"Alright, we're here. Open your eyes," Renji said with a grin, nudging Ichigo, who had kindly allowed him to drive him around in his precious car, which was looking great and super-shiny. Ichigo had actually hugged his dad when he'd found out about his birthday present, which of course prompted him to punch Isshin when he got too mushy in reciprocating.

"Okay," Ichigo replied with a small smile, looking out the window. "That one?" he asked. It looked like a normal one-floor house that was a step away from a mobile home, but it was nicer than where they were living now, and it was under their budget, so…

"No, that one," Renji said, rolling down the window a little and pointing to the house next door, which was admittedly a lot bigger, but looked veritably abandoned. Ichigo immediately gave an exasperated sigh and a cynical 'of course it couldn't be the nice one.'

"Are you serious?" Ichigo asked honestly, sarcasm fading away as he looked to Renji. Renji nodded, so Ichigo let it drop, giving his boyfriend the benefit of the doubt. Renji moved the car closer in front of the house and parked on the edge of the yard, getting out with a huge grin. He looked back to Ichigo, who was still hesitantly sitting in the car, looking at the place like it was haunted. This was a nice neighborhood, and this house - although it was white - seemed a lot less cheery in comparison to the others on the block.

Renji was visibly excited, as if he'd come here before by himself many times and was eager to show Ichigo that this was an awesome find. Ichigo was skeptical, but he didn't kill Renji's enthusiasm just yet, letting Renji drag him through the yard, which was thick with field grass and moths. He almost tripped a couple times on hidden rocks and scrap metal; it seemed like there was an entire car buried here or something. Renji pulled him around the side of the house and showed him a bunch of things, still staring at the house like it was his first-born child or something.

Ichigo smiled. Renji had always loved to fix things, and ever since he'd accepted that internship, he'd been a little mopey, because it wasn't exactly what he'd wanted to do, which was to work in an auto-body shop. Instead, for higher pay, he was going to have more of an office-job for a while, at least until they were financially stable. Fixing up a house would be the next-best thing now that his dream was being put on hold. Ichigo understood that, so he didn't immediately start dissing the house, which was in pretty bad shape.

Other than that, Renji had been pretty happy lately, overly bubbly and attentive as if he was trying to make up for something or just keep him in a good mood. It made Ichigo feel sort of guilty, realizing that his stress-rage had been dragging Renji down with him, but more than ever he was grateful that they really had made it out of the dark times, which admittedly had been mostly his fault. Things were going back to how they'd been in high school, maybe even better than that. The other day they'd seriously had a full-out fistfight over a chicken nugget in front of their friends and they'd all asked why the two of them were in such a good mood.

Renji had really missed this, and Ichigo had too, not having realized that it was gone until it was back. They'd made a three-sixty flip back into their normal bickering and insanely competitive bets, and it felt so great. They argued over what to eat, threw stuff at each other from across the room, and they shouted at each other for little things, even just to change the channel, but along with it, Renji kissed him more, Ichigo let things slide more often, and the biggest change was the things they said.

It was funny how three little words can change everything, but they really did seem like magic. Rather than just saying them once in a blue moon, Ichigo found himself telling Renji that he loved him more in a week than he had in the past year. Of course, this was coupled with swatting him upside the head and calling him a 'dipshit'.

That big fight really seemed to have been just what they'd needed, as bad as it sounded. Whenever Ichigo started to actually get ticked, that horrible bruise on Renji's face would serve as a reminder that he couldn't control everything. Seriously, Ichigo felt like kicking himself in the balls every time he looked at Renji's face. He'd hit him really hard, hard enough that it had broken the skin. The bruise left behind was dark purple and even red in some areas.

Renji wore a bandaid on it and when he was asked about it, he just morbidly told everybody that he'd killed a man. Ichigo always just rolled his eyes, imagined Shirosaki with his head on a spear, shifted his weight guiltily, and then held Renji's hand for a while in an attempt to make up for it.

Renji didn't seem to hold any sort of grudge over the punch-wound, not even mentioning it once or ever complaining that it hurt, even though it obviously did. What concerned Ichigo was that they hadn't discussed Renji's spontaneous proposal or any sort of plans regarding marriage or when it was going to happen, or even if it had been serious. Ichigo thought about that sometimes, but supposed it was okay for them to wait for a while until they had some money saved up for a nice ceremony. It would be better to see if this peace was going to last, and Ichigo really thought that it would. He was happy this way. It had been so long since he'd been freely happy like this and it felt really good.

The nightmares about Shirosaki had immediately disappeared, so abruptly that it really was as if Renji had killed the guy. His sleep was no longer haunted by the pale-faced demon, but he'd still had a couple bad dreams about being abandoned and had promptly woken up and freaked out every time Renji had gotten up during the night and left the bed empty while he was going to the bathroom. Renji hadn't had any nightmares or late-night hunger-attacks since his STD check-up, and Ichigo was hoping it would last. Maybe Renji really had realized that their lives had reached a turning point now that he was getting a new job. Maybe that was what had made Renji come back: he'd decided that now that their affairs were in order and the craziness had the potential to settle down, it was a good time for them to get hitched. Everything was 'bazoobs', as Renji put it.

The best thing was that Ichigo could finally breathe. He was starting to notice that he was smiling more than usual and that he wasn't saying 'no' to Renji as often, as if that little piece of advice to let things go had really gotten through to him. Besides that, he was feeling a lot more capable now that Renji was making him get ten hours of sleep without exception, and he was waking up feeling alert again, which made sense, because stress and sleep deprivation were actually serious health risks. It gave him a serious boost to his patience reservoirs, which helped him with basically everything else.

It wasn't as if Renji wasn't eager to be helpful either. Ichigo found himself asking Renji to do little things multiple times per day, like getting him juice, or balancing the checkbook, or even just bringing him a blanket, which shouldn't feel so odd, but it did, because Ichigo usually did everything by himself. Renji offered help a lot too – without using the word 'help', of course – and he always came through and finished whatever he'd charged himself with, letting Ichigo know when he'd taken care of something. Ichigo was still getting used to abandoning stressful activities whenever Renji swooped in and said 'Here baby, let me', but he supposed it wasn't abad thing, right? It still felt weird to look up and say 'Hey babe, I want you to-', but Renji never complained. In fact, he seemed happy that Ichigo was really trying to change his ways.

