A/N: Hi all. I'm in the middle of a Gravitation 2-parter at the moment, and thought I'd try something different for the time being. I recently lost my writer's muse, but hopefully this story shows its returned! This story is really a kind of pointless drabble, but maybe not. So lemme know what you think by reviewing!

Also, I'd like to thank Langus for beta-ing this! She really helped make this story what it is. She's a great beta.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, I do own the plotline of this fanfiction though, that's something ne?

Title: Wasted Effort?

"Toushiro!"

The Captain of the 10th Division turned to see Kurosaki Ichigo land behind him and casually sheath his zanpaktou on his back. In the distance the Arrancar they'd just slain was disappearing in the usual manner.

"Its Hitsugaya-taichou," he reminded him for the umpteenth time and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "What do you want Kurosaki?"

Ichigo raised an arm and scratched nervously at the back of his head, "Uh, well- you see…"

He stopped short when he noticed the other Shinigami were watching their exchange. The young captain saw the look of embarrassment in Ichigo's eyes and glanced over his shoulder to see his fukutaichou and the others waiting for them. It was obvious that Ichigo wanted to speak with him alone.

"Matsumoto!"

"Hai taichou?" she responded cheerily, jumping over the bits of rubble from the ruined buildings lining the street to reach his side.

"Please take the others back to Inoue's place. I'll catch up."

"Hai taichou!"

Hitsugaya waited until the group's reiatsu had faded into the distance before he spoke again.

"Well? What is it Kurosaki?"

Ichigo avoided his gaze. "Well I was, uh, wondering if maybe you'd, um, go out to dinner with me tonight."

Hitsugaya's eyes widened at Ichigo's words. "Kurosaki, are you asking me out on a date?"

A blush formed on the orange haired boy's cheeks.

"Ah, yeah," Ichigo mumbled before nervously glancing off into the distance. He couldn't bear to meet his gaze. "But, it doesn't have to be if you don't want. We could just go as friends," he offered with a nervous laugh.

He mentally slapped himself. 'My god, what am I doing? He probably hates me now. I can see it in his eyes.'

The seconds felt like hours as he waited anxiously for Hitsugaya's response.

"I suppose I am a little hungry."

A sheepish grin found its way onto Ichigo's face, "That's great!"

A sort of relief welled up inside of him. He belatedly realised that an awkward silence had risen between them. Hitsugaya was keeping his gaze averted.

"So, uh, how about I come by Inoue's about 6:30?" He asked with shaky confidence.

"That's fine."

As soon as he'd finished speaking, Hitsugaya shunpo'd away leaving Ichigo standing alone in the ruined street. He turned and retreated in the opposite direction Hitsugaya had gone, contemplating where he should take the pint-sized captain.

'He probably only wants us to go out as friends,' he lamented with a sigh. 'But I'll still make it the best night he's ever had.'

Ichigo had been stressing over where to take Hitsugaya that night, when an idea suddenly hit him, "I'll just call Mizuiro! He's bound to know somewhere with the amount of girls he dates."

Feeling quite pleased with himself, he almost jumped the whole staircase in his enthusiasm to reach the phone. Cordless receiver in hand, he eagerly punched in his friend's number. He breathed a sigh of relief when Mizuiro picked up the other end of the line.

"Hello?"

"Hey Mizuiro, its Ichigo."

"Oh, hey," he said, sounding a little surprised, "What's up? You don't normally call."

Rubbing the back of his neck Ichigo replied, "Hey, don't say it like that Mizuiro. I know we haven't talked much lately, but I've been busy."

"Nah, its okay. Don't worry about it. At least I've got Asano-san."

Ichigo heard a whiny voice in the background that sounded like Keigo yelling about how Mizuiro was so formal all the time and chuckled.

"Keigo's there with you?" he asked.

"Yeah, where else would he be? So, what can I help you with Ichigo?"

"Well, uh, I was wondering where you take all your girlfriends on dates."

"Hey, don't say it like that, it makes me sound like-"

"A Womaniser?"

"Hey! That's harsh Ichigo," Mizuiro retorted with mock hurt in his voice.

