It took Toushiro a moment to figure out where he was that morning. Yukio's curtains impressively blocked out any outside light, and the dark colours of his bedroom didn't help much. He struggled against the fluffy comforter for a moment, before sitting up and looking around. It was too dark to read the wall clock, but if he was awake now it meant that it was sometime before six, or five. Yukio was snoring lightly beside him, one arm thrown across his waist – now in his lap as he was sitting. Sensing Toushiro's movement, he nuzzled against his hip, having forgone his pillow sometime during the night in favour of curling around Toushiro. Toushiro shook his head fondly; of course he would be a cuddler. But, it was surprising that he hadn't woken up when Yukio wrapped himself around him. Either way, he was awake now and there was no falling back asleep, even if he didn't have anything to be up for that day. He carefully wiggled out of Yukio's hold and slipped off the bed, chuckling softly when Yukio immediately re-attached himself to a pillow.

He made his way to the bathroom. Maybe by the time he had showered Yukio would be awake. The clock in the bathroom read five thirty – he didn't ponder on why Yukio would have a clock in the bathroom, it could possibly have been another rule of luxury he didn't understand. The room was white, thankfully breaking from Yukio's black and grey theme, although all the towels, mats, and other accessories were black. His boyfriend might have a minor obsession. The tub was big enough to comfortably seat five and had enough knobs, nozzles, and dials to confuse him. The shower was made with glass walls and had the strangest looking showerhead that he had ever seen.

Picking up his toothbrush from the holder by the sink, he caught a glimpse of a dark mark near his neck. He leaned closer to the mirror, squinting at the spot on his collar bone. He didn't remember doing anything that would have resulted in a bruise there, but his face reddened instantly when he realised exactly what it was. He lightly prodded the reddish-purple spot and sighed. Yukio had been passionate last night and, yes, he could recall him sucking and biting that particular spot. He had not thought that it would leave a mark, however; it hadn't hurt. Things had gotten pretty heated last night, in fact. His lips still felt slightly raw and did look a bit puffy now that he observed them. They had kissed until they were both exhausted, falling asleep on top of one another. Toushiro had never been kissed like that before. Yukio had held him tightly, as if it was impossible for them to be close enough. His touches had been heated and urgent, but never rough. He had boldly gone under Toushiro's shirt, trailing his fingers over scars and skin alike, tickling his ribs, and running along his spine. The memory made him light-headed and hot all over, so he quickly undressed and jumped into the shower.

Yukio was still not awake when he was done and Toushiro didn't see any point in waking him up. So, he wandered out into the sitting room area and picked out a book from the over-packed shelf. Yukio's collection ranged from magazines on business, finance, and science and Technology, memoires by successful business people and artists, to teen fiction, graphic novels, novellas, and horror stories. There was no way Yukio had read all of these. Quite a few of them weren't even in Japanese. He selected one of the tech magazines and settled on the couch after opening the curtains and turning on a few lights. He was absorbed immediately, not even noticing when sunlight began streaming through the window or when Yukio padded out of the bedroom and over to the couch. He did jump, though, when a pair of arms snaked their way around his shoulders.

Yukio chuckled, kissing him on the temple. "Good morning, babe. You've been up for long?"

"Morning. Uh, what time is it?"

"About eight." He yawned and scratched the back of his neck as he flopped down on the couch next to Toushiro, folding his legs underneath him. "Look what you've done to me, waking up so early." He rested his head against his shoulder. "Geez, you've already showered and everything."

Toushiro scoffed, closing the book and setting it aside. Yukio's hand instantly found his and he entwined their fingers. Toushiro looked down at their hands. "Well, I wasn't going to wait on you."

"Mean." He yawned again.

Toushiro rolled his eyes. Speaking of which, "Do you have a gym nearby?"

Yukio straightened and eyed him suspiciously. "Why?"

"Training."

There was a beat of silence before Yukio shook his head. "You're on vacation, though."

"I am. You're not."

"You're not serious."

Toushiro gave him his most serious face.

"You're like a drill sergeant or something, gods."

"I am in the military."

Yukio scowled at him for a short while then sighed heavily. "Yeah, I have a gym here."

"Show me." Toushiro was ready to hop from the couch, but stopped when Yukio groaned. "Trust me, Yukio; taking a break at this point is going to make it twice as hard when we go back."

"Now?"

Toushiro looked at the boy with his bed-head, who was still dressed in his boxer shorts, and yawning. He shook his head. "After breakfast. I just want to see it. We can start tomorrow."

Besides he had already showered and changed. It wouldn't make any sense to get all sweaty now.

Yukio let out a sigh of relief. "You had me seriously questioning my life's choices for a minute there, babe."

"You cannot really be that lazy."

Yukio grinned and settled back against Toushiro's side. "Is that my shirt?" he asked suddenly.

Toushiro looked down. It was a black t-shirt, kind of big on him, but he had no idea of how it was supposed to fit. Yukio had hung up all of Toushiro's clothes in his closet. But Toushiro couldn't remember all that had been bought for him. There was a high chance that it was Yukio's. "I don't know. It could be."

Yukio stared at him a bit longer. "That's definitely my shirt. It's hanging off you like a tent." He flicked the loose collar, something flashing in his eyes when he noticed the love-bite on Toushiro's neck.

"Sorry, I can change."

"Nah, that's okay. This is probably too early, but I like you in my clothes." He winked. "Just need to lose the pants and cardigan."

Toushiro shoved his palm against Yukio's face and got up from the couch.

...

Being head of the Tenth division meant that normally Toushiro barely had any time for himself. He was unused to relaxing, both his mind and body telling that he should be doing something constructive. His skin was itching slightly, as he sat in one of Yukio's pool chairs, attempting to continue the magazine he had started that morning. He couldn't concentrate on the words, and he had been staring at the same sentence for almost fifteen minutes now. He should have brought some paperwork with him. There were dozens of reports that he should have been going over. He was wasting so much time. He looked up at the cloudless sky and sighed. How was he supposed to spend a week like this?

"You're fidgeting again." Yukio poked his leg with his toe. Toushiro hadn't noticed that he was bouncing it.

"Sorry."

"It's not bothering me." Yukio looked up from his game console, his shades slipping down his nose. "But, you're anxious. Why?"