Renji had been like an enthusiastic puppy, fully enjoying the fact that Ichigo was giving him those little looks of love again and letting him handle more stuff. It wasn't like they were settling into 'traditional roles', but Ichigo had relinquished his grip on being the only one to handle their finances and keeping the house nice. They shared things more equally now, and had been focusing most of their free time on house hunting. Ichigo didn't really like doing it, because it basically entailed just looking at a bunch of empty rooms and talking about money all the time. Money had been at the root of his worries, after all, but besides that, he had a hard time with imagining where their stuff would go and what each room would be for, but Renji was having fun with it, so Ichigo came along and suffered through it.

They'd gone to see a house out in the sticks, which was strange, because Ichigo was used to having neighbors that were within throwing distance. He liked the idea of having a yard and not having to be bothered with keeping quiet, but all the same, he didn't know if he wanted to live there for the rest of his life. He realized that it was stupid to treat the house like he was going to be stuck there forever, but still. Renji didn't seem to know if he wanted to move away from the city either, but both of them had given the place a chance. It was pretty nice, but they would feel weird inviting people over, making them come so far out of their way just to see them.

Most of the other places they'd seen were one-story high, and were dinky little buildings with low ceilings and scarcely more space than a trailer. They were only two people, but still, it seemed pretty crowded. What if they needed to put up one of their friends for the night? What if they had a party? Renji seemed frustrated that he couldn't find anyplace nicer, but he seemed to be having fun looking. He'd been the one who'd been looking for the houses and bringing Ichigo there to see if they liked them, and Ichigo was fine with letting him handle it, because there was no hurry, right?

The one that Ichigo had liked had been white, on a shaded road that wasn't too busy or far from the college, and it had two floors, although it was squished so close between the neighboring buildings that there was probably only room for garbage cans and bikes. Their cars would have to be parked on the street, because there was no garage or driveway. There was already a washer, a dryer, and a dishwasher inside the house, and that was pretty good, if you asked Ichigo. Renji didn't want to settle for that one, but they'd put it on their 'maybe' list.

Ichigo had told Renji about a few nice apartments that he'd seen for a nice price, but Renji had shook his head and replied that he didn't want to rent anything anymore. Ichigo conceded that, fine, they could get an actual piece of property, even if it was pretty hard to find a nice one.

He could see on Renji's face that he was imagining them living in each house, trying to picture how things would look and what they could do together to fix it up nice. Ichigo couldn't get quite as enthusiastic about it as Renji, and mostly listened when Renji talked about what they should do, which walls they could repaint, and how they could rearrange stuff.

All that being said, Ichigo didn't know if he wanted to move in here to this dump.

The place they were parked in front of now was available for a modest price, which was surprising given the size. This place washuge, but that was basically the only thing that impressed Ichigo here, because it was really busted up. There were two stories and a basement, a large yard space in front and behind, and no porch, but Ichigo could see Renji envisioning it fixed up. The grass in the front yard was thigh-length, there was a mattress leaning against the side of the house, there was no garage, and when they actually went inside, Ichigo bit his tongue to shut himself up.

There were some broken windows, the basement looked like a prison, and there were some leaking pipes on the second floor, along with exposed wires and crumbling plaster. Every single wall was the same yellowed-cream color, and the carpet was the same throughout the whole house, except for one room with dark green shag carpet. The kitchen was tiled, and there was a stove and an ancient fridge, but the cupboards had been taken, which was evident by the clear spots on the wallpaper. The room next door was presumably a dining room, and that one had hardwood floors.

There were a lot of small rooms without doors that were probably meant to be closets or bathrooms, but either way, it was pretty pitiful and far from habitable. The few pieces of furniture from their apartment that they actually owned would hardly fill up a room. There was a lot to work on, but Ichigo still kept his mouth shut, listening to Renji go on about what they could do with each room and which walls they could tear down so that the hallways made more sense.

The more Ichigo listened, the more he realized that he wasn't looking at the same house as Renji. He didn't see the house itself, but the house's potential. Ichigo looked up to Renji, watching him emote and rave about how they could have barbecues in the back-yard or a huge trampoline, and for a second it was as if they'd just gotten together yesterday, their love completely new. Ichigo fought off a grin, turning into a grimace when Renji flipped a light switch, causing it to short out. At least the place didn't have cockroaches.

Ichigo let Renji sling his arm around his shoulder, going out to stand by their car to see it from a distance again.

"So, what do you think?" Renji asked, looking down to Ichigo, who was silent for a moment with disgust.

"It's horrible," Ichigo said sourly, staring at it. Renji didn't say anything, looking to him in disappointment, wondering if he could convince him to at least consider it. Ichigo looked back up to him, mouth just talking on its own again. "Let's get it."

Renji grinned, laughing a little bit; that had really surprised him. Maybe things really had changed for the better. Ichigo had gotten so much easier going immediately following quitting his job and cutting back on the amount of classes he took per semester. Renji kissed Ichigo with a smile, crunching their noses together. They looked at the house for a couple more minutes, walking back through it again, making a list of what they would fix first.

Renji made a little floor map of all the rooms, walls, and doorways, marking which ones they could resize and change. Ichigo just nodded and pointed out that the basement needed a lot of work too, wondering aloud if it would flood or anything. Renji erased something and hummed, giving Ichigo a paper for the basement floor, which he'd forgotten in his map. Ichigo also mentioned that they should focus on insulating one room first, so that they'd at least have one warm room this winter to sleep in.

The yard stretched around the left side of the house, and Renji drew a little house map on another sheet of paper, marking off a square area for where a garage could go, and then an area of concrete where they could park their cars. The way he arranged it, they wouldn't even have to get rid of the two apple trees in the yard, which he drew a fence for. "Good?"

"Looks expensive," Ichigo commented. Renji just grinned and told him he was dreaming too small.

They'd need to take out a big loan, and they would probably have to spend nearly every penny they could spare on repairing the house enough that it was habitable. They'd already spent all their extra cash on their vacation and helping Ikkaku out with getting him some cheap clothes and toiletries. They might not even be able to buy furniture for a while, but they didn't see that as such a problem. The general rule of house hunting was to get as much space you could for as little money as possible, and then worry about renovations. By the time they were done fixing it up, they'd probably hike up the worth of the property quite a bit, although they'd probably drive their neighbors nuts by constantly working on the place. They'd have to stretch out their projects over quite a few years, because there was no way they could afford to fix everything at once.

