Ichigo rolls his neck with a heavy sigh. He attempts to massage the heavy aching away. He was so, so tired...
He walks through the late night crowds, slowly making his way to his apartment. He hated closing up the restaurant, especially when he's left alone to deal with the entire floor. The only good thing that came out of the shift was meeting Jessie once more.
He just wants to get home and either sleep or draw. Meeting Jessie again made his hands twitch to do something, anything to capture her beauty.
Ichigo rubs his neck one more time before opening his eyes when he passes by the busy club a few buildings away from his apartment complex. He mouth curls in slight distaste at the horrid and poor appearance of the complex. He hopes by the end of the year he could move.
A heavy sigh leaves Ichigo's mouth while he stuffs his hands into his pockets. He walks through the open door to the complex and heads straight towards the mailboxes.
He always checks his mailbox, even though he knows mail doesn't come on Sundays. He hates it when it has something that's only meant for him, but is free for anyone to just reach in and grab. Ichigo almost takes his hand out of the empty mailbox when someone brushes against his finger.
"What...?" Ichigo digs around even further and touches a small package before he wraps his hand around it. It was small and square, fitting perfectly in his curled hand. Ichigo takes it out and opens his hand, blinking at the purple box.
He glances around before turning the box over. It was just a simple purple box. With no sign of being delivered by a mailman nor any evidence of who could have given it to him.
Ichigo almost opens it before a loudly creaking door is wrenched open to his right. He jumps at the noise, heading snapping up. The landlady trudges out with her usual bitchy smile.
"Nakajima-san," The young man greets with a polite tone. He's careful to keep his distaste from showing itself.
"Kurosaki, there's been a new development," Nakajima Nanami states coldly, stopping a few feet across from Ichigo.
Ichigo pauses once more, swallowing back the dread that starts to claw at his heart. "What is it?"
"Someone came by looking for an apartment on the third floor with the perfect view of the street. They're gonna pay more than you would ever give me in a year, so I'm evicting you."
A freezing numbness washes over Ichigo. He stares at the landlady with blank eyes, hand instinctively clenching tightly around the small box in his hand.
"...what?"
"I'm giving you a week to get your stuff and leave. I'll give you back your security deposit the day you leave," Nanami continues as if Ichigo didn't even speak. She turns around on her heel and leaves the young man with the sudden news.
"...I'm being... evicted. What–where... where will I go? I..." Ichigo's head starts to fill with static. Dull eyes stare at the purple box, slightly crushed by the tight grip.
He'll finish Shinji's commission in the next couple days... and he'll be finishing Byakuya's in a week or two, but... but... he can't... this was the only place that had any open, affordable apartments... he...
Feet robotically starts walking, controlled by someone else. Ichigo's chest starts to grow tight as the thoughts scream and cry against the static trying to invade his mind completely. The battle makes his head throb in searing pain.
"I can't... I can't go back to that hellhole... I... not when I... not when I found Kisuke... not–not when I'm happy..." Feet slowly stumbles up old stairs, a shaking hand gripping a railing being the only thing keeping him balanced. "I... I can't burden Rukia–Renji... no... I... I have nowhere else to go. I don't... I don't want to go back. I don't want to go back!"
Ichigo watches as a key goes into his door's lock. His eyesight was growing fuzzy around the edges and he felt something pulse against his leg while he walked into his apartment. He could barely close the door behind him before he collapsed to the ground.
He couldn't... he couldn't understand. Why... why? Why?! Why did it always happen when he found some sliver of happiness?! Why did life wish for him to suffer?! Why couldn't he be allowed to live a life he wanted?! Why couldn't–why couldn't he breathe?! He... he couldn't breathe... he couldn't–
Ichigo slowly blinks when his leg starts to pulse again. His hands were shaky and incredibly weak as he dug through his pocket. Oh. His leg wasn't pulsing... it was just his phone vibrating. Who... who was calling him?