"Yeah, yeah whatever. So you know any good places in town?"

"Sure, but who's the lucky girl?"

Ichigo laughed nervously, "Well, it's not exactly a girl I'm taking out tonight."

Mizuiro was smart enough to figure out what he meant and he could tell his friend was taken aback. "Aguy? Well, whatever, I'm happy for you Ichigo. Do I know him?"

"You might, but that's a story for later if tonight goes well," Ichigo explained.

"Okay, there's a small restaurant in the centre of town that has a great selection of food. It's a little pricey, but that always seems to make the night if you know what I mean."

His suggestive tone made Ichigo's mind wander and replay some of his secret fantasies about Hitsugaya.

"...Ichigo? Ichigo?" Mizuiro's voice brought him back to reality. "You still there?"

"Huh? Oh, right sorry," he grinned slightly, amazed at what his imagination could show him. "Thanks Mizuiro, I owe you one."

"No problem; just helping out a friend in need. See you later andgood luck tonight!"

"Thanks. Bye!"

Ichigo hung up the phone and crossed his arms in thought. Now that he had a place to take Hitsugaya he had to pick out what to wear. Glancing up at the clock he realized there was barely an hour left until their date.

"I am not wearing that Matsumoto."

"Aww, come on taichou! You have to look nice for your date with Ichigo tonight!"

Hitsugaya gave her one of his death glares. "Keep your voice down! The others are in the next room you know!"

"Hai taichou, but how about this?" The 10th division fukutaichou held up yet another outfit she'd bought for him.

"No! Matsumoto, I've already told you I'm not dressing up for this. It's just dinner," he explained, heaving a frustrated sigh.

He watched her pick a new selection up off the bed out of the corner of his eye and groaned inwardly.

"How about this one?" she asked hopefully.

Turning an impatient glance her way, he expected to see another one of her awful outfits but was slightly taken aback by what he saw. He rarely ever put much thought into what he wore since the uniform of a shinigami was nothing more than a simple black shikaksou. This one though piqued his interest.

His eyes scanned the selection with approval, taking in the navy blue skinny-legged jeans, sleeveless white top, and black scarf.(1)

"You like it taichou?"

"I'll try it on," he said, trying not to sound too enthusiastic, but Matsumoto saw through his act.

"I'll be back in a minute then," she said with a smile and placed the clothes on the bed before bouncing out of the small bedroom.

Hitsugaya slipped out of the chair he'd been sitting on and slowly walked to the bed. When Ichigo had asked him out earlier he'd started to see him in a different light. It wasn't that he was homophobic or anything like that, it'd just made him think about how he perceived people.

Matsumoto's sudden knock at the door disturbed him out of his thoughts.

"Are you decent taichou?"

He hastily zipped up the zipper on the jeans, "I am."

The bedroom door opened and Matsumoto poked her head in.

"Taichou! You look wonderful!" she gushed, taking in how the clothes complimented his figure, and made the colour of his eyes and hair stand out.

The small captain moved to stand in front of the mirror on the wardrobe door and raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Hai! Looking like that, you'll be sure to go all the way with Ichigo!"

This time his eyebrow twitched. Matsumoto realised she'd gone too far when the room becamevery cold,very quickly.

"Matsumoto," he nearly yelled in a very dangerous tone, "I will not be doing anything like that with Kurosaki. Am I clear?"

All she could do was agree for fear of suffering Hyorinamru's wrath - a fate she never want to face.

"Hai, taichou."

Ichigo left his house a little early hoping to go for a walk before heading to Inoue's to pick Hitsugaya up. His mind was buzzing at the thought of finally spending some time alone with him. He'd spent the past hour calling Mizuiro and picking out an outfit; ultimately settling on blue jeans, a black t-shirt, and a dark blue hoodie. Yuzu had told him he looked great, but it wasn't his sister he was trying to impress. His sights were firmly set on Hitsugaya Toushiro.