Honestly, Ichigo was sort of looking forward to working on it. He had a thing for watching Renji using power tools, and he liked the idea of sitting around on crates, drinking pop, watching a tiny tv from a thrift store that only played tapes. They could spend all their time together doing laundry, pulling up the carpet, reinsulating walls and playing cards in the dark. It would be fun; They'd work on the roof and paint the walls and just be kids for a while, kids still in college, still young people that had time to be comfortable later. Most of all, Ichigo liked the idea of them living here and staying together long term. He hoped no one had bought this piece of shit of a house before them, but Renji had mentioned something about it being empty for a while, so there wasn't a big risk.

When they went home, Renji called the homeowner again and told them that they'd decided. Ichigo grinned from where he was laying on the couch, already thinking about putting some of their stuff in boxes. Maybe later he'd make some baked goods for their landlady as a thank-you gift and a goodbye.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Hm? Nothin'," Ichigo said with a grin, turning back to the TV which wasn't actually on, which was probably the reason for Renji's concern. "Just happy," he mumbled, closing his eyes for a little while.

"Good…" Ichigo looked up for a minute, but Renji had already turned around to do something else, hiding his expression. "Okay, well I'm gonna' go get a pizza. Ya' wanna' pick what goes on it?"

"Hm… here, I'll write it down." Ichigo got up and pulled a sticky note off the fridge, writing down a few things. Renji noticed that there was dirt under Ichigo's fingernails, which were a little longer than normal. This was very strange because Ichigo kept his hands in immaculate condition because of frequent hand-washing and glove-use at work.

"What the fuck?" Renji mumbled, wondering if they'd gotten dirty when they were helping Ikkaku salvage anything in his apartment that hadn't gotten burnt to a crisp. It didn't look like ash, though. It was just dirt that came with not washing your hands for a while. Renji's eyebrows crinkled as he leaned forward to take a closer look at Ichigo's hand, which was still writing on the little slip of paper.

"What? You don't have to get it on your half, you baby," Ichigo pouted, thinking he was talking about the pizza toppings he'd chosen. Renji just shook his head and griped back that he should shut up. Ichigo blew a raspberry and slapped the paper list against Renji's chest.

"You're a pain in the ass."

"Oh yeah?" Renji grinned, mouth twisting sideways as Ichigo walked past him. He reached out and pinched his butt, before booking it out of the house. Ichigo ran after him and opened the door, shouting down the stairwell that he'd forgotten his wallet. Renji looked up just in time for the wallet to hit him in the face. Ichigo's resounding laughter was enough to block out the pain in his nose.

He grinned all the way to Hungry Howie's, still just thinking about how Ichigo had that habit of religiously washing his hands, but it seemed like he'd suddenly stopped or something.

When he came back with the pizza and some chicken wings that he'd decided to buy at the last minute, Ichigo was cutting fruit on the counter, and had set a couple bags of chips and cans of soda on the coffee table. They were quiet for a while as they watched the science channel, but that was only because they were too busy eating. When they got pizza, they had this rule about not having to divide it evenly, so that meant if they ate faster, they might get more than half the pizza for themselves.

Renji burped, flopping down across Ichigo's lap, which was a bad idea, because Ichigo had his paper plate resting there. Luckily, he was alert enough that he'd picked it up in time for his head to slam down against his legs and not into his food.

"Geev'," Ichigo said, rolling his eyes as he chewed, jokingly putting the plate back on Renji's face. Renji moved it down to his chest, letting Ichigo feed him some chips and eat over the top of him, which was okay, because Ichigo was a clean eater who didn't drop many crumbs. To Renji's pleased surprise, Ichigo ate some chicken wings, which he usually didn't do because he didn't like having greasy hands. It made sense when Ichigo started using those wet-nap things and was wiping his fingers off, putting the seat recliner up.

Renji hummed and got more comfortable against Ichigo's body. He seemed to have a little more meat on him now, and Renji jokingly suggested that he was turning into a marshmallow, mock-biting his stomach. Ichigo just put a cushion over Renji's face and turned the TV volume up.

"Okay, okay," Renji whined, quieting down, turning onto his side towards the TV, pleased when Ichigo dried his hands and then pulled his hair tie and bandanna out, running his fingers through his hair and tugging on his scalp. Renji immediately went limp and still, eager to enjoy the rare treat for as long as Ichigo would do it for. Renji burped again to Ichigo's distaste, and Renji mumbled that he needed to renew his gym membership and get a haircut.

Renji poked at his own stomach, frowning miserably at how soft his gut had gotten. Ichigo just shoved him a little before going back to combing out his hair.

"After we move, maybe," Ichigo said back quietly, squeezing and pressing on Renji's head in different spots, rubbing his furrowed brow until it relaxed. He jokingly tickled Renji's nose with a piece of his red hair, going back to combing it soothingly with his fingers. "How 'bout after the holidays?"

"Dude," Renji said flatly, "The holidays are literally in like half a year. I have to be chubby for half a year?"

"We'll probably be taking a break from working on the house in the winter, so we'll have time to crack down on exercising after eating all that holiday shit," Ichigo said, and Renji smiled a little, back to thinking about the house. He hoped that purchasing it and moving in went smoothly. He was really excited. By the time Christmas came, they'd have their own home and would be starting the new year there. Perhaps it was better to start going to the gym after Thanksgiving and all those holiday meals. Then he wouldn't feel guilty about eating so much while visiting with Ichigo's family. Of course, that meant he'd have to work off all those extra calories.

"I'm gonna' be even worse by the time we go to the gym? What kind of plan is that?!"

"I mean, we should still work out and stuff, but don't get a gym membership when you know we're going to be focusing on other things."

"Okay, fine," Renji mumbled, closing his eyes, listening to Mythbusters. Ichigo had gone on to petting his head, which was rising on Ichigo's stomach with each of his breaths. "Mm," Renji sighed, leaning back into it, looking up at Ichigo, who he was surprised to see had been watching him instead of the TV. "You smell good."

"Shut up," Ichigo said, leaning forward to grab his pop off the coffee table, sandwiching Renji's head between his chest and legs in the process. "Ah geez," he said in complaint, struggling to reach it without getting up, which forced him to stretch his legs pretty far because the recliner was still up.

"Love you, sweetie pie," Renji said, voice muffled from the chips he'd just stuffed in his mouth.

"I said shut up, or I'll bake you into a pie."

