This is terrible – and I left it till last minute :'( But thank you for over 4,000 reads now! – let's get those reviews up!

Shiro waited, his fists clenched at his side and his tears threatening to spill as the truth began to sink in; for both Grimmjow and himself. He had come clean. In many ways it was like a massive weight had been lifted off of his shoulders only to be returned with a stronger one. What would he tell Ichigo? Would he tell him at all? That would be a difficult situation to bring up – Hey Ichi, I need ta confess that I was ta one who raped ya and killed ya mother!

He blamed the drink and the drugs and obviously the hard times that got him to that. Of course that was no excuse but if he needed one there was that. . . The 'Hollow Years' he called them; probably named after the large gang that he had been the leader of during his years at school and university. He had done a lot of things during that time that he wasn't proud of and raping Ichigo was one of those. Killing his mother was a step too far. Shiro kept knife with him at all costs because other gangs were out to get him. That was the only reason why he had carried such a cold and sharp weapon.

It was Grimmjow who had been his friend despite Shiro's status. He was the only one big enough, and the only person who quite honestly didn't care, to approach him. The blunette had, evidently, taken his fair share of drugs and alcohol and as proved still did but whenever he could he would try and help the albino. It was when he got that record deal that he had asked Shiro to join and from there had quite literally saved his ass. Perhaps it was because of everything he had done that he had entrusted him with this enormous secret.

Shiro looked up at the blunette who was gnawing on his lip as he stared down at the concrete floor beneath them in concentration; his brows knitted together as he tried to make sense of the situation. " . . . What are you going to do?" he finally asked, looking up at the albino who was growling at the thoughts swirling around his head.

"Well I can't exactly tell Ichi, can I!?" he growled, his agitation beginning to get the better of him.

"Then what am I doing here?" Grimmjow asked, raising his arms to gesture to their old base.

Shiro gritted his teeth – why had he bothered to tell all of him this? Grimmjow may have helped him in the past but that was no guarantee now. There was nothing he could do anyway! "Things are getting bad now that his father has come on ta the scene," he explained.

"And?"

"I'm gonna crack Grimm," he simply put it.

Grimmjow winced at the vulnerability in his friend's words and immediately regretted acting harsh on the matter; he knew it wasn't his fault.

"I'm gonna end up telling 'im . . . I may even finish ta job an' kill his father!" he spat venomously.

Silence followed after that. Neither of them knew what to do or whether to do anything at all. The blunette gulped visibly at the next words Shiro spoke and tried to avert his eyes away from his intense gaze. "You care fer 'im,"

"I don't know what ya tal-,"

"Fer God sake Grimm, I'm not stupid!"

Grimmjow fidgeted a bit, the metallic taste of blood now swirling in his mouth from the constant biting of his lips. He had been found out. "Yes . . . I care for him," he muttered.

For a minute anger swirled in Shiro's molten gold eyes before being replaced with what almost looked like relief? Grimmjow wasn't sure whether to be scared or mitigated with this confusing act but preceded with caution none the less. Grimmjow patiently waited whilst Shiro seemed to be fighting an internal battle.

Finally Shiro turned to him, a resolve clear in his eyes as well as the deep sorrow that seemed to resonate there. Maybe it was because he had known him so long that he knew what the albino was thinking. "No . . . I will not do that Shiro!"
"You and I both know its fer ta best!"

"He loves ya – not me! If you do this it won't just be agony for you but for him as well!"

"That's a risk I need ta take," he said calmly, frustrating the blunette further.

"Ya can't force someone to love another man,"

"I can try . . . ,"

Ichigo stretched a little in the king size bed he was currently occupying and turned to snuggle closer to his white-skinned lover only to find he was laying in a cold bed alone. He opened his eyes groggily, trying to rub the sleep off before he glanced around the room sighing. He was hoping to wake up with Shiro asleep beside him and hopefully forget all his problems even if it was for a short while. He hadn't known Shiro long, but he could take a pretty good guess that he was currently trying to sort out this mess.

He thought back to last night and blushed in embarrassment and anger at the way he had handled the news; fainting like a girl. Of course that would only prove to show everyone that he was weak and fragile! Ichigo exhaled loudly and dragged himself off the silky sheets, heading to the kitchen to provide for his growling stomach. That's when he saw the flashes outside the window.

Still sleepy and confused, Ichigo trotted over to the window and glanced outside only to freeze to the spot when more flashes were directed at him. He heard a distant "there he is!" from the crowd of photographers and reporters below and quickly yanked the curtains closed before sinking to the floor trying not to hyperventilate. Ichigo buried his head in his hands forcing himself to calm down and grabbed his phone before sitting back down on the floor, ignoring the banging from outside below as people tried to get into the apartment complex.

He was glad when Shiro picked up on the first ring and ignored his protective "hello," and dived right in. "They're here," he whispered urgently.

"Who's there!? Ichi, what's going on!"

Ichigo clenched his eyes shut trying not to let Shiro's panicked voice get the better of his nerves and persisted on. "The media! They're trying to get in to the building," he explained.

Shiro seemed to take a calming breath, obviously relaxed now that he knew what was going on. "Don't worry, just stay there and don't go out,"

"That's not going to work Shiro," he replied guiltily.

"Why not?"

"Because they've already seen me. . . ,"

DUH DUH DUUUUHHHHH! Hope you enjoyed this and please, PLEASE review! ! ! I'm desperate for them especially when this is getting so hard to continue