Toushiro huffed, tucking his legs under the chair, and leaned further into the shade cast from the huge umbrella between them. The ground was still hot on his bare feet, the smooth stones and grout had greedily absorbed the sun's heat. "I'm thinking of all the work I could be doing right now," he grumbled.

Yukio glared at him. "Seriously? It hasn't even been a day."

"I'm wasting time-"

"It's not wasting time. You're supposed to be relaxing."

"We have done nothing productive today."

Yukio shook his head. "Okay, fine. What do you wanna do?"

"W-"

"If the next word out of your mouth is 'work', so help me, Toushiro Hitsugaya."

Toushiro shut his mouth and glared at his feet.

Yukio continued, "I figured that if we went like sightseeing and did all that other touristy stuff you'd end up even more exhausted. But if lying around isn't your style then what do you wanna do? Do you wanna go sightseeing?"

Toushiro turned his gaze on the pool, watching the way the turquoise water rippled. It wasn't as if this was his first time to the World of the Living, and any historical sites would be reminiscent of the Soul Society. Also, the thought of having to deal with crowds and travel was exhausting in itself. He shook his head.

"So..."

He took a deep breath, changing the subject. "You said you owned a company."

Yukio cocked his head. "Yeah, why?"

"How are you running it, when you've spent the past three months in the Soul Society? Aren't you worried something will go wrong while you're away?"

Yukio breathed out through his nose and pressed a button on his game console before setting it down on his lap. "I'm in charge, but the company doesn't like revolve around me. I have managers and other people who step in when I'm not there. They don't need my okay for every single decision, and I trust them to run things when I'm not around. They send me reports, of course, but I don't have to like breathe over their shoulders."

"But-" Toushiro cut himself off, shaking his head. He didn't understand how Yukio wasn't worrying more. Even if he trusted Rangiku and his seated members not to mess anything up, he still wanted to provide a safety net in case they did.

Yukio clicked his tongue. "You can call Rangiku, you know. Just check up if it'll ease your mind a bit."

Checking up would help, but then he'd only be confirming the amount of work he'd come back to. He sighed. "Okay, give me a minute." At least if he found out now, he could adjust his schedule. Yukio stood up when he did and followed him back inside. He slung an arm around Toushiro's shoulders and pressed his lips to his cheek.

"You worry too much, you'll get wrinkles."

Toushiro rolled his eyes.

"I was gonna say grey hair, but... yeah."

He wished he could dump him in the pool, game console and all.

...

It was near impossible to wake Yukio up in the morning. They were supposed to train today, but Toushiro was standing at the side of the bed watching as Yukio cuddled a pillow. He had tried shaking the boy, calling his name, and even turning on the light, but it was as if he was dead to the world around him. All external stimuli were null and void. Toushiro grumbled and tried again, shaking his shoulder and calling his name. Nothing.

Toushiro was at a loss. He, himself, was a light sleeper and would wake with any minor noise. Even when Rangiku was in her drunken states all he had to do was shake her or bang a cup of tea on her desk. He could try pouring some cold water on him, but he would feel guilty about ruining the sheets and mattress. But, he did have the next best option. Drawing up some reiatsu to his fingertips, which was always much more difficult in a gigai, he coated his fingers in a thin layer of ice. He pressed his hand to the back of Yukio's neck expecting him to wake with a jump. They boy simply grumbled and rolled over, pulling the blankets over his head. Unbelievable.

Toushiro groaned loudly. "Yukio! Get up!"

It was already almost seven. He had been trying to wake Yukio up for the past twenty minutes. He ground his teeth together. They were going to train today and Yukio was going to get up. He jumped back on to the bed and leaned over the boy, pulling the blabket away from his head and wracking his brain with ways to wake him up. Noise would not help him, but he seemed most responsive to touch. He poked his shoulder, not expecting anything to come of the action. Toushiro sighed, giving the wall clock a fretful glance, and tucked his feet under himself. He brushed Yukio's hair from his face, letting his fingers linger on his cheek. To Toushiro's surprise he seemed to stir slightly at this. Maybe... he felt his cheeks heat somewhat as he pressed a light kiss to Yukio's cheek then he forced his most sugar sweet voice and whispered into his ear.

"Yukio, b-babe, it's time to get up."

He grumbled softly and Toushiro grinned in success. He gently stroked Yukio's hair, brushing it from his forehead and tucking it behind his ear. Yukio was definitely waking up now. He pecked him on the tip of the nose, and smoothed his thumb across his brow.

"Wake up, babe."

Yukio yawned and rolled into his lap. Then, ever so slowly his eyes fluttered open.

"Good morning," Toushiro said brightly.

Yukio took his sweet time in waking up fully. He groggily looked around and stretched. Toushiro continued to stroke his hair as he gave one final yawn and recognition sparked in his eyes.

"I could get used to waking up like this." He smiled and grabbed Toushiro's hand from his hair and kissed his knuckles.

Toushiro scoffed. "I've only been trying to wake you up for half an hour."

Yukio grinned sheepishly and tiredly rubbed his eyes. "Told you, babe, I'm not a morning person. Why are we up so early anyway?"

"Training."

"No." He rolled off Toushiro's lap and grabbed the nearest pillow, shoving his face into it.

"Yukio!" Toushiro groaned, grabbing his shoulder and shaking it.

"I love you, Toushiro, but like... no."

Toushiro grumbled. "You act like I'm forcing you, but you asked me to train you, remember?"

"And now I'm asking you to let me sleep."

Toushiro huffed, staring at Yukio's back trying to decide if he wanted to be mean that morning.

"Are you pouting?" Yukio glanced over his shoulder, before Toushiro could come to a decision.

"What? I am not-"

Yukio sighed dramatically and rolled over again. "It's unfair that you're so cute." He pushed himself to his knees and yawned widely. "Fine, let's go."

Yukio hadn't thought that they would be working out, so he didn't ask his assistant to get Toushiro any athletic clothes. Toushiro sifted through his clothes, trying to find something that wouldn't be too restrictive. In the end he settled on a plain t-shirt and a pair of 'galaxy' print leggings which he was going to ask Yukio to return to the store. He would have just worn his joggers, but the material was too thick for his liking. He glanced at himself in one of the full-length mirrors in Yukio's closet. He may as well not even wear pants with how the leggings clung to his skin. He tried to adjust them, but nothing he did helped. If he could just get Yukio to hold his tongue, but knew that it would take nothing short of a miracle for that to happen. Needless to say, Yukio was ogling him as he came back out into to the bedroom.

