Would you like to join my mindset sure you would listen to Eyes Open- Taylor Swift

Chapter 15 Strength

The young driver, felt the blood drain from his face, the road look hazy and all he could think about in that moment was sleep. Strange as that maybe.

He shook his head, and somehow his right hand found the steering wheel. His foot found the clutch. He had barely the strength to push down on it as his warm blood ran through his fingers dripping down his front, mixing with the blood that already stained his clothes.

He found the shifter and was going to shift into drive, his family needed him and he wasn't going to let them down. Even if he was moving as slow as molasses.

His door swung open before he could put the car in gear. The cool night air hitting his left cheek woke him up slightly before warm hands cupped both of his cheeks. Making his eyes droop once more. He had no idea where he was, or where he was going. He just wanted to sleep.

"Tiger!" Grimmjow's voice sounded garbled. "NO...NO….NO!"

He was being hoisted out of the car and then laid on the ground. His shirt was lifted up and he felt the cool night air hit his open wound and it sent a noticeable shiver through his body. His eyes rolled to the back of his head, and a low groan escaped his lips.

"Who did this to you?" It was a question from the garbled voice of the farmer but Ichigo could tell by the sound of Grimmjow's voice that he really didn't expect the driver to answer.

And as the sensation of sleep swept over Ichigo's body, he gave into it feeling the pain subside as he began to black out.

"TIGER!" Once more the voice was garbled and it seemed so distant. "DON'T YOU DARE!" This time the voice was followed by a hard smack to his right cheek.

The world came back in sharp focus, and for a moment he had forgotten who he was.

Ichigo felt his head being laid on the hard asphalt gingerly. He focused on the sound of screeching tires and the blinding headlights. The humans had caught up with them. Grimmjow stood up slowly his face portraying the rage he felt with in.

"YOU HURT HIM, I'M GONNA KILL YA!" Grimmjow was in a rage that Ichigo had never witnessed before. The farmer's entire body shook from anger. He pulled his hand gun from the small of his back where it had rested in his waist band. He held it a low ready as he scanned the crowd for Kisuke.

"U hurd Ichi iz on now!" Shinji gritted out he was standing tall behind Ichigo's head as he chambered a round into his military grade weapon. Aiming in the direction of the group of people. They were severely outnumbered.

Sweat beads had already formed on the driver's forehead and his breathing was labored, he bit down on his lip as the pain continued to rack his body. His body was so cold and he knew it wasn't because of the crisp November night air. He was losing blood. He was dying.

"Blue." His voice was a labored whisper. But the farmer heard it all the same. Grimmjow wanted to kill something. He needed an emotional release, but at the moment Ichigo needed him more. He fell to his knees and scooped Ichigo up into his arms.

"Bl-Blue...ah ah." Ichigo was shivering as he held his hand over the wound. He had lost to much blood. He was beginning to feel light headed, but at least the pain was gone, and as his body began to jerk inside his farmer's arms. He tried desperately to get his words. "I….I.."

He heard a weapon cock and he heard the clicking of someone's tongue before he heard Renji's chilling words.

"One more step, and I swear I will put three in your chest and one between your eyes, and no I don't care about dying tonight." The red head's accent was gone as he spoke clear enunciating every word.

Once more Ichigo tried to speak but instead of words he began to cough up blood. This wasn't good.

"Shh, just hold on Tiger, Hold on." Grimmjow moved Ichigo's hand away and studied the wound again. Ichigo looked up into those blue eyes and then at that blue hair that oddly reminded him of a birthday cake. He smiled and was at peace with the knowledge that when he had first woken up in this new world Grimmjow was the first thing he saw and now he was going to be the last.

He closed his eyes and let the calm sweep over him before the blackness would take him. And before he would succumb to it he heard the desperate cry from his once caretaker turned lover.

"DON'T YOU DARE! DON'T YOU DARE ICHIGO KUROSAKI!"