KISUKE
A shaky finger presses against the green button, accepting the call before he could even think about anything else. He doesn't speak, or even pay attention to the fact that he probably sounded like he was dying.
"Breathe, sweetheart. Ichigo, breathe with me. Okay? I'm on my way," Kisuke immediately speaks, voice filled with love and worry. Something Ichigo doesn't deserve.
"K-K-Kis–" His voice fails him as his breaths get almost impossibly faster. He scratches at his face, feeling something wet falling from his eyes.
"Don't do that, Ichigo. My lovely Ichigo, breathe. Listen to me, okay?" Ichigo cries harder as he continues to scratch at his face, trying to scratch away the tears. He shouldn't be crying. Why is he crying? Things like this always happen to him! Why is he so surprised?!
"Ichigo. Ichigo, breathe in." Kisuke's order makes Ichigo snap his head up. He attempts to breathe in, but his breaths come out as wheezes. He tries again and manages to take in a single breath.
"Breathe out." Ichigo listens without pause, wheezes and sobs still clawing out of his throat. He doesn't bother with the stinging on his cheek or how his fingertips start to become crimson by his scratching.
"Good boy. Breathe in..."
Time meant nothing to Ichigo as he followed the orders given to him. He continued to breathe in and out as the fuzziness crawling from the edges of his sight slowly subsided and when his chest didn't feel like it was being clawed from the inside out. He continued to breathe when the throbbing in his static filled mind eased to the slowing beat of his heart. He finally calmed down enough to lower his hand from his face when the world finally came back to him, still crying and breathing fast but calmer than before.
"Kis–Kisuke..." Ichigo speaks softly, his voice completely raw. Kisuke's calming hum makes Ichigo break down all over again.
"K-Kisuke... I–I don't know what to do! I can't–I thought everything... everything was g-getting better and–and–"
"Deep breaths, my lovely Ichigo... I'm almost there. What happened?" Kisuke's question brings out a weeping sob from Ichigo's throat. He shakes his head rapidly as he pulls at his hair.
"I-I can't! Kis–Kisuke, I can't–I can't–I can't go back! I can't, I can't I can't I can't I can't I can't! If–if I do... he won't let me go! I can't I can't I can't! That hellhole... I-I-I–I just found you and–and–and everything's–everything was g-getting better!" Ichigo rambles in his panic. "I–I was happy! I was... I was wanting t-to live! I... I–this always happen! Something–something always happens! I... I just–I–"
"Shh... Ichigo, it's okay. You won't go back... I won't let you, okay? I'm at the apartment complex, do you think you can come outside?" Kisuke continues to speak softly and calmly. Ichigo sobs louder and wordlessly shakes his head.
"That's okay. I'll be up there soon. Stay on the phone for me, my lovely Ichigo."
"O-okay... okay..." Ichigo answers quietly, curling into himself. He sobs as he hugs his knees to his chest, pulling at his hair.
"Don't do that, Ichigo. You'll rip out your hair." The soft and soothing tone of his voice was both helping and making everything worse. Ichigo releases his grip with a loud whine before he opts for just running his hand through his hair. He comforted him, but... Ichigo didn't deserve that comfort. He didn't deserve Kisuke.
"S-sorry... 'm sorry. S'rry..." Ichigo mumbles through his tears. Kisuke shouldn't have to deal with this. This is Ichigo's problem, so he has to fix it. This isn't the worst thing that could happen to him, so why does it hurt him so much?!
The door is quickly opened and closed. Ichigo turns around as it registers before he's taken into warm arms with his face pressed against a chest. Ichigo whines again and grabs at the fabric of the shirt the person was wearing.
"Kis-Kis'ke!" Ichigo sobs loudly, being pulled into the man's lap. Kisuke shushes him and holds him tightly before placing a gentle kiss on Ichigo's forehead.
"It's okay... you did so wonderfully. I'm here now. My lovely Ichigo, it's going to be okay," Kisuke soothes, running through orange hair and down towards his neck. Ichigo continues to cry and presses his face into Kisuke's neck, letting the scent of ink and old books encompass him.