"Damn," he mumbled.

"Shut up." Toushiro's cheeks heated instantly and he tried to pull the hem of his shirt down.

"How were you hiding that under you uniform?"

Toushiro looked down. His legs weren't anything special, sure he had more muscle than fat, but he was scrawny all over and had knobby knees. "What are you talking about? Let's go."

Yukio smiled and hopped over to him, wrapping an arm around his waist. He didn't say anything as he hooked a finger under Toushiro's chin and gently guided his face upwards. He had tied his hair back again, and Toushiro felt his stomach flutter as Yukio's gaze bored into him. They had made out until they fell asleep again last night, but Toushiro's throat still went dry at the thought of kissing him. He met Yukio halfway, stretching up while Yukio bent down. They kissed slowly and deeply. Toushiro wrapped his arms around Yukio's neck pulling their chests flush together and threaded his fingers into Yukio's hair, bits already falling loose from the hair band. Yukio settled his hands on Toushiro's hips, gently squeezing, and kneading his fingertips into the muscle on either side of his spine. Yukio's mouth was hot and silky; Toushiro's eyes fluttered shut as it opened and closed, sucked, nipped, and licked. Everything was warm, heated even and he felt his heart hammering against his ribcage. Yukio's hands travelled lower down his sides, down to the top of his thighs, leaving goose bumps. Toushiro jumped slightly when he pressed his palms into his butt cheeks, cupping the muscle. He pulled away slightly, as Yukio stared to chuckle.

"Was this your plan all along?" Toushiro mumbled, trying to sound annoyed but failing spectacularly.

Yukio squeezed his left cheek, and pressed a soft kiss to the corner of his mouth. "Maybe. I like had no choice; I was hypnotised."

"By my ass?"

Yukio hummed and continued to knead his butt, grabbing both cheeks, squeezing them, pulling them apart, and rolling them in his palms. "You clearly haven't seen it from my angle."

Toushiro scoffed, but it felt good. Not just Yukio touching him, but the realisation that Yukio wanted to, and found him genuinely attractive. His ass was just like the rest of him, small. Though, through all the training, it was fairly muscular and somewhat... pert. He blushed as he clung onto Yukio, twisting his hair around his fingers, feeling it slide through them like satin. He could stand to stay like this for a bit longer, but –

He spun away from Yukio's hold. "Come on, it's time for training." He smirked at the boy's pout.

Yukio's home gym had an impressive array of equipment and machines. It was situated at the back of the house, with floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out over the pool and to the grounds beyond. Toushiro rolled his eyes when he saw a couple of horses gallop past, behind a neat fence. This boy was ridiculous.

"Horses?"

Yukio grinned. "Why not?"

"What do you do with horses?" He had instructed Yukio to warm up on the treadmill and decided to join him.

Yukio shrugged, increasing the speed on his machine. "Race them, show them, like horse stuff."

"You?"

"Not personally. I have people for that."

"Of course you do."

The gym didn't have any sort of training dummy, though. So, Toushiro decided to focus on strength and mass building this week. Yukio should have built up enough strength in his lower body by now. He glanced over to Yukio, he was wearing black, baggy basketball shorts, but his calves looked fuller than what he had started with. They could do some barbell exercises, maybe a few things with the medicine balls, and of course some squats. He didn't know what most of the machines were for and he had a feeling that Yukio only had them for show. He glanced back to the boy; he was running in time to the music he was blasting through the gym's speaker system. Toushiro believed that the genre was rock or metal or some other earthly material. Stone?

Once they were sufficiently warmed up he brought out two barbells and was considering how much weight he wanted to start Yukio off with.

"Have you ever used these?" he asked.

Yukio tilted his head. "Um... not really." Toushiro rolled his eyes, refraining from groaning. "I mean, I had a personal trainer come here before, but we usually did like cardio stuff and Pilates... and more body weight exercises with dumbbells."

Toushiro rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Why do you have a full gym?"

Yukio shrugged. "It came with the house."

He didn't know what he had expected with someone like Yukio. He selected a few weights for himself and then smaller ones for Yukio, although he would start him off with just the barbell to rile him up a bit.

"Okay, then. We'll start off with squats."

"I hate you."

Toushiro chuckled and helped him set up on the rack, just in case, then demonstrated it free form. The way Yukio's eyes followed him made something flare in his chest. Yukio eyed him up and down, lips parted slightly. Even when Toushiro set the barbell back down his eyes were still glossed over. He snapped out of it quickly enough, however, a light blush on his cheeks. Then he glanced from his barbell to Toushiro's.

"Is there a reason why I don't have any weights on mine?"

"Have you picked it up yet?"

"It can't be that-" he tried to pick it up from the rack. "Fuck."

Toushiro chuckled. He knew Yukio could lift it up with no problem; the boy was being dramatic. They hadn't training for six months for him not to be able to lift twenty kilos.

"Just do a couple without weights. I want you to get the correct form before you pull anything."

It was a good workout on Toushiro's end – not too strenuous or too mild, but Yukio was swearing by the end of it.

"My legs are going to fall off!" he yelled.

"Five more."

"I literally can't!"

"I'm doing them with you."

"Well, you're fucking shredded!"

"Come on, we'll count down."

"I can't. I actually can't."

Toushiro sighed. Yukio was frozen in the starting lunge position, the barbell sitting on his shoulders, with his shirt clinging to him with sweat. There was a slight tremor in his legs.

"Yes, you can. Let's go..." He paused, eyeing Yukio before slowly sinking down into a lunge himself. Yukio swallowed and took a deep breath before following him. "Five. See, there you go... Four, come on... Three... Two, almost there, last one... one."

Yukio dropped his weight, it landed with a deafening bang on the rubberised floor, and he collapsed next to it when they finished."I can't feel my legs," he panted.

Toushiro chuckled and crouched down next to him. "See, you did it." He smoothed a sweaty, stray lock of hair from Yukio's forehead and delivered a quick peck there. "Catch your breath then we'll cool down."

