Blazing Orange

Ichigo/Orihime

A/N: This story is dedicated to my good friend rainy-lullaby, whose support has helped make my other Bleach fics possible. Those other fics were all Grimmjow/Halibel, but now for a change of pace!

*o*o*o*o*

"You sell candy, Mr. Hat-and-Clogs! Not fireworks!" Ichigo sputtered in shock and irritation, gesturing wildly with his arms. He and Kisuke Urahara stood on the front porch of Urahara's shop, and the sun's evening light washed everything an orange tint. A bird chirped in the distance. "Since when did you meddle with explosives?"

"Not explosives, dear boy! Just some... fun stuff!" Urahara defended himself with a gleeful smile, raising his fan to his chin in a suspicious manner. Urahara scraped the fan back and forth against his chin stubble, making an annoying scritch-scratch sound. "I came from the 12th Division in the Gotei 13, remember? I've invented all kinds of great things! That, or I buy good stuff now and then to give myself some variety. And it's summer! Why not fireworks?"

So vague. He could be up to anything and I'd never know it, Ichigo lamented, with the words "things" and "stuff" popping up often in Urahara's sentences. Ichigo scratched the back of his head, his fingers rifling through his blazing orange hair. "Well, that's cool, sir," he mumbled. He turned to leave. "But, I've got to go. I have an appointment, so I'll just..."

Ichigo tried to scramble away, but Urahara's arm flashed in sudden movement and he seized Ichigo's ankle, sending the boy crashing onto the ground.

"Nuh-uh, Ichigo! You work for me now, remember?" Urahara reminded him triumphantly, waving his fan in victory. "I've got something for you to do, right now."

"Jeez, man. Do I have to?" Ichigo complained, staggering back to his feet and feeling the dull throbbing of his chest from where he had landed on the ground. "I've got something to do! I just got off my shift. Why can't I go?"

"Be-cause, I want to deliver a shipment to a good customer of mine but I'm feeling... well... too lazy to do it myself!" Urahara chuckled, making Ichigo groan.

Ichigo worked his jaw. "Make Jinta do it! The brat's just lazing off anyway!" Ichigo roared, pointing at Jinta, who was lying on his stomach in the shop's lobby, practicing a shogi game by himself. Jinta turned and gave Ichigo a triumphant look not unlike his boss's. "I'm on my break, and I've got some serious seniority over you," he shot back. "And what was that? Am I a brat now?"

Since the start! Ichigo raged in his head, but he didn't say it.

Jinta pointed. "You heard the boss. He says deliver, you do it. You need something to fill your time, anyway. Ever since you got back from Soul Society from rescuing Rukia, you've been lazing on your ass."

"That's why you offered to work for me, right, Ichigo?" Urahara added, but more kindly. His fan went back to the chin. "Come on, lad. That other appointment can't be too important! Here, this is what you'll deliver."

Ururu dutifully arrived on the scene, emerging from the shop's interior while carrying a large box labeled "explosive". She set it down at Ichigo's feet. "Here you go, Ichigo," the dark-haired girl said modestly, not meeting Ichigo's brown eyes. She scurried off again, while Jinta laughed at her perpetual timidness.

Ichigo gave the box a frightened look. "What the hell is in that?"

"How rude!" Urahara acted hurt. "That's my newest shipment of fireworks. It's one of the unusual items I've ordered recently, and someone around here bought it to add to this summer's fireworks display. I want you, Ichigo Kurosaki, to deliver it. The address is written on the paper attached to the side. Hup-hup!"

Ichigo examined the paper and made a face. "This is on the other side of town. That appointment..."

"Can surely wait? It's not like the world's about to end," Urahara joked, taking a few steps closer to Ichigo, his clogs going clop-clop. "Why so rushed?"

"It's because... Ichigo faltered, his gut squirming nervously as his scalp itched from his blushing. "Um..." Tonight is my first date with Orihime, and I'd barely be on time if I left right now. If I'm delayed...

"I can read it on your face," Urahara smirked. "Girl waiting for you?"

"Girls slow you down, man!" Jinta shouted over, not missing a word. "I'm telling you..."

"Jinta!" Urahara shouted back.

"Yes, sir?" Jinta leaped to his feet.

"Get outta here," Urahara glowered, and Jinta scrambled deeper into the shop without hesitation. Urahara turned back to Ichigo, a broad smile crossing his face as he clapped both hands on Ichigo's shoulders. "Ichigo, my man! You didn't tell me about this earlier! How come?"

