title: anchorage
rating: K
Ichigo can only watch as she disappears, and is struck by how useless he feels, yet again. And he tries to stomp down the feeling, because she hadn't worked this hard for him start wallowing in this self-loathing.
Rukia hadn't pushed him to his limits, kept his feet on the ground for him to act so childish. So he stuffs his hands in his pockets and squeezes them so tightly his fingers will hardly listen to him when he tries to unbend them later. He doesn't reach out to like he wants, and he doesn't say the millions of things he wants to sayb and she deservers to hear. He barely manages to get those few words of parting past his teeth.
"Bye, Rukia."
And she's gone. She was just there a second ago, and now she's gone from his life forever. How can someone who had been such a huge part of his life just disappear? He knows, no matter what he says or does from here on out, he'll never be the same.
"Thank you."