Chapter 7: I Ship KuroIshi Continued - Mayuri Kurotsuchi / Uryu Ishida Part 2

Chapter 1-6 Summary

Ryuken is a young genius.

Return marries Katagiri and they have Uryu.

Soken Ishida is affected by Kurotsuchi Pharmaceuticals.

Katagiri falls into a comma.

Ryuken is accused of abuse.

Charges are dropped.

Past girlfriend is murdered.

Szayel and Uryu become best friends.

Szayel falls in love with Uryu.

Collage begins.

Ulquiorra and Uryu become best friends.

Szayel transfers into Uryu and Ulquiorra' s school.

Szayel proclaims hatred towards Ulquiorra.

Szayel and Ulquiorra become friends.

Uryu goes out with Mayuri.

The relationship ends in flame crazy love notes.

Uryu and Renji get together.

Ulquiorra and Grimmjow get together.

Aaaaaaand I'm back. I haven't posted in forever. I swear I'm not abandoning this story or any other I just fell a bit behind. Okay, on to the story! »»In this chapter we continue on from the previous, hence KuroIshi Continued.

My name is Szayel Aporro Granz and right now...

"Your call has been forwarded to an automated voicemail system..."

I'm afraid.

"Uryu, please answer your phone. I'm starting to get more worried than angry. Scratch that, I'm not angry at all, never was. I'm sorry for acting the way I did. I'm going to see you at school anyway, so why not just talk to me now? Ulquiorra's worried, too. He's been stressing out ever since you left. Look, I'm sorry. Please call me back."

My emotions have always been easy to see making me pretty much the opposite of Ulquiorra. Speaking of Ulquiorra, the bastard had left not only a minute after finding such crucial information about Uryu.

Szayel grabbed his table side lamp and chucked it at the wall, shattering the base and scratching up the wall. It felt good. He hadn't let out his emotions in such a physical way for a while. He made to grab something else-his laptop would easily shatter his window-but running footsteps were heard and his door swung open before he could reach it. Yylfordt's hair was still wet, but it was pulled back in a loose ponytail. He wore, what Szayel preferred to call, hell's pajamas. An extra large T-shirt and unflatteringly fuzzy pants.

"What happened-are you okay?!"

Yylfordt always meant well, but what he tried never worked. Since their parents were always gone, Yylfordt tried to take care of Szayel-cook, clean, yell at him if he's out too late-but he had a life as well. Studying hard in an attempt to stay in a good college without paying his way in, dating, friendships, and everything else that he had. Being both a mother, father, and brother to someone like Szayel was a difficult and time consuming task. So, dinner usually ended up being delivery pizza, the laundry was done by simply buying more clothes, and Yylfordt usually passed out from an exhausting coarse load before he had a chance to yell at Szayel. It was just the way it worked.

"I-I'm fine."

Yylfordt took a step closer.

"Then why'd you break your lamp? It was a limited edition-and you liked it soooo much." Szayel looked away from his brother. Yylfordt sighed; not a demeaning or an annoyed sigh, more of he was trying to get his slow brain to catch up to Szayel's fast paced life. "Uryu left very suddenly and Ulquiorra was quick to follow. Did you have a fight?"

"Something like that."

"What about?"

"It's not something he'd want me to talk about. But it isn't as much between us then between him and his past. Kurotsuchi just happened to resurface it and spill to me some things Uryu didn't want me to know."

"Let me guess; you demanded he tell you absolutely everything." Szayel was defeated. He took a seat at the edge of his bed, Yylfordt sitting beside him. "Szayel, I know that you hate not knowing. Hell, you always make it a mission to figure out all your Christmas presents before they're put under the tree! And I know that it's hard for someone who likes to know everything to be so close to someone who hates people knowing anything about him, but you have to accept the fact that Uryu isn't going to tell you absolutely everything that happened or is happening in his life."

I suppose that I'm afraid because of the distance between me and my love. I'll admit that I'm a perfectionist in all aspects of life. I have an amazing relationship with Uryu, but it's still shy of perfect. And every time something happens to remind me of how imperfect our relationship is, it makes me so much more afraid.

Brother pulled my head to his shoulder and didn't say anything else. He knew that I wasn't sad, but what he tried never was the best thing to do. This action was simply imitating what the old maid had done when Yylfordt was little and cried whenever our parents would leave. This wasn't the right action to comfort me, but I felt comforted because he was doing it.

I am a perfectionist whose relationships with all his loved ones are anything but perfect. Mother and father are always gone away on business, Uryu still doesn't open up everything to me, and Yylfordt is so perfect that he isn't. He's so much that his role as brother is never perfect because sometimes he's mother and other times he's father. But that's just the way it is.

It took a while to walk back to his dorm, but Uryu wasn't really in a hurry. Ichigo would be there and he'd insist on talking about everything Uryu did not want to talk about.