Times like these you find out what your really made of, so they say. They also said you find out who your real friends are…..

The young man with the short spiked hair bent over in his hard back hospital chair elbows on knees hands pulling at the hair on the top of his head. His heart was in a million pieces and he knew what he should do for his own survival but what he should do and what he wanted to do were conflicting him. It was as if his heart and his head were in constant battle…..

A scream in the distance drew his attention to the small rectangular window across the room. There was a Screech followed by an explosion and then the screaming was over. His head turned back slowly to the direction his body had been facing. His elbows still on his knees hands clasped in front of him as he rested his chin on them.

He wore a red hoody, light colored blue jeans with a hole in the left knee area and brown work boots. On his left hip was a small hand gun and holstered next to it was a 7 inch serrated knife. He had used that knife recently on another human so there was dried up blood on the handle and a few droplets on the blade itself.

He had been in that place for a grand total of a month and it took only a week before the staff had decided to abandon their post. Hospital workers are suppose to care about the sick and dying. The young man had thought they had taken some sort of oath on the matter. And yet when the time came when it was time for them to show what they were truly made of, most fled like cowards or offered up the ones that were in their care as an offering for their own lives.

The young man closed his eyes to ponder happier times, and was greeted with the quiet of his surroundings. No voices to eavesdrop on, absent was the sounds of feet on the linoleum floor, not even a hospital machine beeping. Just the breeze that hit the tree outside the small rectangular window providing a tap tap tapping sound. And every now and then he heard a bird or two, but then there was a sound he welcomed like the rise of each morning sun. That small sound not far from where he sat. It was the sound of all he had from his old life, his only family, it was the sound of his best friend's breathing.

He opened his eyes and they instantly fell on the still form of a very comatose Ichigo Kurosaki. His orange hair had grown so much that now it hid his eyes from sight not that it would matter. Those eyes haven't seen the light of day for over a month now. Those eyes knew nothing of the horror that awaited them. Those eyes never saw families torn apart, by death and greed. Those eyes haven't witnessed the ugliness of mankind in its darkest days.

Ichigo was in a coma which made for easy pickings, Shuuhei guessed that's what the hospital workers had been thinking the day they came for him. But what they hadn't counted on was Shuuhei. He had fought for his best friend's life. He used any and everything at his disposal.

The first day, they claimed they were taking Ichigo for routine testing.

"Bullshit!" Cried Shuuhei as he held tight to the metal bars of Ichigo's bed. They had been halfway to the door.

"Mr. Hisagi, this patient is none of your concern you are not family." The nurse calmly stated.

"Fuck you lady! I'm his brother, if you take him anywhere I will fight you I can promise you that." Shuuhei stared down the strawberry blonde nurse who looked like she hadn't slept in days. She nervously looked across the bed at Shuuhei trying to appear threatening in her wrinkled disheveled green hospital scrubs.

"Mr. Hisagi this is for his own good."

"Bitch please." Courtesy be damned. "I know what you people are doing offering patients up like steak dinner." The nurses green eyes nearly bugged out her skull. "I will give my life." And then Shuuhei did something he thought he never would do. He pulled out his hunting knife and raised it pointing it at the nurse. And then she was gone. Leaving him with a sleeping Ichigo, whose bed remained in the center of the room where it would stay.

They kept coming back for Ichigo and each time they got a fight from Shuuhei. They kept coming till they were none to come. Shuuhei assumed some were killed by the Aliens while others abandoned the hospital all together.

The young man in question sighed as his thoughts bought him back to the here and now.

Yes

He thought to himself.

Maybe it was for the best for those eyes to stay hidden

Yes, the man keeping the bedside vigil went by the name of Shuhei Hisagi not that it mattered anymore. Names didn't matter anymore, especially since the next day wasn't promised. And as he sat there watching his best friend breathe in and out he wonder if it would be the humane thing to do, to take the pillow that Ichigo rested his head on and smother him and then once he expired, turn a gun on himself and end their misery.