...

"No, Captain, nothing has changed since the last time you called. Yesterday," Rnaigku sighed.

Toushiro glared at nothing in particular, shifting the phone so it sat more comfortably against his ear. "I'm just making sure. If something goes wrong I'm going to be the one who has to clean it up. What does the schedule look like?"

Rangiku groaned. "We're on time."

"And the search for labour for the re-building?" He was aimlessly wondering around Yukio's sitting room, he had started near the bookshelf, now he was pacing around the couch.

"Hagita Is assembling a team as we speak. They've already mapped out a route through the Rukongai."

"And-"

"It's all running perfectly, Captain, why won't you believe me?"

He rolled his eyes. "Because I spent most of my early years as captain trying to keep you at your desk, and doing your share of the paperwork."

"Oh, right," she giggled. "I help where I can."

"So, are you absolutely positive that everything is fine?"

"Yeeees, Captain."

He sighed, leaning against the glass door to Yukio's personal balcony.

"Aaaanyway, how's staying with Yukio?"

He knew that Rangiku was bound to be curious about his holiday. He'd avoided all her questions during his last call. But, since she'd been doing her work, he could grant her a few details. He pushed his hair from his forehead, grimacing at the way sweat from his workout made it clump. "It's... fine."

"Just fine? Where is he now? I thought he was rich."

"He's showering; we just finished training. And yes he is rich. Very rich."

"You're training him while you're on your vacation, Captain? That's a bit unnecessary."

"Hardly, Matsumoto. He needs all the work he can get."

"I don't know... he's kinda cute the way he is. I don't think he has the face that would go with a bulky, muscular body. Do you?"

"I... uh..." He felt his cheeks heat and he slid open the door, stepping outside. "He's not going to get all bulky in six months. Besides, I don't think he has the build for it."

"Ah so he's like a movie star or model type."

Toushiro leaned against the railing, slotting one of his feet between the balusters. He looked down, not expecting to see hanging plant boxes, surrounding the outer base of the balcony. "I... maybe not. He runs a lot so his legs are really toned. So maybe someone in track and field?"

Rangiku giggled. "I like the sound of that. So what's his house like?"

"He lives on an estate. His house his bigger than some of the buildings in the Second Division."

"Sounds like I'll need to visit some time. I'm so jealous, Captain. I need a rich boyfriend."

Toushiro rolled his eyes. "I don't like him just for his money."

"But it's a plus right?" Rangiku chortled, and he heard the rustling of papers in the background. He should probably be letting her go back to work soon.

"I'm not sure. It's a bit overwhelming. I had no idea that people could live like this."

Rangiku chuckled. "I told you that you should read my magazines. Broaden your horizons; does he have a chrome bathtub?"

"A what?"

"I need to visit him, Captain, you're terrible at this."

He sighed. "You should get back to work, Matsumoto."

"But... fine. Just, did he say how big his company was?"

Toushiro shook his head, reaching over the balcony to lightly pinch the leaf of a climbing vine. "He said something about being worth a few billion, I think."

Rangiku made a strange high-pitched squealing sound. "If your wedding ring doesn't have a diamond at least grape-sized I'm going to need a refund."

"What?" He blinked a few times, feeling his face heat further. Wedding ring? "Get back to work, Matsumoto."

...

If Toushiro had ever ridden a horse before he couldn't remember, but Yukio had assured him that it would be pretty easy. It was around mid-morning when Yukio led him to the stables. He wasn't even surprised that the boy had a riding outfit; impeccably shone boots, fitted pants, and a light blazer with leather trimming – all black of course. They hadn't done much that morning, just watched another movie, while Yukio answered a few emails from work. All was well with Rangiku, so Toushiro had forced his mind from the Tenth for a bit, despite the itching in his spine.

The stables were a ten minute walk from the house. Toushiro held back his surprise at all that was going on. It was almost as if he had left the estate. There was a sign that read 'Vorarlberna Riding School' and he could see that there were a few children and horses out in a small ring - he had no idea what the proper terminology was. Yukio said that he owned around nine horses, and boarded seven more; it was the more charitable side to his business, even though equestrianism was one of the more high-class sports. At least his boyfriend had hobbies, other than video games. He was surprised to learn that Yukio had started this on a whim.

It took them a while to get settled with a pair of horses. Toushiro was pleased to discover that he didn't have to do much and his horse was smart enough to follow Yukio's without much instruction.

"Where are we going?" he asked once they were far enough away from the stable.

Yukio grinned. "Just thought I'd give you a tour of the grounds."

"On horses?"

"Why not?"

"You are such a rich boy."

"It was either this or ATVs. At least this way we can talk without yelling."

The estate was beautifully kept. Yukio had a huge ground keeping staff and used most of the grounds for community classes. His tennis courts were free to the public, and he hired a few instructors to give lessons. He ran a plant nursery, selling rare flowers, hosting shows, and teaching kids how to garden. There was a bigger pool, which he did the same to, a golf course, a gymnasium, and a few fields for outdoor sports.

"You are really into this whole charity thing, aren't you?" Toushiro commented.

"I mean... yeah. I don't wanna be like another stuck up rich person, and, to be honest, living here all by myself can get a bit boring."

"So you turned your house into a community centre?"

Yukio chuckled, "Just most of the land around it. Trust me you need special security clearance to get like 30 meters near the actual house. But, I realised I have to be like really careful with some charities; they say they're doing good, but then they spend the money on other things. I thought I could do it myself and come up with just as good results."

"Impressive."

"And I really... don't want to end up like my parents."

Toushiro glanced at him just in time to see his expression harden. "What-"

"Anyway, there's one more thing I wanna show you."

They climbed to the highest point on the estate. And as the horses crested the small hill, Toushiro felt his cheeks heat. Laid out, in the shade of a large tree, was a picnic blanket and basket.

"Gods, Yukio," he grumbled. "What the hell is this?"

Yukio grinned widely. "Lunch."

Toushiro shook his head as they stopped the horses and jumped off. This boy was too much, Toushiro thought as Yukio removed the horses' face things (at least he knew what the saddle was) and let them graze. He looked over the estate, picking out all the different buildings Yukio had shown him earlier. No one was ever this good, well there was Bill Gates, and unless Yukio was aiming to follow in his footsteps, there was no way he could be this golden-hearted. It was a far cry from the boy he had first fought with.