Ichigo shrugged. "I didn't think you could be bothered, sir," he confessed, feeling a little more relaxed. His date's urgency still lingered, though. "So I didn't..."

Urahara gripped Ichigo's shoulders tight. "Don't sweat it, Ichigo," he said firmly. "Since you've got a date waiting for you, I'm going to make special accommodations. Just for you."

"Thanks, sir, I really appreciate that," Ichigo said gratefully, backing away as soon as Urahara let go. "So, I'll be off..." Yes! I'll be there soon, Orihime.

He tried to run, but once again Urahara seized his ankle and sent him crashing down. Ichigo rolled to break his fall this time, but he was still miffed. He scrambled to his feet. "What was that for?"

Urahara scratched his fan against his stubble again, then adjusted his green and white striped hat again so that it shaded his eyes better. "I wasn't letting you off, Ichigo! You're going to make extra deliveries this evening. The fireworks, and some others, too."

"But what about making accom..."

Urahara's smile appeared so fast Ichigo could have sworn that Urahara was pressing a personal "creepy grin" button. "Orihime's not interested in some slacker, Ichigo. You're a hard worker, I can attest to that from training you for infiltrating the Soul Society. Plus, Yoruichi tells me that you mastered Bankai super-fast. This'll be nothing."

"Um, time issues here...?"

Urahara assembled a number of items in a pile around the fireworks box and motioned toward them with his fan. "A number of your friends have been ordering items for me lately, I've really been expanding. If Orihime goes to look for the ever-so-absent you, she'll find you rushing to make all these deliveries tirelessly, a model worker! She'll be so impressed, she'll forgive your lateness and like you even more! Right?"

Ichigo gave Urahara a weary look. "No."

Urahara's shoulders slumped and he shrugged, losing his smile. "Well, you've got your job at any rate. Just do it, okay? We've been out here forever."

"Fine, fine," Ichigo consented, trudging to the stack of boxes. "Where's the first one going?"

"To your own house! Easy, huh?" Urahara cheered, piling the boxes into Ichigo's arms and pushing him away. "Get a move on! Go, go! Yeah!"

Blasted freak! Ichigo cursed, but he was stuck with this. He prayed that all the deliveries would be close, so he'd only be a few minutes. Well, Orihime was a patient one. She'd understand!

Ichigo set down the first box on his own front step and read the label of what was in it. To Isshin Kurosaki. Here is your latest order of Mega-Babes 9000, all issues within the last year! Yours, Kisuke Urahara.

"So that's what my dad's been reading behind my back," Ichigo fumed, making a mental note to kick his father's ass the next time he saw him. However, he was on a time crunch. Ichigo tore down the street as fast as he could, using every bit of his training to move fast while carrying all these boxes. He rapidly dispensed several boxes on their appropriate porches, and then rocketed down the street to deliver the next one. One of them was even for Chad, which contained a bunch of old CD albums from various rock groups. I guess Chad's having a lot of empty days like I am, Ichigo figured. He exploded down the street again, going at super speed to get this annoying errand done sooner than later. However, he saw two people standing by a rather familiar sidewalk bench, where he and Orihime were going to meet for their date.

Orihime was indeed there, but so was her black-haired classmate and friend, Tatsuki. They both whipped their heads aside to watch Ichigo rocket past them, still carrying several boxes.

"Hey! Ichigo! Over here! Are you blind?" Tatsuki called him over, irate that Ichigo ran past his date when he was already running late. She started after him, fist raised.

"I'll be back! I've just got to finish this up, promise!" Ichigo stopped and shouted back over his shoulder, but he had his eyes on Orihime rather than Tatsuki. Man, she's really nice-looking! Freakin' Urahara, making me run late.

"Do you realize you're running late, bozo? Get back over here!" Tatsuki argued, until Orihime stopped her, trying to smile her friend back to a calm state.

"It's okay, Tatsuki! Ichigo's just taking his job seriously. He'll be back as soon as he can."

"Yeah, lay off, gorilla-girl!" Ichigo taunted Tatsuki, encouraged by Orihime's words. However, he had gone too far, and now he had Tatsuki bent on pulverizing him. He took off again, now trying to both complete his deliveries and avoid being mauled by Orihime's karate-slinging pal. Orihime tried to stop Tatsuki but to no avail, and she simply watched as the arguing duo turned a street corner and were out of sight. Then, something occurred to her.

