiny grin.
"You think so?" Izuru posed, pulling his wooden chopsticks out of their paper sleeve. "I think that you're much cooler than I am."
"We both have men who are taller and stupider than us."
"That's true." Izuru laughed, breaking apart his chopsticks. Ulquiorra did the same, just in time for their food to come. A steaming plate of lo mein was set before Izuru, and his forgotten hunger returned full-force. He stuffed noodles in his face as speedily and with as much daintiness as he could manage.
"Have you had any other boyfriends before Gin?" Ulquiorra sighed.
Izuru swallowed. "No. I haven't even had a girlfriend before I met Gin. Gin was also my first kiss."
"You're kidding." Ulquiorra expertly snapped up a peanut from his beef plate. "What was it like?"
Izuru jogged his memory, scratching the side of his head. "Well, I had stayed the night because Gin's dad had just died and it seemed like he needed another person around. We had fallen asleep on different futons, but Gin ended up in mine that morning. We were really close together, so um, when I rolled over to tell him to go away, our lips b-brushed and he ended up k-kissing me. I yelled at him for it." Izuru stammered ever so slightly.
"He must have really taken you by surprise. You don't seem like the yelling type." Hiding his smirk behind his lank hand, Ulquiorra stuck another peanut in his mouth.
"It freaked me out." Izuru put a hand over his heart.
"I punched the guy who stole my first kiss. I don't really remember him, but I do remember having to take him to the nurse at school. I broke his nose. We stopped going out after that." Ulquiorra sipped his water. "Then I went out with another guy for a while, but we broke up after he cheated on me with some chick. A few months later I met Grimmjow, though. We were lab partners in Biology. He and I were on and off for the longest time, though. Then we graduated and together we rented an apartment in downtown Yokohama when we first started college. I quit school after I was offered an incredibly promising job, but it didn't work out and I got on with a furniture production company instead, producing the furniture I designed for Las Noches. Grimmjow graduated last year, and has a job with the university designing the new art wing. It's going to be named after him, actually. The G. Jaeggerjaques Art Hall. He was a revolutionary student in both the art and mathematics department. All the professors recognized him as 'The Unruly Genius'."
"Wow, you two sound really well off." Izuru pushed the last of his noodles around. "Much more well off than I am. I'm just a store manager at Starbucks."
"I suppose we are well off." Ulquiorra sighed, and Shaolin came to fill up their water glasses and ask how the food was.
Falling to silence again, the two finished their meal and left for home. Izuru watched the city lights pass by as they drove back to the Estate. "Ugh," Ulquiorra grunted, leaning forward over the steering wheel. "Snow." Flecks of white flew at what seemed like hyper-speed past the van's windows. Izuru gazed at them drowsily, content with his full belly. He rested his head against the cool window, and breathed hot condensation onto the glass, sleepiness ebbing at the edges of his mind. His eyes drifted shut, and he tried to submit to the somnolence fogging his mind and take a catnap, but was jerked awake when Ulquiorra swerved to the side of the road, stomped on the brakes and threw the car into park. "I can't see to drive." He groaned, leaning back in his seat. Izuru lifted his head, and yawned, stretching his arms out in front of himself. He turned his head to look out the frosty window, and was astonished at the mass of snow outside.
"Holy shit," Izuru breathed, seeing nothing but a wall of white.
"My sentiments exactly." Ulquiorra griped, laying his arms over his eyes. "I need to let off some stress before I can attempt to make it home." He exhaled long and loud, and then everything fell to silence, the eerie hush-hush from the snow seeming to press itself inside the van. Izuru followed suit and leaned back, stealing a glance or two at Ulquiorra's lean figure. He could see why Grimmjow liked him. He had a nice body.
"Have you ever thought of experimenting with another man?" Ulquiorra asked, not removing his arms from his face.
"What do you mean?" Izuru's brow crinkled.
"Cheating on Ichimaru."
"No, not really. Not at all." Izuru gulped and rubbed his cheek, looking out the window again. He bristled when black painted skinny fingers brushed his chin, the hairs on the back of his neck and on his forearms standing on end.