"Oh, sweet! Let's watch Sweeney Todd!" Renji shouted, sitting up. Ichigo just grabbed his hair gently and pulled him back down with a grumble.

"Nah, just stay here. I wanna' see if you can really save gas on sixth gear," Ichigo complained, watching the TV intently. Renji huffed, reminding Ichigo that his car was an automatic anyways. "So what?"

"So nothing," he said lightly, getting comfortable on his boyfriend's lap again, enjoying the gentle scalp massage and the fingers combing out his hair. His neck was tingling like crazy and his bones turned to butter when Ichigo scratched lightly around his hair line and at the nape of his neck. He let out a low noise, eyes fluttering shut. He made an effort to stay as still as possible, hoping that if he was motionless, Ichigo might do this for longer. "I wonder what Ikkaku's doing."

"Tch'. He's at Yumichika's place," Ichigo said with an amused lilt to his voice. "He's more than fine."

"Heh', yeah," Renji said with a grin, kissing Ichigo's fingers when they ran over his face to catch some stray hairs. "Still… I just wonder about that fire, sometimes."

"We watched the news report, remember? They had footage of the central furnace. It just exploded, right? That's all."

"I guess so," Renji said, brow furrowing. Ichigo rubbed on it, but Renji didn't let up, looking up to him. "It's just creepy that Kaa was lurking around in time to get Yumichika like that."

"It's cause' he's weird," Ichigo insisted, and Renji made a humming sound to show that he agreed. Ichigo had liked Kaa a lot in the past, but he'd been really suspicious of him since Ikkaku and Yumichika had started dating, so if Ichigo didn't think that Kaa had something to do with the fire, then he probably didn't.

"I'm gonna' say what we're both thinking… What if he did it?"

"He couldn't have started the fire, if that's what you mean. Ikkaku said that Kaa looked like he was gonna' have a heart attack when he saw how bad Yumichika had gotten hurt."

"Well that's true," Renji mumbled, still bearing a grudge against the guy. "But what if he did it, but he just didn't mean for it to get so out of hand? Maybe it was an accident for it to spread to the whole building?"

"He didn't start that fire. You're just biased against him," Ichigo said calmly, one hundred percent sure. "They ruled out arson. We're just lucky that Kaa's been such a freaky stalker lately. It's just him being a weirdo, nothing else."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I don't think he's that kind of person," Renji said with a sigh. "He's a self-centered asshole and his thought processes are really convoluted, but he wouldn't try to kill people. Especially not Yumichika."

"Right. I wouldn't put it past him to come up with some twisted plan to put Yumichika in danger so he could rescue him, but he would never put Yumichika in real danger. He did not start that fire. Seriously, he jumped like a foot in the air that one time we went to that restaurant with them and there was a chef flambéing something from across the room. He's not an arsonist, he's just a weirdo, okay?"

"He was never like this before. Everyone loves him, you know, but lately he's finally showing what a messed-up guy he is. Why do you think everyone liked him in the first place?... I mean, you guys all liked him, don't try to lie, but I always get this weird creepy feeling when I'm around him, even before all this happened."

"You liked him too."

"I know, but... I still felt like everything that came out of his mouth was borderline insensitive or inappropriate. It's easy to see that he's strange now. My gut wasn't wrong. He was a freak all along."

Ichigo shook his head, defending the old Kaa that he'd liked. "No, he wasn't. Yumichika left him. Heartache does messed up shit to people." Renji thought of Ichigo breaking down in tears after he'd left, and then nodded solemnly.

"The guy's not an arsonist, he's just weird," Ichigo said again.

"Yeah, I guess having lava-hair doesn't equate him with being a pyromaniac," Renji supposed, still not sure if he liked the guy, even if it had all been a bad case of him lurking at the scene at the right time to swoop in and help. He may not have started the fire, but he was still a creep who had done bad things in the past. In Renji's eyes, this didn't completely redeem him.

"Right. Just like you. Remember when we were younger and I gave you a sparkler and you seriously almost cried?"

"Hey now," Renji growled, swatting Ichigo a little when he tugged on his hair teasingly. "I just wonder how Yumichika's holding up. He didn't look so good when we went to see him."

"I'll call Ikkaku tomorrow and ask how he's doing if you want," Ichigo offered, opening his mouth so Renji could feed him a pretzel. "I'm sure he'll get over it." Renji stayed quiet for a second, but the question he didn't ask still hung in the air.

'Will he, though? And will Kaa?'

"Ikkaku'll take care of him."

"How?" Renji asked lightly, looking to Ichigo.

"Let's face it, Ikkaku's a yutz. He's going to be takin' his little niece in, and he has nowhere to go right now. Yumichika's obviously going to let him stay over at his place until Ikkaku gets another room or his apartment gets rebuilt, and by being in close contact, they'll just take care of each other. It's fine."

"I hope everything works out."

"Me too."

"Hey, they should come camping with us this year," Renji suggested. Ichigo nodded absently, watching the TV. Renji grinned, thinking of all the plans they'd made to do fun things this year. Everything would go back to normal, what with them going places together and just hanging out. Renji then made a miserable noise, holding his gut. "I think I ate too much again. I really wish you would stop me. I'm seriously getting chubby."

"More of you to love," Ichigo said roughly, resolutely looking in the other direction. Renji paused for a moment, heart melting. Rather than making an 'aw' noise at Ichigo's rare show of affection, Renji just whined in despair, pinching his belly fat.

"You think it's fine now, but just wait until you realize your boyfriend's turning into a whale!"

Ichigo made an exasperated annoyed noise, giving Renji a look as if to say he was talking nonsense. Renji kept moping and squeezing his gut, making sickie noises. Rather than slapping him and demanding he stop with the drama queen routine, Ichigo just petted his head and pulled Renji's shirt down over his stomach so he'd stop fidgeting with it.

"My stomach hurts," Renji repeated blandly, frowning and trying to look down at it again, but Ichigo just held his shirt down, saying that if he'd quit jabbing at it, then the pain might go away.

"Want some Pepto?" Ichigo offered, pinching Renji's nose, which still was a little sore after that run-in with his wallet. His thumb brushed gently over his cheek bruise, and Ichigo leaned down and kissed it, moving back to Renji's lips for a few seconds, kissing softly. "Hm?" he asked again when he didn't answer.

"Nope. I just need some more pop," Renji said, sitting up begrudgingly, wary that Ichigo would take the opportunity to get up and then his nice pillow would be gone.