And as he conjured those thoughts he began to mentally torture himself for ever thinking such horrible thoughts about his best friend. Was he that down in despair that was the only solution for his problems. He hadn't been there long and who knows maybe it wasn't over for mankind, maybe they were busy mounting some spectacular offense and we (humans) will take back our planet in no time and all Shuhei had to do was wait just a little longer. I mean after all he had done so much to keep he and Ichigo alive up until that point. What's a little while longer….to wait.

"Just breathe in through your nose out through your mouth" That was really dumb advice Grimmjow had to admit to himself but that was all he had to offer Ichigo. He could have muffled the man's cries with his gray fingerless gloves but Ichigo's breathing was already so labored.

The young man with the orange hair and a bullet wound in his lower left abdomen was lying on the cold asphalt tears streaming from his eyes trying his best from screaming out and alerting the coming danger to their position. He had blacked out for only a few seconds before Grimmjow's voice brought him back. He was fighting his death, even his lips felt cold and tingly.

So he thought of any and everything to take his mind off the fact that his best friend Renji had a knife that he had sanitized with fire digging at his wound trying to find the bullet.

The ground gave a violent shake and with each tremble of the earth they knew that the Screechers were approaching.

The group of humans that had chased them had already fled the scene. Renji had gotten no more than a foot from the leader with his gun pointed at Kiskue ready to kill him without hesitation. But then the soft tremors in the earth distracted all of them. It wasn't the first time they felt the earth quake like this but it was the first time Ichigo and his family had felt these type of tremors and Screeching that sounded as if it was miles away.

"The Herd's coming we need to get back to the city." Kiskue calmly stated to his band of brethren. He and his comrades retreated to their vehicle and drove away. They were gone as quickly as they had come into their lives.

Ichigo couldn't tell you what happened after that seeing how he passed out yet again. He had awoken sometime later still on the asphalt with a pain that seared through his body like liquid hot fire. The pain was blinding and as he screamed out for death he was muzzled by his lover's cold hard calloused hands.

"They're coming" Was all he needed to hear before he chocked back his cries of pain. Every attempt to move him to the nearby shelter of the woods was futile seeing how his wounds bled more and it caused him so much pain.

"AGGGHHHH!" Ichigo couldn't help the scream that escaped his lips as Renji dug the blade deeper, the bullet was moving and every time the hunter got close to it, it just moved some more. The young man was trying to be strong, trying to not attract attention to his family, trying to be like Grimmjow had been in the cave that night he had cauterized his wounds.

The farmer was right there by his side, with Ichigo's head in his lap holding his hand, his forehead resting on Ichigo's.

"Hang on, Ichigo please just hang on." The farmer's words only half reached his mind. Shinji was holding Ichigo's lower body, trying to keep the man still.

"Wait...wait I think….yes...yes I got it!" Renji exclaimed. Grimmjow breathed out a sigh of relief, but then there was a rumbled in the earth. "FUCK!" Called out Renji. "I lost it. I fucking lost it."

"E cain take muh more of dis Ren!" Shinji said, he was still holding Ichigo's legs down.

"I no dat dammit!" Snapped Renji

Shinji was sweating profusely and he looked down with his shoulders slumped.

Grimmjow began to run his fingers through Ichigo's hair in an effort to soothe him for what was to come. The young driver mind was swimming and he was past the point of light headed and closer to the brink of death. He was hanging on and he could feel his life draining from him as each second ticked by.

"Grimmjow?" his voice was nothing more than a whisper.

"Yeah Tiger." Grimmjow would give his former charge anything if he just asked him. And as the rumble in the ground shook them to where balancing was not possible anymore and they were now able to hear the screeching off in the distance.

"Dey gett'n closer." Observed Shinji.

"The story Blue." Ichigo managed to choke out.