"You okay?" Yukio asked walking up to him and hooking an arm around his waist.

"Yeah," Toushiro mumbled. "I just... wasn't expecting any of this."

"I'm like too good to be true?" He smirked.

"Almost," Toushiro admitted, causing Yukio's eyebrows to jump to his forehead. "Why? Why are you doing all this?"

Yukio scratched the back of his neck and guided Toushiro to the picnic blanket. "That's kind of a loaded question, babe."

They sat down next to each other, but Yukio decided that he'd rather have Toushiro in his lap.

"Sorry, but I don't believe you're a Mother Theresa."

Yukio shook his head. "How do you know these references? You really wanna know?" Toushiro nodded. "Ugh, warning, it's gonna get kinda deep. So, like, you know my parents were assholes, and you know how I ruined their company to teach them a lesson. And... honestly that was like a shitty thing to do. So many people lost their job, and I ruined a bunch of families just 'cause I was some spoilt kid trying to get back at his parents. I decided that I never wanted to do anything that shitty again. I needed to make up for it, you know?

Toushiro craned his neck to see Yukio's face. The boy was staring off into the distance and Toushiro knew that he was getting the watered down version of this story.

"So, yeah. I reached my goal of tripling my company's size and I've honestly just been lucky. We released a console a while back and sales increased like crazy. I opened this complex like at the start of this year so, I'm not sure what will work out or not, but I was serious about the giving to charity thing."

Toushiro blinked slowly. "I don't think I've ever been so wrong about a person before."

"What?"

"I thought you were selfish and childish."

"Hah, really?"

"You seemed it, with your game and how you kept on boasting about being a god. I didn't like you at all. I thought you were very annoying."

Yukio poked him in the side. "Tell me what you really think."

"I just did."

Yukio snickered. "Well, I thought you were rude."

"I've heard that before."

"You would have been cool, if you didn't like have a huge stick stuck up your ass. You were kinda cute too... are."

Toushiro shook his head. "I have another question for you."

Yukio sighed. "Okay, ask away. It's clearly sharing time."

"If you have so much going for you here, why did you ask me to train you? Learning hakuda seems a bit arbitrary... and to drop it all for six months. Why?"

"Geez, hitting all the sore spots today aren't you, babe?"

"Oh, sorry, I didn't-"

"It does seem kinda random doesn't it?" He sighed deeply, finding Toushiro's hand and entwining their fingers. "Okay, well I wanted to learn self-defence and I thought it would be a chance to get to know you better."

"Me?"

"Yup. Thought you were cute the first time we fought... and well I wanted to see if I stood a chance."

"So this whole training program was just a ruse to get to me?" Toushiro wasn't sure how to feel. It said something to Yukio's determination, but at the same time it was kind of unnerving.

"Sorta."

Toushiro narrowed his eyes. "And the other reason? Couldn't you defend yourself with your fullbring?"

"Ugh, why are you so persistent?" He curled forward and pressed his forehead to Toushiro's shoulder. "That's like a whole other story."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Toushiro mumbled.

"No... it's really no big deal. I just realised that don't have much physical strength, and that's like a problem when you're getting mugged."

Toushiro startled slightly. "What?"

"Why didn't I just use my fullbring? You know I thought about it, but it would have been more trouble than it was worth. Don't have those memory things like you guys, and if it got out that there was something weird about me, the media would have been all over it."

"So you let yourself get beaten up?" He couldn't keep the incredulity from his voice.

"That's harsh. The guy was huge; there was no way I could have stood up to him on my own."

"Don't you have bodyguards? Where did you even go to get mugged?"

Yukio squeezed his hand and sighed again. "Here-"

"What-"

"We had just opened up the fitness centre and I was just like checking to see how things were going. Anyway there was this guy, who probably didn't know who I was, and tried his luck."

"Yukio-"

"It wasn't serious, babe. I gave him a few bills and he ran off. It would have been bad publicity, so I kept it quiet. Why should one asshole ruin it for everyone, right? Tightened security, though."

"Were you hurt?"

"Not really, but I don't want that to happen again. I should be able to protect myself."

Toushiro squeezed his hand. "Were you hurt?"

"Sprained wrist, a couple of bruises. My ego was more hurt, though. I didn't really think of things like that. I mean, my fullbring is pretty badass, but what do I do when I have to fight a regular person and I don't have a bodyguard. What if he had had a weapon?" He sighed and shook his head. "I guess I needed a reality check."

Toushiro chewed his bottom lip. Once again, he hadn't been expecting that. Slowly he turned so that he was facing Yukio and tightly wrapped his arms around him. He felt Yukio sink into the embrace and he set his forehead back on his shoulder. "You did the best you could in that situation, and deciding to learn self-defence was a smart move. It is tricky dealing with normal humans; we are so much stronger than them. How do you really know how much power to use and is it even ethical to use it? No one is truly positive on how to go about this situation and, believe me, it has come up before. It's a very delicate circumstance, but I believe you made the right choice. Even if you did allow yourself to get hurt."

"Thanks, babe." He raised his head and pecked Toushiro's cheek. "Anyway, let's eat before the food gets cold."

But, Toushiro kissed him before they could move. Yukio's reaction was instantaneous, he wrapped his arms around Toushiro's waist, pulling them flush against each other and deepening the kiss. They did end up having to eat cold food.

...

"You should probably take a jacket, weather is supposed to be cold tonight."

Toushiro raised an eyebrow. "You do know who you're talking to, right?"

Yukio chuckled, shrugging on a coat of his own. Toushiro didn't know what it was that made his clothes look so expensive and polished. Or maybe his was just good at picking outfits, or maybe the fact that he only wore black had something to do with it. Either way, Toushiro couldn't believe how attractive Yukio was. He had not complained when Yukio had handed him a pair of tight jeans and a patterned button-up. But he grabbed a chunky-knitted cardigan despite knowing that he wouldn't need it.

Hanasaki drove them to Karakura's shopping district and while usually Toushiro hated shopping, he found that it wasn't so bad with Yukio. At least he didn't drag him around to different clothing stores and try on a million outfits. In fact they didn't even buy much: a couple of books, a scarf, a few snacks, and pair of shoes. It still took them a few hours to walk around the stores. Toushiro tucked his hand into Yukio's as they walked along the sidewalk.