"More pop?" Ichigo asked skeptically. Renji nodded, downing the rest of a two-liter. "You're never gonna' get to slee-"

Renji burped pretty loud, actually coughing a little afterwards. "Wow, see? I feel so much better." Ichigo gave a long-suffering sigh, shaking his head, mumbling that he was so glad he'd never joined a fraternity. "Sit back down, I want my pillow back," Renji whined, lying back down in Ichigo's lap.

"Okay, just quit moving your head around. You're digging it into my crotch, and it hurts," Ichigo complained. Renji insisted that he just had to find a comfortable spot. Ichigo slouched back into the couch and pulled his shirt down, making a flat space that Renji immediately took. They watched TV for another half an hour, not talking much.

When they went to sleep that night, Renji realized why Ichigo hadn't been washing his hands when he saw that the little marker-ring he'd drawn was still in perfect condition.

"I got the part!" Yumichika screamed, rolling over and kicking his legs excitedly, getting himself tangled in his blankets as he just stared at his phone screen, which had gone black after his conversation had ended.

He sat up in his bed and walked out into the hall, knocking on the bathroom door. "I got the part, Ikkaku!" he repeated, knowing that Ikkaku had likely heard him the first time.

"Sweet! Good job!" Ikkaku called from the shower. "Aah, geez, it's so cold," he whined. Yumichika beamed, hands over his chest, clutching his phone to his heart as he pressed his ear to the bathroom door. He was so happy that he could hardly stand still.

"I said right is warm and left is cold, remember?"

"Yeah, but it's not working," Ikkaku griped, teeth obviously chattering. "Why don't you come in here and help me?" he joked.

"Pssh, yeah right." Yumichika just rolled his eyes and walked out into his front room. It was good to be home, as much as he'd enjoyed staying at Ikkaku's house. The place had charm, even though the water temperature and the TV reception was admittedly sensitive to changes in the weather. He also felt very peaceful here, since this had been the place he'd chosen when he'd finally moved out from living with Kaa. It felt empowering to be here.

Yumichika was excited that he finally was free from that horrible grocery-store job. He didn't want to call and quit just yet, wanting to make sure his new job opportunity was a sure thing beforehand, but still, he was so close to finally getting what he'd dreamed of. This was that proverbial opportunity that supposedly would open every other door he'd ever need to go through.

He had been staying home and recovering over the past few days, with Ikkaku there to remind him of when to take his eyedrops and when to use his inhaler. His coughing had stopped, but his throat was still sore, which gave him a raspy tone to his voice. His eyes felt so much better, and the only thing left that needed to heal was his heart; Yumichika was starting to feel like it was okay if it never did heal. Maybe he could live a viable life with it constantly bleeding.

It hurt. Yumichika admitted it; it stung like hell. He felt like everything that Kaa had ever done had compiled itself and hit him in the face. He wouldn't have the last say this time. His mind wouldn't have the same closure that it had had before when he'd broken things off with Kaa in the grocery store and made up his mind that this was the end.

No, Kaa had rescued him and Yumichika had started to remember the good times they'd had, the past years in which Kaa had treated him well and loved him. It made Yumichika want to keep him in his life, to consider being with him again, to consider waiting for just a little longer. Kaa just had to go and be selfless, which Yumichika hadn't counted on. Kaa had made him change his mind, but had left him, and now Yumichika would forever wonder, would forever feel like Kaa was 'the one that got away', that maybe if he'd given him one more chance, things would have changed for the better like he'd always hoped. It absolutely sucked.

Yumichika hadn't cried when Kaa left, of course. He was far too used to this heartache of being left by now, even if this was more intense than he'd ever had to bear before. He kept it together for Ikkaku's sake, but when he'd finally been left alone, he'd allowed himself a few silent tears. It hurt, it hurt so badly, even though he had feelings for Ikkaku now. Kaa had been his only love for a long time, and of course it would hurt to have him taken away after such a long messy string of staying and waiting.

Yumichika knew that Ikkaku knew that he was depressed, because if he moped too conspicuously, Ikkaku - when he thought Yumichika wasn't paying attention - would get this crushed, hopeless, concerned look on his face, as if he knew the pain he was going through but didn't know how to begin to heal it. Yumichika had even less of an idea, but he tried to keep it under to help Ikkaku out. It wasn't the poor guy's fault that any of this had happened.

Whenever horrible dark thoughts descended upon him like that, he just took a moment to thank the universe that they'd all survived this. They were all alive, Ikkaku and Kaa hadn't been hurt, and Haruki had lived too. Yumichika had been so worried when they'd come back to his apartment and he'd finally realized that he never found out what had become of his pet. Apparently, Kaa had taken it upon himself to take her home and leave her in Yumichika's rooms. It had felt so good to see her run up to them when they opened the door. Yumichika felt like that had helped him heal a little bit, like a bandaid over a cut that obviously needed stitches.

He was starting to believe that no matter how much he liked Ikkaku, no matter how fond he became of him, some little piece of him would always be waiting for Kaa, always holding the most secret place in his heart for him. It didn't seem fair to Ikkaku, and Yumichika wanted this pain to go away so badly, but he just couldn't help how he felt. That lingering question would always be there, and Yumichika would always wonder whether he could go back to Kaa or if things could've been different. He would always have this tiny hope, and a small part of him would always be holding out. What would Ikkaku do if he knew that Yumichika might never be able to love him like he should?

Worse than ever, Yumichika wondered about his career. Would Kaa have been happy for him if he had known? Would he have cheered and been excited? Would he have spun him in a circle and said that he'd known he could do it? With each new accomplishment and success, he wouldn't be able to tell Kaa or feel whether he would've been proud of him. His goals seemed stupid and worthless suddenly without that recognition, even though Ikkaku was supporting him so well. He'd wanted this so badly, and now he was finally following his dream, but it just didn't feel as sweet anymore… like some part of his victory was absent. Yumichika just felt lost.

He realized that all this negative thinking had caused his throat to close up and his hands to clench up into fists. He began to cough when his throat started itching, which drove the tears from his eyes. He quickly wiped his face and whined when the coughing hurt his sore throat. He frowned harshly; he would not fall to pieces with Ikkaku here.