A low hum of some unknown song reverberates through Ichigo's body from Kisuke's chest. Ichigo doesn't really pay attention to the time, nor how long he was curled in his boyfriend's lap. The tears stopped around an half hour to an hour ago and Ichigo was just letting everything wash over him as his breathing slowly calmed.
Kisuke's hand was still petting Ichigo. Kisuke was still humming that unfamiliar tune. Kisuke still held Ichigo in his lap, unmoving even if it probably hurt to have Ichigo's dead weight on his legs.
"...back with me, my lovely Ichigo?" The pale blonde asks softly, resting his head on top of Ichigo's.
Ichigo makes a noise of acknowledgement, wincing at how hoarse and scratchy it felt. His body goes completely boneless into the strong body holding him as the hand petting him gently grabs the back of his neck. He makes another noise of protest when Kisuke forces his head to look up.
Quicksilver eyes, unusually bright, stare into dull tawny eyes, bloodshot and exhausted. "My lovely Ichigo, what happened?"
Ichigo glances between the eyes he loves so much before glancing down at the soft smile adorning his face. He wanted to press his head against Kisuke's neck again, but the hand gripping his neck wouldn't let him move an inch.
"I'm... I'm being evicted... and I... I have to leave in a week, but–but I don't have anywhere to go... and I can't... I don't wanna go back..." Ichigo relents, not that he had much of a fight left in him. "It–getting this shitty apartment... it was so hard, but–but I can't afford anywhere else..."
"Oh, Ichigo..." Kisuke hums and holds Ichigo even tighter against him. Ichigo's hands twitch when he realizes that they were trapped between both of their chests. He glances back up at pauses at the bright quicksilver eyes staring at him.
"I know it's... soon–we've only been dating a little over a month after all... but you can live with me," Kisuke speaks quietly. Ichigo stares with wide eyes, ignoring the funny airy feeling in his chest.
The statement processes in his mind and he quickly tries to shake his head. "K-Kisuke! I–I can't do that! You... I don't want to be a bother..."
"Oh, my lovely Ichigo... you will never be a bother to me... don't you want to live with me?" Kisuke asks softly and tilts his head closer. Ichigo, still lost and muddled from his panic attack, just stays still even as his heart starts to beat faster.
"...yeah... I–okay... okay. Thank you... Kisuke, thank you," Ichigo murmurs, not really registering what was happening. Kisuke smiles with all of his teeth, completely lovestruck.
"There you go, Ichigo..." Kisuke leans forward until his lips barely brush Ichigo's. "Good boy..."
"K-Kisu–hmph!" Kisuke leans forward completely and traps Ichigo into a kiss. Ichigo whines quietly as teeth nip at his bottom lip. His head is kept still by the hand on his neck. He opens his mouth instinctively and a tongue is thrust in.
Ichigo moans quietly, eyes fluttering close as he's trapped in Kisuke's hold. He tries to tilt his head back to try and breathe, but Kisuke just tightens his grip. He doesn't even bother fighting for any kind of dominance in the kiss.
Kisuke hums softly and breaks the deep kiss. A string of saliva connects their lips before breaking. The pale blonde releases Ichigo's neck to gently caress his stinging cheek.
"Kis-Kisuke..." Ichigo speaks breathlessly as his head instinctively presses into the hand. He doesn't even flinch at how the pain stings and burns.
"Did you need something, Ichigo-kun?" Kisuke asks innocently, still incredibly close to Ichigo.
The younger man whines softly and tugs at the shirt still fisted in his hands. "Kisuke... Kisuke, please..."
"You're so cute when you beg..." Kisuke moves his blood smeared thumb and presses it against Ichigo's bottom lip. Ichigo hums softly in delight at the iron taste and opens his mouth.
