It was raining, it always seemed to be raining on days like this. He was getting off work late, that was becoming all too common. Ever since the Arrancar were stopped all there seemed to be were late nights that differed only by the weather. Renji conceded taking off his captains' coat to keep it from being rained on, but changed his mind.
'It's not like it's made of paper, I'm sure it'll be fine.' He chuckled at his thoughts. The last time it had been raining he had only been a captain for two days and was mildly paranoid about letting anything mar the symbol of his newly attained office. Now, however, he was adjusting to being a captain and besides, it stopped the light drizzle from reaching his skin.
'Gahh…paper. I have got to stop thinking about paper. Tomorrow I'll ask if Momo is up to do some paper work. Maybe all the paperwork…no that would be unfair.' He had been having a reoccurring theme of no matter what he started dreaming about it would always end up by being chased around or squished by a stack of paperwork. 'Maybe I should be checked in with Momo.' He halted. 'No, I have worked too hard to get were I am, I'm not going to let some silly dreams affect me.'
Looking around Renji realized that somewhere along his walk home he must have taken a wrong turn. 'And now come the part where I get squished by a giant stack of miscoded forms.' He looked around, just in case. " I am definitely taking tomorrow off." Renji turned back the way he came. "I'll sleep in maybe catch up on some-" Renji froze, his current trail of thought wiped clean from his mind by the sight in front of him.
In the side street off to his left was a sight he had hoped never to see. Something he couldn't be seeing. 'He isn't even in town…what the fuck? I see Rukia and him and that's the first thing I think!' Renji tried to start walking again, to turn away, to close his eyes, something to stop him from watching as the only person he ever felt anything for being kissed by someone else. Renji would have thought that Ichigo would have kissed like he did everything else, full throttle no holds barded rather then the chaste kiss Renji was seeing.
Rukia was like that too. Ever since Renji had first kissed her all those years ago he always wondered how a girl so fiery could be so timid. It was that shock that almost dissolved the feelings that had been building up in him. Making it be enough for him just to kiss her, and that night just to hold her. Maybe if it had continued, maybe it would be him kissing her, him running his fingers down her neck, him being asked inside to "get out of the rain", not Ichigo. He could start walking past then make some noise, cough or something… anything, act like he hadn't noticed what they had been doing, anything to make them stop.
Renji shook himself. It was stupid. He began walking back to his office away from the star he chased after for so long. Ichigo had yet again done what he could not do. He had won Rukia's heart.
'I'm getting all god dam poetic again.' It was raining harder now. Renji's captains' coat no longer keeping him dry. He thought about heading back home. 'No I'll go back to the office and work till I pass out and have another dream about stacks of paper.' He knew though that there would be no paper in his dreams tonight, that instead it would be about what he had just seen. It made sense, right after Renji had learned his name Ichigo informed him that he was "The man who's gonna beat you." He had definitely beaten him today. Not when he bested Byakuya, not when he stopped Aizen. Today. He had Rukia.
It was on days like this that Renji felt like all he had was the conciliation prize.
I would like to thank Curry Kitty for her help and praise.