He did have feelings for Ikkaku, after all. Ikkaku had cried for him. Ikkaku had thought he was dead, and he'd been so worried and distraught that he'd actually cried. Ikkaku really did love him, and that had to count for something. Even though all Yumichika wanted was his old lover, he did still care for Ikkaku and want to be with him. It just hurt at the moment, and Yumichika knew better than to make rash decisions when he was sad, just as he never made promises when he was happy. No, he wouldn't leave or break things off with Ikkaku. He would wait this out and see if the pain would become easier to deal with.

Yumichika got up and wet his face in the kitchen sink, scrubbing under his eyes, only allowing himself one miserable moment before he pushed it off of his expression until his face revealed nothing. He refused to let Ikkaku be the victim of his emotional confusion. Ikkaku was a good man, and he didn't deserve to feel guilty just because Yumichika had fallen for the 'hero' routine. These new feelings and this weakness were nothing but the product of Kaa saving his life, right? They would probably go away if he waited. It was just a fluke. He didn't owe Kaa anything, especially now that he'd left. Yumichika kept telling himself these things, but some part of him didn't believe any of it.

That had been a true sacrifice. Even though Kaa had been smiling and hadn't looked back once, Yumichika could feel that Kaa had done this because of his love for him, even though it hurt him tremendously. Even though Kaa had left him countless times before, not coming home or staying out with other people, this time it was for real. He'd made Yumichika cut his last tie to him, letting him break the one-sided commitment that he surely knew was there. Kaa had gone to let him have a new chance at life, a new chance for love, and a new chance to follow his dream, and it would be a terrible shame to waste that sacrifice. No, Yumichika would not seek him out. He would not go looking for him or beg him to come back. Kaa had rescued him to give him a new life, so Yumichika had better live it, or he'd just be plain wasteful.

Still, part of him hoped that in a few years that maybe he and Kaa might… just maybe…

When Yumichika saw his reflection in the sink faucet, he'd never hated it more. Look how pathetic he'd become, how needy. Kaa had been absent as much as Gin had for Rangiku. Kaa had cheated openly, he'd wandered, he'd brushed him off, and here Yumichika was, still crawling after him. He'd been strong for years, suffering through all of Kaa's tricks and games, and he'd never broken down, and look at him now. He was so stupid! How on earth could he endure all that, and now that it was all over, he wanted that heartache and the bad treatment back? What was wrong with him?! Ikkaku had been so kind and understanding towards him, and look how he was treating his affections by yearning for another! Ikkaku was giving him everything, but Yumichika just couldn't find it in him to love him back when he was hurting so badly. What a horrible person he was.

Yumichika shut off the water and sat down in front of his coffee table, rifling through his mail. Right then, all he wanted was to quiet his mind. If he couldn't think anything nice, then he wouldn't think at all.

As if sensing his distress, Ikkaku came out of his bathroom, dripping wet. When Yumichika looked up, he saw that he'd put on the clothes he'd worn yesterday and the day before. Although the apartment building hadn't collapsed, Ikkaku's rooms had been badly damaged in the fire. All their new furniture had been destroyed, which was a real shame, but since Ikkaku had rented the place, the insurance was going to cover all of it. The only other things that had survived had been what was boxed up in that side room Ikkaku had never let Yumichika in.

Ikkaku was confused; the wires of his beliefs had completely crossed. He thought it was lucky that Yachiru was being given to him, because if the social worker hadn't called at that time, he wouldn't have left the house, and his sword may have perished in the fire as a result. At the same time, if he had stayed, maybe his apartment wouldn't have been destroyed, and he and Yumichika wouldn't have been separated; more importantly, Yumichika wouldn't have been put in danger. He was torn between relief that his sword was okay, and that Yumichika was alive. Yumichika had to admit, Ikkaku was more attentive than usual, as if he was still expecting him to curl up and croak from coughing too hard.

For now, Ikkaku couldn't go retrieve any of his destroyed things and was waiting for the wreckage to be cleared away, only able to take home all of his boxed-up undamaged items and store them in Yumichika's front room in a pile. He'd been at Yumichika's house for a few days now, and it was taking some getting used to. He felt overly-cautious being here, as if he was constantly on the edge of breaking something or intruding on Yumichika's personal space or his private belongings. Yumichika hadn't even let him lookinside his bedroom, which was fine, but that boundary told Ikkaku that he was an outsider and wasn't exactly welcome here.

Ikkaku was pretty concerned about Yumichika, whose coughing had slowly ceased over the course of a week. He'd been depressed and distant, obviously missing Kaa. Ikkaku had been really worried that Yumichika might spiral to an absolute low and maybe even start self-harming, but his spirits were lifted now that he'd found out that Yumichika had definitely gotten that part. The poor guy had worked so hard on his lines, and he definitely deserved to be picked for this. Ikkaku was glad that this had happened, because it seemed like Yumichika's mood had brightened up now that he could focus on his career again. This was good, even if it would only distract him from his troubles for a little while.

Ikkaku was still trying to figure out just what he was going to do about Yachiru. She wasn't going to be handed over to him just yet, but still, he needed to plan ahead. What if he didn't have a solid plan for his living situation by then? She might be taken away for good. He had to get a place to live fast, even if it was only a motel room or something.

Besides that, if he and Yumichika were going to keep living together, he didn't know if CPS would allow him to take Yachiru. He didn't know about any of the adoption processes or their protective measures against kids, and he was starting to wonder if his relationship with Yumichika would interfere with him being able to have custody of her. Not just because they were in a homosexual relationship either, but because Yumichika had come into his life only recently and wasn't a family member.

Ikkaku thought about stuff like that a lot, and already he felt like his heart was being stretched apart. On one hand, he wanted to be loyal to Kenpachi's wishes and fulfill that duty - even if he didn't exactly want to take care of Yachiru full time - and on the other, he wanted to devote all his free time to getting to know Yumichika and to strengthen the trust between them. What if he couldn't do both?

Ikkaku shook it off, congratulating Yumichika again. If something horrible happened in the future, the least he could do was allow himself to enjoy the present.

"I'm so happy," Yumichika said with a smile, looking up to Ikkaku from where he was sitting on the floor. "Lucky, huh?"

"No," Ikkaku said bluntly, staring at Yumichika. "That's not luck. You got picked because you deserved to be picked. You worked really hard for this. Don't just put the credit on luck," Ikkaku said with a laugh, seeing Yumichika grin in response. Then he told Yumichika that he was proud of him. For some reason, that caused the smile to flee Yumichika's face so fast that it was almost as if Ikkaku had slapped him.