"Please... I want another kiss... please," Ichigo begs quietly before taking the thumb into his mouth. He couldn't stop the instinct from lightly biting down on the appendage. His teeth ache to bite harder, to bite through the bone and eat.
Kisuke clicks his tongue and lightly tugs down at Ichigo's jaw as a reprimand. "Now, now... that's not how you ask."
Ichigo whines and releases the thumb from his mouth. He presses his head further into the hand still on his cheek as he watches bright quicksilver eyes through his eyelashes.
"Kisuke-san, can I have another kiss... please?" Ichigo asks softly.
Kisuke smiles with a hum and turns his hand around so his knuckles could caress Ichigo's cheek. He leans forward and kisses Ichigo once more. It was just as breathless as the first and made Ichigo yearn for even more.
Eyes flutter close as Ichigo tries to lean even further into the kiss. He opens his mouth when Kisuke nips at his bottom lip again. He moans when his tongue slips through and claims every surface it could.
Kisuke keeps a tight hold around Ichigo's waist before he tilts him backwards. Hands scramble to wrap around a neck instinctively as Kisuke lays Ichigo back against the old floorboards. A hand pulls his legs apart before a body enters between them.
The kiss is broken again and Kisuke stares down at the beauty underneath him. Ichigo pants for breath, his eyes hazy and teary and his face completely flushed beneath the blood dripping from his cheek.
"Beautiful... My beautiful Ichigo... My Ichigo... Mine." Ichigo's eyes flutter at the claim as he mewls.
"Yours! Always yours! Kisuke..."
Yours yours yours yours yours yours yoursyoursyoursyoursyours.
I'm yours. I'm always yours!
Kisuke leans down and presses a kiss to Ichigo's neck, right on his pulse. Ichigo instinctively turns his head to let his boyfriend do whatever he'd like. Kisuke groans at the obvious sign and licks up Ichigo's neck column.
"So sweet for me, Ichigo... Love you–love you so much..." Kisuke bites down against the pulse, making Ichigo cry out. He arches into the pain, hands sliding up to tangle into pale blonde hair.
"Love you, love you too! I love you so much...!" Stars burst in his vision as Kisuke bites even harder into his neck. He whines loudly as he feels something warm slide down his neck.
Kisuke lifts his head with stormy eyes and bloodstained lips. He lifts himself up more and smashes his lips against Ichigo's.
They continue to kiss, laying on the old floor of a crappy apartment complex. A burst of white flashes from the window unnoticed.
"This isn't right! Onīchan, you have to fight it! She's being horrible!" Yuzu exclaims through the phone, making Ichigo laugh quietly. He presses his phone in between his ear and his shoulder, carefully packing his paints and brushes.
"She is, but I never really liked staying here anyway," Ichigo points out with a smile. He hasn't stopped smiling since he woke up.
"Onīchan! You're too nice!" Yuzu scolds, more out of her worry than anything else.
Ichigo laughs again and finishes packing the last of his paintbrushes. "I can't really do anything about it, Yuzu... and I told you at the beginning, Kisuke's going to let me move in with him!"
Ichigo closes the box and expertly tapes it shut. He bends down and grabs the box before walking towards the front door. Eight other boxes were stacked on the right side, waiting to be taken out of the apartment.
"But... didn't you just start dating?" Yuzu asks slowly as Ichigo sets down the box. He reaches up and touches the scratches still all across his cheek. His neck and ears turn red as he remembers the night before.
"It's okay, Yuzu... I–I love Kisuke. I really do." Ichigo turns around and grabs the phone to hold it.
Yuzu sighs from the phone, Ichigo clearly imagining her shaking her head with a fond smile. Something clatters on her side.
"Well... if that's the case, then everything will be okay... but that means you have to promise that Karin-chan and I can visit and make you and Kisuke-san dinner!" Yuzu declares with her determined scowl she got from her big brother.
Ichigo hums softly and walks into the kitchen, pausing when something purple flashes in his peripheral. He glances down and blinks at the slightly crushed purple box sitting innocently on the kitchen counter.