Letting his feet guide him, he eventually found himself in the park where he'd performed his first konso as a Shinigami. He stopped at the swings and sat down for a moment. The feelings he had for Hitsugaya had only recently been realised by the substitute Shingami. He'd tried to talk with Renji about it, but he'd just laughed in his face. Once he'd realised he was serious, Renji had encouraged him to ask Hitsugaya out. Ichigo looked thoughtfully up at the sky. Today he'd finally gathered enough courage to do it.

Standing up, he smiled and made his way towards Inoue's house. He'd thought about bringing flowers, but Hitsugaya didn't seem like the type to appreciate such a thing. Ichigo figured he was more the type to care about how he was treated.

He checked his watch and quickened his pace. His walk had taken up more time than he'd planned. He ended up sprinting the last few meters to Inoue's front door so he wouldn't be late. Knocking, he waited patiently until the door swung open to reveal Matsumoto beaming at him.

"Hi Ichigo-kun!"

"Ran- Rangiku-san!"

"I'll go get taichou for you."

The woman disappeared as quickly as she'd come, leaving Ichigo alone with his thoughts. 'What am I going to say to him?'

"Hey Ichigo."

"Renji? What do you want?" he grumbled irritably.

"Hey! Here I am, wanting to wish my friend good luck on his first date and this is the treatment I get? Man, you'd better lose the attitude if you wanna get Hitsugaya-taichou back to your place tonight," the red-head retorted. Renji smirked at the deep blush that crept onto Ichigo's face.

"Shut up! I don't want to take things that fast!"

"Yeah, sure, whatever Ichigo," Renji scoffed and stalked away. Just as he disappeared, Toushiro stepped into the entryway.

"Wow, Toushiro, you look…hot."

Hitsugaya sighed slightly with the distinct impression that this was going to be an uncomfortable evening.

A few hours later, after the two had finished a rather quiet meal, they took to wandering aimlessly around town. They walked side-by-side along the river in silence. It was getting dark and the tension hanging between them felt palpable to Ichigo. He sighed quietly and glanced longingly at the horizon.

His feet stopped suddenly as he thought over whether or not he could salvage their date. The smaller boy carried on walking a few paces before he noticed that Ichigo had fallen behind. He turned curiously to see what he was doing.

"Hey, Kurosaki!" he nearly yelled, "What're you doing?"

Ichigo took his time replying. "Just thinking. Hey Toushiro, do you like sunsets?"

"A little, why?"

A small smile spread across the substitute Shinigami's face. Hitsugaya shifted with his hands in his pockets, suddenly feeling a little apprehensive. Ichigo started walking slowly towards the riverbank. The wind picked up slightly as the small Shinigami followed him down the grassy slope.

After finding a good spot Ichigo reclined on the grass and stared up at the setting sun. He could sense Hitsugaya standing just behind him.

"Sit down Toushiro," he said kindly, patting the grass beside him. He smiled when the ice captain complied, but the awkwardness radiating from him made it fade.

'Doesn't he feel comfortable around me any more?' he wondered feeling sad. 'I should've realised earlier when I asked him out that he only wanted us to go as friends tonight.'

Both of them watched the sun slowly sink on the horizon, each lost to his thoughts.

Hitsugaya turned his head slightly to glance at Ichigo. He too could feel how awkward it was between them. 'Its my fault. He's been making the effort all night and I've just brushed it off without a second thought,' he realized.

Ichigo wanted to make one last try before giving up. He slowly sat up like Hitsugaya and attempted to put an arm around him. The other boy stiffened instantly and Ichigo sighed in defeat. Pulling his arm back, he rested his chin on his knees and stared out over the river at the colours the setting sun cast upon the water.

"You don't have to humour me you know," he said sullenly.

"Kurosaki?"

Ichigo kept his eyes glued on the horizon. He had to get this off his chest. "You didn't have to come out with me tonight if you didn't want to."

An awkward silence fell between them again and Ichigo shook his head.

"God, what was I thinking? That I actually had a chance? Toushiro…I saw it in yours eyes earlier when you realised I was asking you out on a date. I chose to ignore it then and decided to try anyway, but its like since you realised I have feelings for you you've been - I don't know, different around me."