As if he'd been slugged in the gut, Ikkaku realized that Yumichika only wanted that validation from Kaa right now. He buttoned his lips, busying himself with mixing a drink in the kitchen so that Yumichika could get himself together without being scrutinized.

Even though Yumichika hadn't brought up anything about Kaa or the fire, Ikkaku could feel that they were skirting around it. He was itching to say something about it, but he knew Yumichika was in a fragile state. He didn't want to just come out and accuse Kaa – the man Yumichika was pining after – of setting fire to that building. He had a sick suspicion in his gut, but at the same time, he acknowledged that the feeling could just be jealousy making him jump to conclusions, so he kept his mouth shut. Some part of him was still whispering ominously that they hadn't seen the last of Kaa.

The guy had said 'keep him warm', as if to say that he should keep him warm until he got back. Ikkaku cringed. Hopefully they wouldn't have to deal with that for a good long while.

Yumichika watched a cooking show for about half an hour, getting a call from Rangiku while he sorted his mail. Ikkaku lazed around with him, watching a guy cut meat on the TV. He felt the need to touch Yumichika and make sure he was okay, to make sure he could feel that even though Kaa was gone, someone still loved him, so he'd been petting him and stroking his hair almost obsessively over the past few days. Of course, Yumichika greatly valued his personal space, so Ikkaku had learned to tone it down, just settling for sitting within arm's reach while he watched TV.

Ikkaku enjoyed listening to the tone of Yumichika's voice while he talked on the phone. He sounded genuinely happy again, and Ikkaku already missed it. He was beginning to give up hope that he could be the one to help Yumichika get out of his slump, because whenever he tried to comfort him, it just seemed to remind Yumichika that he wanted comfort from Kaa.

Ikkaku was starting to wonder if it would ever be possible for Yumichika to love him back, but he wasn't going to let that chase him away. He wouldn't abandon Yumichika over that. Yumichika wouldn't become worthless or useless to him if he could never love him. No, Ikkaku still just wanted his time and his companionship, and it was okay if Yumichika could never love him half as much as he did Kaa. Maybe what Yumichika needed right now was a friend, and Ikkaku smiled a little as he listened to him chatter on the phone. It had only been a few days since Kaa's abrupt departure, anyways. He couldn't give up so quickly. It took a lot longer than a week to heal a broken heart, and Ikkaku could wait and keep trying until Yumichika felt better, even if it was only a little bit.

Yumichika kept answering Rangiku, holding the phone on his shoulder as he slit open another envelope, opening it up and taking out two cards. One was obviously a get-well card, and the other was really fancy, the meaning of it not immediately clear to Ikkaku. Yumichika started making little happy noises as he read it, explaining to Rangiku that 'yes, he saw it', whatever that meant. Ikkaku realized that the cards were from Rangiku, but what was that second one for?

"Oh my goodness, he asked you to marry him? Oh, I'm so happy for you," Yumichika said with a grin, showing Ikkaku the wedding invitation. Ikkaku looked confused, trying to listen in. He eventually climbed off the couch and crept closer slowly, so as not to alarm Yumichika when he got into his space bubble. When Yumichika didn't move away, offering his cheek, Ikkaku put his ear on the other side of the phone, saying 'hey' to Rangiku as she explained what had happened.

"Didn't you guys hear? Gin's favorite college professor died suddenly. It's been all over the news. It was a really gruesome murder. The funeral's in a week."

"Again?" Ikkaku asked skeptically. "Is this like that shit he pulled a few years ago for Halloween?"

"Nope. There's a coroner's report and everything."

"Oh dear, it happened at Renji and Ichigo's school? How horrible," Yumichika said sympathetically.

"No, no."

"Oh?" he questioned with a frown. Ikkaku just listened, noticing how close their bodies were because of them using the phone this way. He wanted so badly just to give Yumichika a hug, to try to show him all the love that could heal his heart if only he would let go. Maybe Yumichika needed to mourn, to cry or something until he felt better. Ikkaku didn't have any idea how to go about any of this stuff. He'd never had his heart broken before… Well, he had gotten a taste of what it's like when he thought that Yumichika had been dead, and the cure had been seeing him alive… That didn't really apply in Yumichika's case.

"No, it was a different college, where Gin went. It was the business school."

"Oh, I see," Yumichika said with a nod. "That's so horrible. Is he okay?"

"Pfft. He seems to be holding up well," Rangiku said with a little laugh. "I hadn't seen him in months, and then he just showed up at my dorm at four in the morning and asked me to let him in. I did, and then he told me about the death and then he proposed right there. I guess he's not the best at timing things."

"Oh my goodness, you have to tell me everything!"

Ikkaku laughed a little and got up, listening from the kitchen as Yumichika complimented Rangiku's color choice on the card and told her that she had to tell him exactly what had happened. Rangiku and Gin were getting married. Wow…

Ikkaku grinned a little, making a sandwich. Somewhere deep in his heart, he felt a little jealous. Ichimaru Gin was a sneak and a creep, but Ikkaku had to admit that the guy did love Rangiku. That might be his only redeeming characteristic. None of them really liked Ichimaru at all because of the obvious pain he put Rangiku through, but Ikkaku knew that somewhere in his twisted heart, Gin did care about Rangiku. The guy had always been focused on something else, constantly leaving Rangiku hanging or being out with other people doing questionable things. Maybe he'd finally seen the light and realized what a special woman Rangiku was. Maybe he'd taken care of some 'business' and now was finally free to settle down. Ikkaku was happy for them.

What he wasn't happy about was that he didn't know if Rangiku was the best example for Yumichika right now. The woman hadn't exactly waited for Gin, but he was definitely the only person she'd ever considered getting serious with. She'd seen other people and had her fun while Gin was away, but Ikkaku knew that her heart was only for that one person. Ikkaku really hoped Yumichika didn't take this as a sign or something. Rangiku's suffering had paid off, but the situation wasn't the same with Yumichika and Kaa. Ikkaku knew he had to do something before it was too late, and he only had one idea that might fix everything.

Yachiru and he would have a place to live, he could keep an eye on Yumichika, they could stay together, and Kaa would be out of the picture for the foreseeable future. All he had to do was ask.

"Hey," he said, poking Yumichika, who gave him a look as if to say it was rude to bother someone who was obviously busy on the phone. Ikkaku ignored him and just kept talking. "Uh, when the house is fixed, um… I mean, we're a great team, and… I just thought we should, um…"

Yumichika was watching him and listening to Rangiku at the same time, letting Ikkaku stutter and turn red a couple times, trying to get the words out in the right order. "You should stay… I mean… like, live with me… all the time," Ikkaku ended awkwardly. "Uh, please."