"Oh! Ichigo was delivering all those things for Mr. Urahara, wasn't he?" she realized brightly to herself, talking out loud. She held up a finger to help her concentrate. "Then that means... I have to hurry!" With that, she rushed down the street but took a different direction than Ichigo and Tatsuki had taken.

"Gorilla! Brute! Amazon!" Ichigo teased Tatsuki, aware that the damage had been done and that he might as well enjoy himself. He flung a box at another house, lightening his load a little more.

"You're dead, Ichigo!" Tatsuki shot back, pumping her arms to make her go faster. "Why's Orihime going out with a jerk like you?"

"Relax, okay? I've had a hard day! I'm just spouting nonsense," Ichigo defended himself, suddenly feeling bad for his behavior. Why, oh why did everything he did have to be so crazy, anyway? "I'm sorry!"

"Oh, I'll make you sorry!" Tatsuki promised him, catching up and taking a few swings. "This'll learn ya!"

"Whoop! Yowch! That was close!" Ichigo had to dodge all of Tatsuki's kicks and punches as he vaulted over shrubs and mailboxes, trying to take a shortcut over people's lawns. At last, he was down to just one box, the original box of fireworks. Tatsuki was really close, however, and Ichigo was getting tired, his arms and legs burning and his breath coming in gasps. He put on a burst of speed, trying to get to the house as fast as possible.

Tatsuki shouted after him, "I won't forgive you, Ichigo! I'll crush you!" but he could tell that she was having as much fun as he was, simply caught up in the moment. Ichigo got the feeling that Urahara had schemed all this, just for kicks. I'll kick my dad's ass and then kick Urahara's ass twice! Ichigo internally promised himself. However, the box of fireworks was breaking apart from the force of Ichigo's movements, and fireworks were starting to fall out.

Desperate, Ichigo cried, "Home run!" and dove onto the lawn of the final house. It was then that he realized that a person was standing there right in front of him, and it was too late for him to slow down. Ichigo and Tatsuki both crashed into a pile right at the person's feet, crushing the fireworks box and sending the little orange rockets tumbling everywhere.

"I'm sorry! I screwed up your order. I'll get these together..." Ichigo bowed in apology to the person, starting to assemble the ruined fireworks. He realized that the person was Orihime herself, doubling over in laughter.

"You go a mile a minute, Ichigo!" she smiled, helping the weary Ichigo and Tatsuki to their feet. Ichigo relished the feeling of her hand in his, helping him up. "Those fireworks were mine. I ordered them for the summer fireworks display."

"B-but I ruined them," Ichigo lamented, feeling small as Orihime's large innocent eyes watched him. "And I'm late for our date. I'm a mess. Maybe we should meet tomorrow..."

"Not at all!" Orihime encouraged him, as Tatsuki took Orihime's side with a friendly expression. "I can still use these. Do you know why they're orange?"

Ichigo looked down at the fireworks. "N-no?"

Orihime tossed a lock of her rusty orange hair, then ruffled Ichigo's own hair. "It's to celebrate us! You and me. These fireworks are orange, the same color as our hair. The blazing orange displays will be added to the summer display can be a homage to our first date and all of our future time spent together. I got here in time to accept your delivery."

"So, do you...?" Ichigo offered, and Orihime nodded., her hands clasped behind her back. "Mmm-hmm! You did a fine job, Ichigo. You even gave Tatsuki a work-out!"

"I was here to protect Orihime from thugs. And late people," Tatsuki winked, and Ichigo smiled back. He knew that the two friends were inseparable, but tonight would be about him and Orihime.

"So... how would you like to go out tonight?" Ichigo offered, extending his hand. "Orihime." Everything worked out after all. I just want to be with you.

Orihime beamed and accepted his hand, stepping forward to clasp it with both of hers. "I would!" she cheered. "I know, I dressed more nicely than you, but I don't mind."

"I'll go and see if Urahara has any novelty items," Tatsuki grinned, giving the peace sign and departing. Ichigo groaned in his head, not wanting to think about his boss anymore for today. But then again...

"Where would you like to go first?" Ichigo asked Orihime as they set off down the evening street, hand in hand.

Orihime thought about it for a second. "Oh, anywhere's fine with me. As long as I'm with you."