"Yes, yes. I promise. Kisuke will be happy to finally meet you." Ichigo shakes his head and continues walking towards the cleared dining table.
"Yay! I'll let Karin-chan know! Oh! Karin-chan got accepted into the National Junior Soccer League!" Yuzu exclaims brightly.
Ichigo smiles brightly at the news. "They'd be crazy not to accept her! I'll send you some money for a celebration dinner! Is that seafood restaurant still open? The one she wanted to try?"
"Yeah! I'll take her out tonight! Will you be visiting soon?"
"Nah. My commissions are back to back... I don't think I'll be able to visit, until your cooking competition," Ichigo answers, making Yuzu sigh. Ichigo could clearly imagine her pouting.
"I know, I wish I could visit more... but we all needed this–we all need this..." If he didn't leave when he did, someone else would have left. That hellhole or this world.
"I know... I still don't like it..." Yuzu agrees begrudgingly. "You're our Onīchan. It's still scary to be out from under your wing."
"I'm always here for you and Karin. Ask and I'll come running to help. You're both my little sisters," Ichigo states seriously. Yuzu giggles wetly through the phone and moves it around.
"We know... now, finish up your packing! I want a text when you finish moving! And remember to eat!" Yuzu exclaims with no room for argument in her tone.
"Yes ma'am!" Ichigo gives a mock salute even if his sister couldn't see it. "Love you, beastie."
"Love you too, Onīchan. Call you later!" Yuzu ends the call and leaves Ichigo alone in a bright mood. Ichigo takes his phone off of his ear with a smile, staring at Yuzu's contact picture. Yuzu had stolen his phone for the day when she went on a beach trip. When Ichigo got his phone back, he put the only picture Yuzu took of herself as her contact picture.
She was dressed in a one piece swimsuit with a baggie button up shirt she also stole from Ichigo over it. It was one of the only times she didn't wear a jacket or a long sleeved shirt, showing off the long jagged scar across her left wrist and up her arm towards her elbow. Someone else was holding the phone as Yuzu grinned at the camera with both of her hands holding up peace signs with a dollop of ice cream on her nose.
Ichigo sighs softly and turns off his phone. He puts it back into his pocket as he focuses on his dining table. He managed to clean it all off, but left one thing on it. The first finished piece of Ichigo's newest obsession.
"What should I name you...?" Ichigo carefully holds up the drawing with a soft smile.
Dozens of roughly drawn corpses lay across the blood soaked ground, most ripped apart with bright splashes of purple thistles sprouting in droves out of them. A deceptively lithe man stood in the middle of the massacre wearing a wine red yukata with a grey obi belt tied around his waist. The front of the yukata was loose, revealing a muscled chest and fair skin. He held a bloodstained sword with an odd bend at the end and gentle black wrapping around the hilt, a red string looped around and tied on the back of the sword, partially hidden.
Striking quicksilver eyes stared back at Ichigo, a soft smile adorning a slightly sharp face. Blood splattered over the man's face and the pale blonde hair that hung over his face and shoulders. The sun laid right behind the man, barely touching the horizon in the crimson sky. Clouds of soft pink wisped above the sun and the man, covering the crimson sun rays.
Ichigo tilts his head with another sigh, gently rubbing his thumb against his signature at the bottom left corner. Such a beautiful piece... but he doesn't know what to name it.
"...Elegance." The name whispers from the back of his mind, coming forward with a deceptive ease. Ichigo hums and grins.
"Elegance," Ichigo confirms the name with a nod. Kisuke was nothing less than elegant... and Ichigo loved it as much as anything else about Kisuke.
Hey! Hope you all like the new chapter!
Kisuke and Ichigo are finally gonna live together! Woo!
Eventually... EVENTUALLY I'll get to the actual spice besides dreams, thoughts and almost spicy scenes. Eventually.
I hope you all are enjoying the story so far! Bye.
WhovianWhoudini