"Ishida-kun? I haven't seen you in ages…" He paused, looked around briefly. They were in a park, a detoured route back to his dorm. "Is something wrong? You don't look well."

"It's fine, Hisagi-san. I'm just a little distracted, I suppose."

Shuuhei thought for a moment, Uryu too dazed to understand what about.

"Are you hungry? I could really go for a burger right now, what about you? I'll pay."

Uryu smiled. The man with tattoos and gothic clothing didn't act as one would think. He wasn't overly harsh or quiet, he was sweet, polite, and even calculative. He was the type able to blend into a various social groups; the jocks, the goths, the nerds, the partiers… Uryu always had enjoyable conversations with him.

Too bad-out of everyone I fucking know-he's the straight one.

"That'd be nice."

My name is Shuuhei Hisagi and right now…

"I haven't seen you for a month or so, but I suppose we've both been busy. Kurosaki's been throwing a fit, though. He's worse than a child, constantly complaining about how he never sees you or anyone else for that matter. If he would only get a date…"

I'm continuing my research into the "dream" that is Uryu Ishida. Extremely well known and well liked, even though he's only a freshman. He's majoring in medicine, but minoring in design-two things that normally wouldn't fit together. He runs track and holds a record in Japan, but his main focus is on archery, even though his school's archery club isn't well known. Judo is just a little thing to keep him on his toes, even though he's one of the top students in the club. Yet, I still don't completely understand what makes Uryu Ishida so damn appealing.

"You know him; if his mind's set on something," or someone, "he'll stop at nothing to get it. Even if that means continuing to mope around your dorm until he gets it."

Uryu didn't immediately respond, as if Shuuhei had lost him. But then a light was switched on in his head.

"You think he already likes someone?! I hope it's Szayel-then everything would turn out perfect! I can hear the wedding bells!"

Strange mood twists. A normally serious-don't fuck with me-guy transforming into a giddy schoolgirl. But, in his defense, I heard that Szayel Granz had the ability to do that to people.

"Maybe... I heard that you were going out with Kurotsuchi. That kid had rumors when I was still in college..."

"Formerly dating, we broke up because those rumors are true." There was acid on his tongue, causing Shuuhei to stop mid bite. He quickly regained himself when Uryu noticed. "Eh, well it's kind of a long story involving some possessiveness and general anger management issues. Nothing for you to concern yourself with."

And there were the shields. 'Don't get too close to me.' Maybe that's it, though. The reason for his popularity is the fact that he doesn't want to be popular. He doesn't want to be the focus of attention, highlighted for anyone and everyone to dissect. That's just what made a person want to know more.

Shuuhei laughed a little to himself; Uryu raised an eyebrow.

"I'm afraid I don't understand the joke."

"S-sorry. Just thought of something and couldn't help but laugh."

Uryu gained a half smile.

It was kind of... cute. For a guy.

"Szayel says that he likes to randomly burst out laughing in order to make people perceive him as psychotic. I think him psychotic for even doing such a thing."

"Granz is really a once in a lifetime guy..."

Uryu focused his gaze into his cup.

"I suppose you're right."

Being here with him was strange. It hasn't been just the two of us since his first day of college... I haven't seen him at all in at least a month. It was nice in the way that only being with the 'dreamy' Uryu Ishida could be.

My name is Uryu Ishida and right now...

"Your call has been forwarded to an automated voicemail system..."

I'm trying to let it go.

"Hey, Szayel. It's me. Look, about today... Well, I can't really apologize for anything besides lying to you. So, I'm sorry. I'll see you and Ulquiorra at school, okay?" Uryu paused, then gained a small smile. "Oh, I just had lunch with Hisagi-san~ It was fantastic! He's still as gorgeous as ever. I have to leave, goodbye Szayel."

Ichigo was standing in his doorframe with a look that told Uryu he was having one of those exceedingly bad moments. In which absolutely nothing happens, and yet the world somehow topples over onto Ichigo's shoulders.

"Come in, Kurosaki." Uryu lead him to the bed and Ichigo took a seat. "What is it?"

"You have a crush on Shuuhei? You know he's straight, right?"

So it would be one of those days. The days in which Kurosaki's bad mood is shown through possessive anger directed at everything I've done.

"Yes and yes. It's not as if I'm in love, it's just a crush that developed the first moment I met him. And I know he's straight. That's the reason why I don't act on anything. Besides, I don't see how it's any of your business."

"Well, I figured you could tell me things since we share a dorm and I assumed we were friends."

Even though Uryu wanted to snap back with a retort, the look in Ichigo's eyes said that he couldn't take it if Uryu decided to lash back. He took a breath in and then put on a little smile.

"We are friends. I didn't tell you I liked Hisagi-san because it wasn't important." Maybe I could use this opportunity to do a little snooping of my own. "Besides, you never told me who you liked."