Yumichika put Rangiku on hold, laughing exasperatedly. "That sounds great, but for the time being, I think I like my place better. The bed's much more cozy, don't you think?"

Ikkaku just blinked at him for a second, before getting up and grabbing his pillow and blankets and running back to Yumichika's bedroom. "Sweet!" He'd been sleeping on the living room floor until now, and that had been an invitation if ever he'd heard one.

Yumichika laughed a little bit, finishing his phone call with Rangiku. He could hear Ikkaku screwing around in his room, which was a little bare considering he'd had to cut back on his spending with his cashier's job. He hadn't wanted Ikkaku in there. Kaa had never been in there either, and Yumichika had thought of that as his safe haven from everything. Then again, Ikkaku had invited him into his home and had allowed him to share his bed, so he couldn't exactly feel guiltless when he woke up and saw Ikkaku sleeping in a knot on the hardwood floor.

Yumichika gave a little smile, heart aching for Kaa, but it didn't take away from any of his care for Ikkaku. Ikkaku was a good man, really he was, and he was growing very attached to him. Kaa had saved his life, but what was that worth if he was feeling like shit? No, Ikkaku was here, trying so hard to help him move on, and that shouldn't be wasted.

Yumichika ended his conversation with Rangiku as he went and got some bags from his car, coming back in time to see Ikkaku looking for him.

"Hey, while we're talking about serious stuff, I think we should…" Ikkaku scratched the back of his neck, not knowing how to get the words out without hurting Yumichika's feelings.

"Do you think Kaa started the fire?" Yumichika asked calmly, stacking his bills as he looked Ikkaku in the eye.

"Do you?"

"No, but I thought that you might think badly of him," Yumichika said with a bitter tone, looking away. Ikkaku became impassioned then, trying to make Yumichika see how suspicious it was.

"But how else would he know about the building being on fire?"

"How did he know I was in that bathroom in the strip mall?" Yumichika retorted snippily. Ikkaku gave a rough sigh.

"I don't know, but you have to admit that it's-"

"It was probably just a coincidence?" Yumichika said with a hopeful tone, using Kaa's classic line, which made Ikkaku scoff and roll his eyes, mumbling 'as if.' Yumichika glared back. "If he had started that fire to purposefully save me, then why would he just... leave afterwards," Yumichika said, beginning to mope, shoulders slumping. Ikkaku could see that talking about this hadn't been a good idea.

"I mean… Maybe I just want to think it was him because I don't like him, but… I'm glad he was there to save you… I guess he probably didn't do it," Ikkaku mumbled apologetically.

Yumichika gave a dry sniff, getting it together, staring at Ikkaku coldly. "You saw him, right? He's got a different body type from yours; he's more of a track-runner/swimmer kind of guy, not bench-pressing or heavy lifting. He's not built for that, and you say he went and got me? He carried me out? He couldn't do that unless he really thought I was going to die. He was… he was scared… for me," Yumichika trailed off, looking into the distance as it occurred to him that Kaa hadn't put himself first for once.

Ikkaku hadn't seen fit to tell him that Kaa had actually climbed the building to go get him, but Yumichika still knew that he'd been unconscious and that Kaa would've had to carry him out somehow, and either way, that had taken some adrenaline-driven strength. That had been brave.

"He couldn't have planned it, is my point," Yumichika mumbled, turning away.

"Okay, I'm sorry I said anything. I don't think he did it," Ikkaku said. "I owe him a debt now, anyways."

"Why?" Yumichika said, lost in his internal morass of sorrow once again.

"Because he saved my only love," Ikkaku said lowly. Yumichika looked at his hands and didn't reply. Ikkaku got up and left him alone for a while.

When Ikkaku came back into the front room after twenty minutes of deep thinking, he saw Yumichika fiddling with a shopping back and folding a little baby dress and some baby socks.

"Where'd you get those?" he said numbly, suddenly imagining embracing Yumichika while they were holding his baby niece. Out of the blue, it became really hard for him to swallow, because he didn't think he could stand it if he wouldn't get to live out that dream.

"I bought them. Do you think she'll look pretty in these? Are they the right size?" It was a red plaid dress with little straps on the top. It came with a pink onesie and pink socks, and all of them had little cherry decorations on them.

"She might grow out of it pretty quick," Ikkaku rasped, blinking a couple times as he slowly approached.

"That's okay. As long as she likes them, then it's fine," Yumichika mumbled, folding them up. Ikkaku was just breathless as he realized that by Yumichika allowing him to stay here, he was also letting Yachiru stay here… and it seemed like he also accepted the fact that when he moved back in with Ikkaku, Yachiru would be there too. Yumichika was really willing to make that big of a sacrifice even though he was so broken and confused right now? That was a big thing in a relationship, to have to take care of a kid. Were they really gonna'… they were…

Ikkaku grinned, coming up to Yumichika where he was kneeling by the coffee table, sipping his wine, and gave him a kiss on the cheek, cuddling up to him. "Hey, I love you. You're pretty great."

Yumichika looked to him with a raised eyebrow. "I know," he said lightly, taking another sip of his wine.

"You little shit," Ikkaku said flatly, fighting off a smile. Yumichika just grinned and leaned forward, sliding a hand up the back of Ikkaku's neck, kissing his lips. Ikkaku gave a sigh and melted into his arms, holding Yumichika's face in his hands.

All of their struggles, all of this: Yumichika's heart pain, their debt, their strange living situation – all of it could be dealt with in time.

"I really do love you, you know. I know you feel all weird whenever I say it, but I just want you to know that I get that it hurts, and I understand if you feel like you won't be able to feel that way for me after what happened with him, and that's totally okay." Yumichika nodded. "That doesn't change the way I feel though. I still want your company, even if you can never let me all the way into your heart... I can wait."

Yumichika was quiet for a long while

"I hated working at that grocery store, and I really miss Kaa, but… I'm glad I met you," Yumichika said honestly, letting Ikkaku hug him close and pet his head. He really did feel love and comfort seeping into him, even though Ikkaku's embrace wasn't the same as Kaa's. This would be okay. He might not get over Kaa, but he could make room for another man in his heart. He could love that little girl and they could be a family together.

"Me too. That was luck."

Yumichika just laughed.