Both Renji and Shinji had no idea what Ichigo was talking about. And as Renji prepared to go bullet hunting again. Grimmjow began.

In the great green room

There was a telephone

And a red balloon

At least Renji waited after the tremor to go diving. Ichigo bit down on his bottom lip as Shinji desperately tried to keep his body on the ground. Grimmjow's words reached his ears in a strained and pained whisper.

Goodnight room Goodnight room

Goodnight cow jumping over the moon

He tried to be quiet, honest he did. But Ichigo just couldn't help himself the pain was to much.

"AHHHH HA HA, AGHHHH!" The pain was blinding. He wanted his family to just leave him. He was good as dead anyway. Maybe if he gave up and just died they would finally leave him. Seek shelter. Be safe.

And then somewhere in the distance came the sounds of Shinji's whimpers and Renji's swearing as they began to mix with Ichigo's screams. All the while the farmer recited on.

Goodnight clocks and goodnight socks

Goodnight little house and Goodnight mouse

He heard Renji yell he had found the bullet but inside his mind he couldn't help but think it was too late. And as the gentle words of his former caretaker and lover continued on, Ichigo let the calmness of the impending darkness soothe him.

Goodnight stars Goodnight air

Goodnight noises everywhere

They were alone. At least that is what Shuuhei had come to believe. Mankind was on the brink of extinction and he and Ichigo were all that was left. The young man was losing his mind. With no one to talk to. He was also losing hope with each passing moment. Ichigo had been in a coma for six months now with no signs of waking up.

He yearned for a friend, a companion but being responsible for another life another mouth to feed terrified him more than the thought of being alone.

At the moment he was preparing to go out and brave the day. He had no food and he was hungry, he had eaten all the rations that the hospital had to offer him months ago and now he had to to go out and check the surrounding houses that were still standing for food.

He hated to leave the hospital for two reasons. Ichigo was completely vulnerable lying there in that bed, and if he woke up before Shuuhei got back well the man shuttered to think about that possibility. And secondly it was scary outside behind the safety of these four walls. But he had to do what he had to do.

He had been walking back to the hospital when he seen it. He thought he had been delirious after all he had been alone for six months, barely eating and sleeping and on the brink of broken sanity. So when he saw the white pick up truck full of humans he had thought he had truly gone crazy, because just that morning he had prayed for friends.

A busty young woman with short spiky red hair was passing a card board box to a young boy that looked like her inside the bed of the truck.

"I swear this better be as far south as we have to go." She said to the boy who only nodded in response. "I mean honestly what's the point. Everyone's dead anyway."

Shuuhei was happy, he had no reason to trust these new humans. Not at all, but he was so desperate that he just didn't care anymore. He was lost in the moment but not nearly enough he was about to yell to get their attention until he heard something he wish he hadn't.

"Well you know what Kiskue said. What's left could rise up against him and he will settle for nothing but complete and total domination." This came from a woman with long dark hair and equally dark skin leaning from the driver's window of the truck.

What the hell had she meant by that. Total domination. Only the Alien invaders could claim such a thing. But Shuuhei Hisagi was no fool he wasn't going to stick around to ask that question. He made to turn around and hide someplace when the boy with red hair inside the truck saw him.

"HEY YOU!" The kid yelled pointing at Shuuhei. The young man in question dropped his bag of food and took off running.

But what's the use no one can out run a pick up truck full of blood thirsty humans.

It was quiet inside the garage at Daytona International Speedway, unnaturally quiet and sunny. He was sitting on top of a red Snap On tool box. He was dressed in his purple and gold fire suit. He took a quick look around the garage stalls, it was full of race cars but there right in front of him was his number 15 Hydekll's Toyota Camry still covered by the black car tarp.

He jumped down and the soft thump of his purple fire shoes on the concrete didn't make the echo he thought it would. He walked back to the back of the small garage stall to the square plexy glass window with the small rectangular mail slot at the bottom. His name and number written in white across a red placard at the top of the window.