He turned to face Ulquiorra, mouth open to ask what he was doing, but his voice was swallowed up. "Would you… with me…" Ulquiorra trailed off in a gasping fashion. His eyes seemed to bore straight into Izuru's soul; they were dark, exotic and seductive, oh, so seductive and provocative. Izuru's gut did flip-flops. In the heat of the moment and obviously hot to trot, they both pulled together, hungry mouths seeking purchase with the other set of lips. Ulquiorra's pallid hand swept aside Izuru's flaxen hair, then cupped his cheek almost roughly. Izuru welcomed it with a warm, open mouth and heavy breath, his heart pounding in his chest. Slowly, Ulquiorra pushed Izuru back into his seat, and with their mouths still exploring, climbed into Izuru's lap, his right knee rubbing the most awkward of places. Izuru fought back what pleasure was sparked by Ulquiorra's advances, and shoved him away. Even though he might have liked the taste of Ulquiorra's lips on his. I'm definitely gay, Izuru thought, his customary pink tint flushing out the apple-blossom white of his pale face. Really, really, really gay.
Surprised, Ulquiorra sat back, stooping to avoid hitting his head on the snow-covered windshield. The still-parked car grumbled under them. "Excuse me." Ulquiorra said, ducking his head. "I didn't mean to." He retreated to the driver's seat, and turned on the windshield wipers, pushing a thin layer of snow off the van. Peering out, he put the van in drive and slowly turned back into the near-deserted highway.
"Don't worry about it." Izuru turned his hot face away, his hair falling back in his face.
Ulquiorra stared intensely at the road, focusing on driving a straight line. "Don't tell Grimmjow." He murmured, and began tapping his fingernails on the worn steering wheel.
Izuru shook his head. "I wouldn't." His heart faintly thumped in his chest from the momentary thrill.
At last the reached the Estate, and the two, rugged from uncanny silence, slowly got out of the van. The garage door creaked down on its track, and Izuru pulled open the sliding door on the driver's side of the van to fetch Gin's gift and the strawberry cake. Light poured into the otherwise darkened garage through the open door leading to the mudroom. Reaching for the bag from the technology store, Izuru snagged it and straightened up. He turned on his heel, and was met by Ulquiorra and his pricking kelly eyes. Ulquiorra took a step forward, forcing Izuru to step back flush against the van's door. "We should keep in touch after you leave. Just in case you ever get tired of Ichimaru."
Izuru's mouth opened and closed several times. "You know, I'd really rather just be friends." He gulped.
Ulquiorra nodded, but still had Izuru pinned against the van. "I'd still like your number, though. And…" Izuru anticipated something odd, his stick-straight hair falling in his eyes. "Another kiss before we go back to our men." He splayed a hand on Izuru's chest, inspecting his black chipped nails with catty green eyes.
"Well, um…" Izuru began to sweat. It went against his personality to say no to someone at such a close proximity. Neither one noticed when a long thin shadow was cast in the light from the door. Feeling as though he intruded, Gin quickly stepped behind the door's frame, and peeked out. "Just one more kiss. But then no more. We already have boyfriends, and I don't like cheating on Gin." Izuru sighed, and bowed his head to touch his lips to Ulquiorra's. Gin flattened himself against the wall in the mudroom, suppressing a giggle. I have ta tell Sousuke later. He covered his mouth with his hand, biting his lip to fight his laughter. I can't believe Izuru beat me to it!
AN:
BETCHA DIDN'T SEE THAT COMIN', DIDJA? Oh ho ho.
:|
Ha ha ha ha hah. Wow, I know this took way too long. I'm sorry ;3; However, BEHOLD! The longest chapter yet, at 3,937 words long. And I didn't actually want to end it. There were several more things I had wanted to write about in the same writing... stream... brain wave... something like that. Anyway, I'm sorry for the 3+ month delay on this chapter. :( I hope you guys like it, it was really hard to write, what with all my schoolwork absolutely throttling me.
See you in the next chapter, because it is coming, no matter how slowly!
sfj