Author's Note – Someone said awhile ago I should start a one-shot collection. So I am! This is just a bunch of stories with nothing to do with each other, to be updated at my discretion. They all have one thing in common though; they're all, in some form, Ichigo and Rukia-related!

First Story – Lock-down

Rating – PG

Summary – Some things are character building. Being locked in a closet with someone you love sometimes and want to strangle all the time isn't one of them

Dedication – This story is dedicated to my bestest pal and partner in being obsessed with Anime Kimmy, who gave me the idea for this story. Love ya Kimmy!

What the hell did I do to deserve this? Were Kurosaki Ichigo's current thoughts.

"Ichigo, get off of me!"

"Shout a little louder idiot, there's someone in Uruguay who didn't hear you!"

This would have been an awkward situation for someone who walked in and had no clue what was going on

----End Flashback----

Ichigo held up a pair of ratty looking sneakers. "Why in the world did I keep these?" he muttered,throwing them aside. He was in the middle of cleaning out his closet.

"What are you doing?" Rukia had walked in. She was staring oddly at Ichigo.

"What does it look like, baka?" Ichigo grumbled, annoyed. "Go away"

"It looks like you're cleaning out your closet," she answered in a matter of fact way.

"Then why the hell did you ask!?" she shrugged. Ichigo grumbled a string of swears under his breath and went back to cleaning. Right as he was leaning into his closet, he felt two small hands shove him in, and the door slammed shut, plunging Ichigo into darkness. "Rukia!"

He tried to pull the door open, but Rukia was holding the door from the other side. "Let me out!"

"Say the magic words!" Rukia chirped in the voice she used around everyone else. It drove Ichigo insane.

"Let me out before I kill you!"

"Try again!"

"Rukia!"

The door slid open. Ichigo, ready for revenge, grabbed Rukia and pulled her in. Before he could scramble out, though, the door slammed shut again. "I hate you," the orange-haired teen grumbled, "Fine. You win. Happy?"

He reached out to slide the door open. It didn't budge. "Very funny Ichigo," Rukia said, annoyed, "Just open the door"

"It's...stuck..." he grunted and pulled harder.

"Oh move it," she shoved him aside and began pulling at the door herself.

"Believe me now?"

----End Flashback----

"This sucks," Ichigo muttered, leaning against the back of his closet, arms folded, "This really sucks"

"This isn't exactly a picnic for me either, Ichigo," Rukia snapped. She crossed her legs Indian-style and folded his arms, glaring at the door. "I can think of better things to do with my time then be locked in a closet with you"

"Yeah, 'cause your social calendar is just brimming with things to do," Ichigo rolled his eyes, "Let's see, hollow fighting at four-thirty, oh, and Chappy the Rabbit is on at five...how do you keep up with such a demanding schedule – ow!"

That last part came from Rukia slapping him over the head. "At least no one else is home," he muttered as he rubbed the back of his head.

"How is that a good thing?" Rukia asked impatiently, "If someone was home they could let us out, fool!"

"And how would we answer, 'Ichigo, why were you and Rukia-chan in a closet together?'?!" Ichigo shot back. The short Shinigami didn't seem to have an answer to that. The two lapsed back into an uncomfortable silence.

After about five minutes, Rukia said in a hesitant voice, "Um...Ichigo?"

"Yeah?" the teen in question tilted his head to look at Rukia. Why did she suddenly seem so...uncomfortable?

"Um...never-mind"

"Che. Whatever," he went back to sulking and trying to come up with ways to get out of the closet. Rukia, meanwhile, fidgeted and squirmed back and forth until she was in the corner. Ichigo felt a tad annoyed; what was her problem? "This is all your fault, you know"

That snapped her back to reality. "What?! How is it my fault?!"

"If you hadn't pushed me in-"

"Oh please! You're the one who pulled me in-"

"Then you slammed the door shut-"

"Why was it locked anyway? Who locks a closet?!"

"So that means-"

"It's all your fault!" They ended at the same time. "My fault?!" they shouted in unison. "Yeah, your fault! Stop that!"

They both swore angrily and twisted so that their backs were against each other. They stony silence last for a good half an hour. Ichigo looked down at his watch. They'd been there for two hours.

"Um...Ichigo?"

"What?" Ichigo prepared for insults. But Rukia surprised him.

"I never...said thank you, did I?" Ichigo, despite himself, twisted around.

"What the hell for?"

"You know...for saving me"

"Saving you?" Ichigo pretended to be confused. "Oh, you mean from being executed? What happened to 'go home' and 'I don't want to be saved' and 'I won't thank you'?"

"Shut up moron," Rukia snapped, the uncertain air gone, "Anyways, that isn't what I was talking about"

Now Ichigo was confused. "Then...what did you mean?"

"I..." she paused, obviously unsure of what to say, "You...You saved me from me"

"You couldn't be anymore vague if you tried"

Rukia huffed, obviously impatient. "You...You changed me, Ichigo. You gave me a reason to live"

Normally Ichigo would have scoffed. But he was curious. What, exactly, was Rukia's definition of change? She still seemed like an obnoxious, annoying midget to him. "Uh..."

"Oh forget it," she was to impatient, "Never-mind"

And once again they lapsed into silence. But now Ichigo was thinking. He had changed her. Had she changed him?

His immediate answer, of course, was no. But when he thought more about it...he had changed. Ever since that night she came through his window. Yeah. He had changed. A lot. "Rukia?"

"What?"

"Thanks," she craned her neck. Amber eyes met violet.

"For what?"

"I dunno. Everything"

They no longer had their backs to each other. Now they were facing each other fully, wearing similar looks of mild surprise. "Ichigo?"

"Yeah?"

A pause. "I don't know"

"Yeah. Me neither," they were getting closer to each other now...

And the door flew open. Kurosaki Isshin, Yuzu, and Karin were framed in the door. Light was pouring in.

"Aha! There you – Rukia-chan?!"

Ichigo and Rukia sprang apart, and the former punched his dad in the face. "Where've you guys been?!" the orange-haired teen shouted, "We've been stuck in there for over two hours!"

"What happened?" Yuzu asked as her brother and Rukia climbed out of the closet.

"It's a long story," Rukia told the younger girl gently.

"Tell us over supper," Yuzu suggested. The group started downstairs.

Yuzu found the story hilarious. Karin just couldn't believe Ichigo and Rukia hadn't killed each other. Isshin kept asking if anything had happened.

And all through supper, Ichigo and Rukia kept shifting their eyes towards each other, quickly looking away when they caught themselves looking.

Author's Note – Heehee, I just couldn't resist doing this. Anyways, one-shot, no review limit, just let me know what you think!