"Hmm, no fans." That was odd he thought.

He always had a group of screaming fans at his garage window. He turned around and his mouth fell open. His car was gone, and the rest of the garage was empty. He ran to the front where the opening to the stalls were. He looked expecting to see the row of car Haulers exactly where they should be. But nothing, no one. He began to panic yelling at the top of his voice.

"HELLO!…. ANYONE HERE!"

He ran down hauler row to the entrance of pit road.

"Where is everybody?" He asked of no one.

He turned left, he turned right nothing.

His breathing picked up once he realized he didn't remember how he even got to the track. Why he was at the track.

"Oh gosh, what the hell is going on?" Another question to no one.

Then he had a thought and he began to laugh.

"Okay Shiro, you got me!" He made sure to speak loudly enough.

Just like his twin to play a horrible trick like this on him

"Okay, Okay I give. Come out Shiro." But nothing, no sound, not even a breeze. "Shiro, Shuuhei…..Anybody?"

"They're not coming sweet heart." That sweet voice came from directly behind him. And although it was so far back in his memory. He still knew who it belonged to. He slowly turned around to look into the angelic face of the woman that created him.

"Mom."

He stood guard by that lake, his gun at the low ready, all his senses on high alert. But truth be told this was all for show, because there is nothing he could do. He would die protecting his family and die he just might. They would all fall one by one if one of the ten feet tall invaders broke ranks and traveled the small distance to where they hid out in the open. So, there he stood watching them as they silently marched pass him one by one shaking the earth as they went.

After Renji removed the bullet from Ichigo's abdomen he seared the wound shut. All the while Ichigo made not a peep because as it was he had passed out either from the pain or the loss of blood. And even though he had seared the wound shut, Renji had a gut feeling that would not be enough. But nonetheless Grimmjow picked the unconscious Ichigo up, cradled the young man close to him and then took off running towards the nearby forest seeking shelter.

They didn't know how far they should go, but distance was all on their minds. They knew what was coming wasn't something they wouldn't survive if they didn't hide. The way the ground trembled beneath their feet told them that there was hundreds of them marching steady to a rhythm, to where none of them knew.

And so they ran, they ran till the shaking of the ground took their feet from underneath them. The ground shook violently, shook like an earthquake. Renji fell to his knees catching himself with his free hand while the other clutched his weapon to his body. Grimmjow fell forwards turning his torso in enough time so he could fall on his back and not on Ichigo. Shinji, tripped on his feet face planting, eating dirt on his landing. Not one of them made a sound as they paused a moment, looking around at each other as if they were able to communicate mentally with one another.

Should they stay put. Should they keep running. Not a word, not a body gesture, nothing between them but stares. Renji was afraid to talk, afraid to breathe, and afraid to move. But he would never say as much to Grimmjow and definitely not to Shinji, who had this unfounded belief that Renji was fearless.

And in that mere few seconds which felt like minutes to the three, the decision was made for them. The trees began to fall. Crashing to the earth with such a force it sent a gush of wind and dirt around the four blanketing them from sight. They continued to fall, one by one, too weak to stand from the alien earth quake but still strong enough to crush the humans.

The family couldn't go back, all they could do was go forward.

So on their feet they stood upon shaky ground. Legs feeling like jelly with every step, running no longer an option. Renji looked over to Grimmjow who clung to Ichigo's still form. Knowing that if it was Shinji he would have done the same.

They moved about 100 feet when they reached a lake. The moon was full that night and it's reflection was bright upon the lake as ripples shuttered across. The trees circling the lake stood their ground. Tall and strong like soldiers guarding this lake. So quiet and pleasant was this place except for the alien march in the background.

Is this their safe haven or is this the place where they would all die?

A/N: I apologize for typos, I'm too exhausted to edit just yet. I'll get to it, I figured you would want the chapter anyway, If not oh well.