Music to my Heart (A Bleach/Ulquihime fic)

Chapter 6

This story belongs to Cerice Belle at FanFiction.net. I am only publishing it in order to share it with more people. All credits go to her.
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Ulquiorra walked through the hallways of school, scratching his arm in its sling absentmindedly, and avoiding all eye contact. He felt...empty, emptier than usual that is, and that was saying something. Aizen's proposition had made him feel so dirty and used, he could tell his step-father had been leading up to this, just to get rid of Grimmjow because he knew about the secret. Why, why did Aizen do things like this? It would explain why he had been unsuccessful in his previous murder attempts, they had just been leading Ulquiorra to believe he was trying to, but really, it was all a plot to get him to do it. The worst part was that he had actually thought about it. It killed him inside to know that he had spent the past night going over and over in his head the option to kill his best and only true friend, Nnoitra and Szayel were only counted as strange psychopaths he hung out with because Grimmjow did.

"Oi Ulquiorra!"

Before Ulquiorra could react someone grabbed his neck and pulled him into a tight headlock.

"What's the big idea dumbass?" came Grimmjow's voice from above him. "I've been calling you all the way down the hallway!"

Ulquiorra pulled himself non-too-gently from Grimmjow's clutches, and began to walk off leaving the blue-haired delinquent staring at him in shock. He shook his head and ran after his friend, grabbing his shoulder and turning him around.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" he yelled. "You usually punch me or somethin' when I do that-," he broke off and looked closely at Ulquiorra's face. "Wow, you look terrible, are you sick?"

"Did I hear someone say sick?" cried Szayel, bouncing into the scene.

Grimmjow rolled his eyes and pointed to Ulquiorra, "Emo here-"

"Ulquiorra's always sick, stupid," contributed Nnoitra, looming over behind the short friend. "I mean have you seen what happens to him all the time, like shit dude!"

Grimmjow turned Ulquiorra around to face the tall man, causing him to swear.

Ulquiorra's eyes had dark rings underneath them, his skin was pallid and his eyes were even more depressed looking than usual, giving him an almost vampiric appearance.

"Well," said Szayel, pushing Nnoitra out of the way to get a closer look. "It seems to me that you're suffering from sleep deprivation caused by extreme stress, anxiety and/or depression. I have actually been working on the cause of this and how to prevent and possibly cure it; I would be honoured to have you as my test subject."

"Err no," said Ulquiorra, stepping back from the amber eyes shining eagerly at him. "I've got to go to class now so-"

"Look Ulquiorra," interrupted Grimmjow from behind him. "You need to see a doctor, not Szayel," he added, glaring at the said man, "But a proper Doctor, just to see if you're OK, all these beatings can't be good for you."

"No shit Sherlock!" sniggered Nnoitra, earning him a clobber around the head from the bluenette. "Argh! You're gonna get it you bastard!"

"Oh really, that's not what happened last time!" sneered Grimmjow, earning him a punch in the gut. "Hey Ulquiorra back me up here!" he exclaimed turning around, and seeing the bare linoleum floor of the school corridor. "Ulquiorra?"