"Did you want to get anything in particular?" Yukio asked, stabbing a straw into his cup of boba tea.

Toushiro tilted his head. Rangiku had asked him to get a few things – he had a list, but what he really wanted, "Do they sell pens here?"

Yukio paused in the middle of a sip, and then began laughing. "You're so cute, babe." He gave Toushiro a milky kiss on the temple. "Yeah, I think there are a few stores that would sell pens around here. We'll get you a couple packs."

"They come in packs?"

Yukio laughed again. "You're in for a surprise, babe."

Yukio lead him to a three story mall, then into a store that sold all kinds of paper, books, binders, and the sort. There was an entire wall dedicated to pens. Yukio wrapped an arm around his waist as he stared.

"What do you think?"

"There are so many; I don't know where to start."

"Let's get one of each."

"Are you insane? Where am I supposed to keep all of them?"

He moved to the wall and pointed to a pack. "Personally, I prefer the liquid ink kind. They write smoother, but the ink smudges sometimes and takes longer to dry. These ones don't smudge as much, but they're not as smooth... and these are felt tip pens; they're more like markers. These are brush tip markers, most similar to an ink brush, but you don't have to dip them. Oh and there's gel ink, and highlighters, oh and these are erasable. These are regular ball-point, pretty cheap and the ink dries out fast. Oh and there are fountain pens over there."

Toushiro blinked. He had thought that this would be easy. Why did the World of the Living have so many choices?

"What about the ones you leant me?" At least that was familiar to him.

"Those were liquid ink."

"I'll go with that then."

Yukio smiled. "Okay, blue or black ink?"

"What?"

"There's also purple and green."

"Um..."

It was only when Yukio started to laugh again, Toushiro realised that he was teasing him.

Later that night, when they got home, Yukio handed Toushiro a game controller, hopping to turn on one of his many consoles.

"Yukio?" Toushiro asked uneasily, "Are you sure?"

"You said you'd like to learn, right?"

"I've never played before."

"That's why I'm teaching you, babe."

Toushiro looked down at the controller. There were so many buttons and toggles, how was he supposed to learn this. Yukio had selected a game and moved to sit on the couch. He patted the space between his legs and Toushiro slowly went over to him.

"We're starting off with a really easy game," he said as Toushiro settled between his thighs. He gave him a quick peck on the cheek and grabbed his own controller, holding it at Toushiro's waist, with his arms on either side of him. Toushiro copied how he was holding it, having to look down three times to check that he was doing it right. Yukio was already pressing buttons without even having to look. "So, this is like a puzzle game, we have to help each other clear stages. Should be easy with that big brain of yours."

Toushiro rolled his eyes as Yukio proceeded to show him how to move around. It was pretty simple, once Toushiro got the hang of it. And after a few stages, each of increasing difficulty, it was starting to get a bit repetitive. The puzzles would have stumped most people, but figuring out puzzles was something Toushiro was very good at.

Yukio paused the game. "You wanna try something different?"

"Like?"

"Like a fighting game?"

"Against each other?"

"You seem to be getting the hang of it."

"Okay."

"I'll go easy on you, babe. It's your first time."

Toushiro rolled his eyes. Yukio picked a new game by simple pressing a few buttons and gave Toushiro a quick rundown of the game play. Minutes later they were both laughing and swearing at each other.

"Fuck, how are you so good at this?" Yukio chuckled.

"Talent." Toushiro's character delivered a swift kick to Yukio's.

"Are you just like smashing buttons? You know what? No more handicap for you!"

It was already nearing the end of the match and Toushiro somehow managed to win.

"Re-match," Yukio demanded. "I didn't know you'd be that good!"

Toushiro scoffed. "Or maybe you're not as good as you think."

"Are you sure you wanna say that, Hitsugaya?"

Toushiro felt playful; maybe it was the fact that he was actually playing games. He turned his head and stuck out his tongue at Yukio.

"Oh, it's on. Time to show you how it's done."

Yukio won the next match and all the others after that. But Toushiro didn't mind, it was fun. Feeling the way Yukio put himself into the game, sometimes even moving with his character, yelling in success, and swearing at difficulties.

"And that," he tossed his controller to the side and hugged Toushiro, "is how you play."

Toushiro scoffed, setting his controller down with more care. "You've had more time to learn than me."

"Sore loser?"

"No, just stating a fact." He leaned back against Yukio's chest, resting his hands on his wrists. They'd been playing for almost three hours. Toushiro was shocked; he hadn't thought that he would get sucked in to that extent.

"You had fun, though?" Yukio asked, resting his chin on Toushiro's shoulder.

"I did."

"Good, I'm happy." He nuzzled the side of Toushiro's neck before placing a few gentle kisses.

Toushiro sighed softly, letting his head loll to the side. His eyes fluttered shut when the gentle kisses turned into little nips and licks. Yukio kissed his way up the side of his neck, pressing his nose to the hollow behind his ear and taking the lobe between his teeth. Toushiro drew in a sharp breath, feeling a heat rise in his stomach. He reached behind him, cupping the back of Yukio's head, urging him on. Yukio ran his tongue up the shell of his ear, breathing softly on the wet flesh. Toushiro's breath hitched when Yukio began unbuttoning his shirt. He only did three buttons at the top, but it was enough for him to expose a shoulder and begin ravishing it with his tongue. Toushiro's other hand found one of Yukio's and he grasped it tightly. Yukio bit down on the side of his neck where it turned into shoulder muscle and began sucking and lapping. Toushiro knew that he was going to leave a mark, but he didn't care. He would let Yukio mark him anywhere. He pressed his back more firmly against Yukio's chest. He wanted him to touch; he wanted to feel him everywhere, to be surrounded by him.

He let out a breathy moan. "Yukio, I..."

Yukio halted, and then drew back with a final kiss. "Right," he mumbled.