A warm summer breeze picked up and ruffled through their hair. Ichigo breathed in a deep breath to calm himself. Hitsugaya hadn't once corrected him for using his name and it made him smile, if only for a moment.

"You don't have to sta-"

"Kurosaki."

Ichigo looked up startled at the sound of Hitsugaya's voice.

"I know the way I've acted tonight has been unfair to you and I apologise for that. Please don't think badly of me for it."

"Toushiro-"

"Please, Kuros- Ichigo," he corrected himself and used Ichigo's given name instead. Their situation didn't seem to call for formalities. "Let me speak."

Ichigo nodded, and the white haired boy continued, "Please understand, it's not easy for me. It's been a long time since I've been close to someone."

A sad look suddenly appeared on the captain's face. Ichigo put his arm around Toushiro's shoulder and this time kept it there.

"The last person I loved…she hurt me. She was having an affair-"

Hitsugaya's shoulders started to shake with silent sobs and Ichigo pulled him closer. "Hey, it's okay Toushiro."

'It feels so strange to be this close to someone.' The thought echoed through Hitsugaya's mind as he leaned into Ichigo's shoulder. He sniffled before continuing. "That's why I am how I am. I can't let myself be that close to anyone again. I'll only get hurt."

"That's not true Toushiro." Teal eyes met brown in a sincere gaze. "I would never do anything to hurt you."

Ichigo felt twinge of disappointment when Toushiro looked away to wipe at his eyes with his scarf.

"I know you wouldn't, but," Hitsugaya bit his lip, "it's just…I've never been with another guy before. I don't know how it's supposed to work."

"Neither do I." Ichigo smiled at him when he looked round, "But working it out is part of the fun right?"

Hitsugaya looked nervously at the ground. "I don't know. As far as I know there hasn't ever been any gay Shinigami. I don't know how Soul Society would react."

"That doesn't matter," Ichigo reassured him. "All that matters is that we have each other."

Ichigo froze when one of Hitsugaya's small hands reached towards him. Hitsugaya cupped his cheek and a deep blush spread across Ichigo's face.

"It's not just lust is it?" Hitsugaya sighed. Ichigo brought his hand up to meet the one on his cheek.

"I love you Hitsugaya Toushiro."

All of a sudden, Hitsugaya noticed just how close they were to one another and a small blush found its way onto his cheeks as well. He closed his eyes as Ichigo drew closer and felt the light brush of his lips against his in a gentle kiss. He could tell Ichigo was waiting for him to respond. Cautiously, he wrapped his arms around Ichigo's neck and felt him smile through their kiss.

"Aaahh, how cute!"

Both boys froze and let go of each other as quick as lightning.

"Matsumoto!" Hitsugaya yelled, not at all pleased that she'd been spying. Now she would tell Madarame, Abarai and Ayasegawa!

"How long have you been spyingon us?" he demanded.

"Taichou! I wasn't spying on you!"

"Then why are you out of your gigai?"

Ichigo watched as she nervously scratched the back of her head, "Uh, well-"

Hitsugaya sighed heavily. "Just get out of here Matsumoto and forget what you saw. If I want people to know they will.Understood?"

"Hai taichou!" she said before shunpo-ing back to Inoue's house.

"You know Rangiku-san isn't going to follow that order," Ichigo mumbled.

"I know."

Ichigo put his arm around Hitsugaya again and they both faced the fading sun. It'd nearly set now and the orange glow from the street lamps was becoming more noticeable.

"Hey, Toushiro?"

"Hmm?"

"We can do this slowly if you want."

Ichigo felt his new boyfriend nod and he sighed contently as the sun finally disappeared from sight.

"Hey, how about I walk you back to Inoue's?" he offered.

Standing up, he helped the white-haired boy to his feet. Though Toushiro didn't respond at first, when their feet reached the pavement Ichigo felt a hand tentatively slip into his own.

'Definitely not wasted effort,' he decided with a smile.

(1) Think Hitsugaya in the 5th Opening sequence, (Rolling Star by Yui), when he's standing in the window, just before Matsumoto jumps on him.
So, what did you think? If enough people review, I might write a sequel.