Ichigo gained a slight blush and his mood suddenly changed back to the normal teen Uryu shared a dorm with.

"I-I don't like anyone right now."

"Mhm. Sure." The smile he wore now was a real one. Ichigo was just too fun to mess with. "You don't have to tell me, just like how I don't have to tell you."

Uryu's phone began to ring and he quickly picked up.

"Szayel? ...No, no. It's fine. ...Right now? I'm talking with Kurosaki. ...Yeah we had lunch after I left your place, imagine my luck! ...A burger. Weird, right? I always imagined him as a cheeseburger guy. ...No, I really need to go to bed. I'll see you tomorrow, okay? ...Wait, what did you say about Ulquiorra? ...Okay, I'll give him a call. ...Bye."

"What did he want?"

Uryu sighed.

"We had a little fight earlier, but we're fine now. Apparently something's wrong with Ulquiorra and I think I should call him in private."

Kurosaki wasn't to be left alone when in one of his mournful moods, but he was already snapped back to normal, so he should be okay as long as he stayed in the apartment.

"Yeah, sure. I hope he's okay."

One of his best and worst qualities is his heart. He cares almost too much, making it a little too easy to hurt him, but guaranteeing that he'll help anyone who's hurt. That's why I always felt the need to watch him and make sure he's okay whenever he's in a state of depression.

He got off the bed and left the room, closing the door behind him. What Uryu didn't know was that Ichigo didn't move from the other side of the door.

"Ulquiorra, I'm sorry for my temper earlier. Szayel and I made up, but he said you were a little touchy. What's wrong?"

Ulquiorra's voice was a little strange.

"Did he tell you anything else?"

"No, what else is there? What'd you guys get into when I left? A fight?"

"No, it was just something a little strange."

"I don't understand what you mean, Ulquiorra. Are you and Szayel okay? Are we okay?"

He paused as if a problem between them hadn't occurred to him.

"Yes, I think. It's nothing, I was just a little shaken by your past. Since we haven't been friends for long, I never knew anything about your life before me. The things Szayel said... I wasn't expecting it."

Uryu sighed and took a seat on his bed. Ichigo shoved his ear closer to the door.

"I suppose since you already know the outline, I'll fill in some things for you. My grandfather died when I was young. The medicine he took for his arthritis, from Kurotsuchi pharmaceuticals, was bad. Somehow, it ended up killing him. It was said that the president of the company knew the potential threat of the drug, didn't say anything, and then released it to the public. I've been at war with the company ever since, and have even yelled at the company's president and been escorted off the residence kicking and screaming. My mom was sickly from the beginning... Not long after Grandfather died, she fell into a coma and passed away three months later. I had a girlfriend who was a bit older than me. She was murdered by a man she married when she was only sixteen and ran away from at eighteen. I meet her when she was nineteen and we dated for almost an entire year until he found her. He was arrested and is serving a life sentence. You're the second person I've told the whole story to, because I feel like you'll keep it quiet."

And because I trust you with my life.

Ulquiorra was silent and Uryu had thought they had lost connection, until there was a breath.

"I'm sorry."

And it was out there. Those two words told Uryu that there was no going back. Two people knew, but in his mind that made two people too many. What he didn't know was that three people actually knew. The man behind the door was careful not to make a sound, knowing that Uryu would kill him if he knew he had been listening.

"There's no reason to be. You didn't do anything other than improve my quality of life."

Another pause.

"Thank you for trusting me. Szayel knows and so do I, that's a good thing."

"Why is that good?"

"You shouldn't tell everyone, but unless you tell someone, you will only hurt." Uryu felt Ulquiorra smile. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"I'll see you."

Uryu hung up and tossed his phone on his bedside table. He was about to lay down, until a knock at the door interrupted him.

Ichigo scrambled away from the door and took a seat on the couch in the main area of their dorm in order to avoid suspicion as Uryu opened his door. Ichigo stood and got to the door right before Uryu. He smirked, as if it had been a race. Uryu rolled his eyes as Ichigo opened the door.

"Delivery for a Mr. Uryu Ishida."

Uryu gave Ichigo a little push and the teen moved over so Uryu could stand in the doorway.

"That would be me."

The man tipped his hat that had a logo on it. A flower shop that Uryu couldn't quite recall the name to.

"If you let me, I'll bring them in for you."

"Of course." Uryu stepped back and Ichigo made a face that questioned what was going on. Uryu responded with a face that said he didn't know. The man grabbed the flowers and walked into their dorm. "The table is fine." The man nodded and placed them down.

"Have a good day, sir."

"You too."

He left and Uryu closed the door. On the table lay three dozen white roses. Ichigo snatched a note from the pile and read it aloud.

"I forgive you, love."