Toushiro frowned. He wasn't sure what exactly he had been going to say. But he swallowed thickly and turned his head to capture Yukio's mouth. They shared a few playful kisses, nipping at each other's bottom lip. Toushiro felt the heat in his stomach slowly subside. Maybe they had been rushing things a bit. Maybe Yukio had been right to stop. After a few more kisses, Toushiro let his hand drop from Yukio's hair and he slumped against his chest, resting the back of his head against his collar bone. Yukio slowly ran a finger along his jaw line and pressed one last kiss to his mouth.

His lips were swollen and almost red, and his eyes were blown, the green almost disappearing. But he was grinning widely. "Sorry, that's gonna leave a mark." He grazed a finger up Toushiro's neck. "A big one."

Toushiro scoffed. "I don't mind."

"Seriously?"

"I don't."

"Well then. Expect more of those in the future."

Toushiro chuckled, suddenly hit by a wave of tiredness.

"Let's like get ready for bed, huh?" Yukio suggested.

Toushiro nodded and even though he was comfortable with just laying on his boyfriend he stood up and stretched. He heard Yukio give a short bark of laughter before he felt a sharp swat on his butt followed by squeezing and rubbing. He yelped softly, jumping forward and looking over his shoulder.

Yukio was smiling unabashedly. "It was like right in my face. You honestly couldn't expect me not to."

"Are you going to do that at every chance you get?"

"Yup."

...

"Hey, Captain, how's it going?" Rangiku asked in greeting.

"It's going... well," Toushiro admitted. Yukio was still sleeping, but he had gone out into the sitting room to check up on the Tenth. He sat cross-legged on the couch, twisting the tip of his sock around his finger.

"Well?" Rangiku prompted.

"That's not the reason why I called you. Is everything alright at the Tenth?"

"Yes, we're running on schedule and there haven't been any hiccups since you last called. Now details, what have you and Yukio been doing?"

Toushiro sighed.

"Are you okay? Do I need to talk to anyone?"

"No, no. Everything's been great with Yukio."

"But?"

"But nothing."

"Captain, getting anything out of you is like pulling teeth."

"If you want drama go find your own boyfriend. Don't live vicariously through me."

She giggled. "Yeah, that's not going to happen any time soon. Anyway what did you guys do yesterday?"

"We went shopping."

"Did you get what I asked?"

"Yes.

"Good. Did he force you? I thought you hated shopping."

"It was fine. He didn't make me try on clothes, like someone would, or carry all his stuff."

She giggled again. "What else have you done?"

"Uh, we went horse-back riding, we had a picnic, went in his pool, watched movies, and played video games. Happy?"

"I'm so jealous, Captain. I need a vacation too. But I'm glad you're having a good time. You are enjoying yourself right?"

"Yeah."

"Soooo, you two are sharing a room, right?"

Toushiro's cheeks heated. "Yes, and?"

"And... there's only one bed, right?"

"Matsumoto-"

"Have you done it yet?"

He groaned. "That is none of your business."

"So no?"

"We haven't even... you're the only one who's mentioned that for the entire week."

"Boring, Captain. If I was on a vacation with my boyfriend in his mansion, we'd have done it all-"

"I'm not listening to this. Goodbye, Matsumoto. Get your work done."

"Bye, Captain!" she sang.

When he hung up he was positive that his entire face was beet red. He hadn't even thought about doing it with Yukio. Well maybe he had a bit, in passing thoughts, but he didn't think that... what if Yukio wanted to? What if Yukio had wanted to this entire time? He groaned and dragged his hand down his face. Damnit, Rangiku.

He and Yukio had been a couple for about five weeks. That wasn't really a long time, but they'd been dating for a little less than two months and they'd been working together for almost seven months now. Toushiro had no idea what that added up to exactly. But how was he supposed to know what was an appropriate amount of time before they did it? Yukio had been gracious, always stopping when Toushiro asked, and had never once touched him inappropriately, apart from the butt grabbing. Toushiro swallowed, the first night they had made out, however, Yukio had seemed like he was ready to try more. So, the question was whether or not Toushiro was ready. How did he know he was ready?

Before he realised what he was doing he had called Rangiku again.

She picked up immediately. "Hey, Captain, what's wrong? Did you forget something?"

He tightly gripped his big toe with his free hand. "I... um..." he took a steadying breath which did not help to steady him at all. "How... I don't know... When is..."

"Captain? Breathe and try again."

He shook his head, focusing on the fabric of the couch in the space between his legs. "How do I know when I'm ready for... um... you know."

Rangiku was silent for a few moments. "When you're actually able to say the word 'sex' maybe? But seriously, it's different for everyone. You'll know when you're ready, I guess when you feel completely comfortable around him, when you trust that he'll take care of you or won't leave or hurt you. When you feel you can say and do anything around him. I don't know, Captain. It's up to you. Don't do anything that you're not comfortable with, that's the rule I always go by."

Toushiro titled his head to the side. When he felt comfortable around Yukio. He already did. He felt comfortable talking with him, laughing, touching, kissing, and just being with each other. He almost felt giddy just thinking about lying next to Yukio, wrapped in each other's arms. He felt his mouth stretch into a smile on its own accord, and raked his hair back from his forehead with his hand. Maybe he was already ready.

"So there isn't any expected time?"

"Gods, no, Captain. And if he thinks so, drop him. Drop him right now."

He held back a snicker. "Thank you, Matsumoto. It was helpful talking to you."

"Any time, Captain. That's what I'm here for."

...

I can't believe this is our last night," Yukio groaned. "I can't go from my bed to that futon again. I'll actually die!"

Toushiro scoffed, as he rinsed his toothbrush. "No you won't."

Yukio sighed, picking up a few hairpins from a container by his sink and proceeded to pin his hair back. "I just might. I should like bring a mattress pad this time."

"You are ridiculous."

"I can get you one too. It would like help your back."

"My back is just fine."

"Sure, Mr. Grumpy."

Toushiro set his toothbrush down in the holder and glared at Yukio's reflection. Yukio chuckled as he picked up a tub of lotion from an impressive amount of tubs of lotion. Toushiro was fascinated by his night-time routine. He didn't even think Rangiku went through this much with her hair and skin.

"We should have done something special today," Yukio said as he dabbed a white cream on his cheeks.

Toushiro shrugged. "It was fine."

"I guesso, but this was our last day before we're thrown back to the like fourteenth century?"

"What did you want to do?"

"I dunno."

"We did have a fancy dinner."

"I guess that counts, but still." He recapped the tub and examined his face in the mirror. Tosuhiro folded his arms across his chest as he watched him. "I dunno, dinner and a movie don't seem that special."

"It was enjoyable."

"Yes, but not like special."

"I don't know what you want, Yukio." Toushiro sighed, "I'm going to bed."

Yukio slapped his butt as he passed. "I'm almost done."

As Toushiro slipped under the sheets, his conversation with Rangiku the other day replayed in his head. Did Yukio mean special in that way? What if he did, but he didn't feel it was his place to ask. He had already shown that he was reluctant to push much. But what if... he sighed softly, shaking his head. He was thinking too much about this. He had already decided that he was ready for whenever the time came. There was no need to rush this. But maybe Yukio was right in wanting end their vacation in a, literal, bang. He felt himself blush slightly. They were going back to work next week, neither of them would have as much time with each other as they did now. Toushiro knew that he would get swept up in paperwork as soon as he set foot in the Seireitei. They may not get such a chance again. And the walls in the barracks were uncomfortably thin. At least he had the luxury of having his own living complex, be it small and plain, but someone was bound to notice if he and Yukio spent the night together. It would not be appropriate. He swallowed, yes, now would be the best time. And he could also put an end to Yukio's pouting that night. Maybe. A rush of nervousness swept through his body, and he clutched the comforter to his chest. Was it normal to think this much about it? To try to add logic? So far this relationship with Yukio had thrown logic to the wind.

He heard the bathroom light click off and the soft padding of Yukio's feet on the floor. Toushiro rolled over to watch him climb into bed. He was wearing silk boxer-briefs that night, because why the hell not, and Toushiro watched as the muscles of his thighs contracted. He shaved, and at first Toushiro had thought it weird, but then he realised just how much work Yukio put into taking care of himself, and he couldn't imagine him not shaving or waxing or whatever he had called it. Yukio lay down next to him, a pecked the tip of his nose.

"So are we really going to bed now like a couple of old men?"

"It's one am."

"I know, but-"

Toushiro shook his head, hair rustling against the pillow, and threw an arm over Yukio's waist.

"I'm not tired, are you?" he asked, returning the embrace.

"Not in particular." Toushiro wiggled closer.

"We could watch another movie?"

Toushiro hummed and pressed his lips to his chin. "We already watched two."

Yukio pecked his forehead in response. "What about like a game?"

Toushiro wrinkled his nose, and smoothed a lock of Yukio's hair behind his ear.

"Start a TV series?" he traced Toushiro's jaw line.

Toushiro sighed softly as placed a couple soft kisses to Yukio's cheek. Just how exactly was he supposed to bring this up?

"Or..." he hummed, raking his fingers through the hair at the nape of Toushiro's neck. "Do you wanna like make out?"

Toushiro scoffed as Yukio grinned cheekily.

"What? You're all over me tonight."

Okay, it was a step in the right direction. Toushiro breathed out through his nose and pecked the corner of Yukio's mouth. Yukio pulled him closer, splaying his fingers between his shoulder blades. Their chests met in a breathless huff. Toushiro grinned, capturing Yukio's mouth and cupping the back of his head with the hand that wasn't trapped between them. Yukio returned the kiss with twice as much passion. And Toushiro felt a familiar heat spread all over his body. He clung to Yukio like his life depended on it, like by kissing him he could rejuvenate himself. Yukio's hand dropped from his between his shoulders to the dip of his spine. He dug his fingers into the dimples there, pulling Toushiro flush against him. Toushiro gasped softly when Yukio kneaded his butt. He gripped Yukio's shoulders tightly, fingers digging into the not-quite-firm muscle.

They broke apart panting. Yukio's face was red and blotchy, and Toushiro was sure that his was the same. Yukio licked his bottom lip, eyeing Toushiro with darkened, green eyes. Toushiro felt shy all of a sudden, and burried his face against Yukio's chest. He felt him chuckle and peck him on the temple. Tosuhiro chewed the inside of his cheek as he wiggled closer. The hand on his butt grabbed a palm-full of muscle and then dropped to his thigh, hoisting his leg over his hip. Toushiro drew in a sharp breath and looked up to see Yukio grinning. He pressed his lips to Yukio's jaw, feeling the boy's Adam's apple bob as he swallowed. He let his hand fall from his shoulder and smoothed the shirt across his chest. Yukio's breath hitched, and, feeling uncharacteristically bold, he took the tip of his ear lobe between his teeth while he palmed Yukio's chest. The boy moaned softly, fingers going back to run up and down Toushiro's spine. He felt as if his entire body was trembling from Yukio's touch and nosed the hollow behind his ear.

"Babe, if we keep this up," his voice was soft and breathy.

"I know," Toushiro replied softly. "You said you wanted this night to be special-" his sentence ended in a yelp as Yukio pushed him flat on his back, moving to hover over him. He pinned Toushiro's wrists to the mattress and was about to kiss him deeply when he caught himself.

"A-are you sure?"

Toushiro swallowed and nodded. "I'm sure."

Yukio stared at him for a short while. Toushiro couldn't tell what was going on in his head, but then he dipped down to give him a playful kiss. "You're so freaking hot, babe," he mumbled pulling back for a second before kissing him again.

Hot. Hot not cute. Toushiro's face burned. He pulled at Yukio's grip on his wrists and the boy let him go. Toushiro immediately wrapped his arms around his waist, eagerly pulling them together. Yukio fell against him with a soft 'oof', but he propped himself up on his elbows as to not crush him. Their kiss was deep and hot, both drinking in each other as if dying of thirst. He nipped on Toushiro's bottom lip gently prying his mouth open and Toushiro's obeyed, moaning softly. He held onto Yukio's waist, pressing his fingers into his skin, wanting to pull him closer and feel every inch of him. Yukio grabbed his thigh, tugging it up to wrap Toushiro's leg around his waist. Toushiro gasped, breaking from the kiss to grab at Yukio's back. His mouth was tingling, lips rubbed raw. But they weren't going to stop.

The explicit version is posted to my Tumblr - Link is in my profile. I don't post any MA stuff here so head on over there if you'd like to read it.

Annnnnd, looks like there's one more chapter in store for this fic. It's going to end at four, I swear.

- Mymomomo