Actually, the reason why I want to write this story with such a title is because I kinda want to release my frustrations and insecurities of being a perfectionist via Orihime, since I share the same birthday with her and thus the zodiac sign, the Virgo. Well, being a Virgo means that you are prone to be bugged by ideas of "perfection" round the clock, and sometimes these ideas can drive one insane. Even though Kubo-sensei did not quite portray this characteristic in our princess, but this was the easiest way for me to blow off some steam. Sorry if I made it seem a bit complaining.
I separated this from its sister even though this one is somehow the sequel because this is more focused on Orihime, and I don't quite want this reflective story to ruin the mood of the other.
So, here you go!
Imperfect is Perfect 2
"Oh, dear," Orihime groaned, sitting amidst a wanton mess of randomly-thrown clothes in the living room. She muttered to herself as she did mixing-and-matching with her clothes. "I surely do want to wear a dress or a skirt, but I can't find a good matching top to go with them. For these tops I'll have to wear trousers, but I rarely wear them except for the times that require me for big actions, and if I wear one now it'd be very awkward…" She groaned again. "One hour left, and I need to go to the showers, clean this mess up and make myself look presentable…oh! I have no idea, and I totally don't want to ruin my first date with Kurosaki-kun!"
Now, my good readers, we must know the past before we can understand the present and learn of the future. Last month when school was over, Orihime went to the racks of shoe boxes. Anyone would think that she was about to change her shoes and leave the campus, but she did not head for her box. She went to the next aisle from where her box was and did not need to search long for her target; for she knew its location well, as well as the fact that the owner would not show up until an hour later since he had to stay late to help with the Basketball Team again. Seeing no one was around, she quietly slipped a small envelop through the gap and scurried back to the safe waters of her aisle. Heaving a sigh of relief, she changed her shoes and left for home. She should not have too much hope in it, but at the very least, she was happy that she has finally hurdled over such a big obstacle.
The next day just as she was about to walk into the classroom, someone called her, and she smiled to greet good morning to her fellow orange-haired schoolmate, the highly-sought-after Kurosaki Ichigo. As the first class was about to start, he just stopped by to ask her to go to the backyard after school to talk about something. She agreed to it, and with a nervous heart she saw him waiting for her at the assigned place after the last class. He looked just as usual: the same scowl between his brows, the same strong gaze in his chocolate-brown eyes and the same nearly-unnoticeable smile on his lips, but she noticed that his posture was rigid. Of course his body would tense up for fights, like a cheetah readying to hurl itself out for the deadly sprint, but the tenseness even got deep into his heart, as she saw the flashes of nervousness in his eyes which always reflected his emotions without fail.
She waited patiently for him to start, but after two minutes and he was still stammering on his words. That was new, thought the girl, because the Kurosaki-kun that she knew never stammers unless in front of indecency. He must be unwell then! So she turned into her Panic Mode and rambled nonstop about how he felt or what she could do to help him. He stopped her with a light squeeze on her shoulders and groaned that he could never properly say "I love you" when she acted like that. Then he realized what he has said, and his cheeks grew red from embarrassment, matching the colour of his namesake fruit.
At first she was stunned, then her face reddened too…and she turned around to bang her head against the wall. She did it exceptionally hard so she could wake up from the "dream", but she was still there! So, Inoue Orihime being confessed of love by Kurosaki Ichigo was the truth!
She heard him crying frantically for her actions as he grabbed her arm and turned her around again. She laughed sheepishly, suddenly feeling stupid that she let him see such idiocy. Pacified, the corners of his lips turned more and more upwards, and a chuckle rumbled at the back of his throat. In no time he threw his head back as he echoed the area with his hearty laughter. The poor girl froze still at her spot with a gapping mouth. Kurosaki-kun was totally not himself today, and his behaviours were becoming weirder and weirder that it was extremely mind-boggling. After a minute, he finally calmed down and said between gasps that she was ridiculous, but just the way he liked her. Then he did something that was totally unexpected: he pulled her towards him and circled his arms around her, essentially trapping her into a hug. For a moment she could not comprehend what has happened until she felt her hair being tugged and yelped in surprise. K-Ku-Kurosaki-kun's…playing with her hair?!
Up till now, none but those really close to her—which were only her brother and Tatsuki, in fact—would she allow to touch her hair. The experiences of her being bullied or harassed because of it have made her somehow loathsome to people who touched even a strand against her own will; of course not in places crammed with hordes when contact was unavoidable. However, when the Substitute Shinigami did that, she was far from feeling awful. Perhaps he has long been her crush that she did not mind and even subconsciously hoped that he would do that, or maybe he meant no harm—as if he ever will, in the first place—to her, the gentle touch sent pleasant tinges to her scalp. After a minute of hugging, he still showed no sign of releasing her. She was far from being crushed in his strong arms and she could move around for a bit, so she looked up to his face and accidentally into his eyes, but to her surprise she discovered something new in those orbs: a soft and endearing emotion.
Orihime did not quite know that look; he hardly showed it so she was not too sure at first. She knew the messages behind his looks: relaxed when with his buddies, hardened when in heated fights against strong opponents, distressed when he could not perform to his expectations, unyielding when he made an oath, and many more. In the rare occasions when she was invited to his house she also noticed that despite he was bugged by his family, his eyes were gentle and caring. Therefore, it was totally unexpected to her when she was introduced to this unchartered area, and she was bewildered when all that happened.
Suddenly, some noises alerted them from not too far and they looked at the source. Under the tree were their closest bunch of friends, and from their sheepish looks—except Ishida-kun and Sado-kun—they have been spying on them.
To say that she was unhappy was a quite mild way to put things. Orihime was branded as a forgiving person, but even she had her own limits, and one such was ruining good moments. They were just being curious so they followed them and saw the whole thing; that much she could understand, but they have ruined the moment she has always dreamt of, and that got her just as mad as the orange-haired young man who was still hugging her. Ishida-kun and Sado-kun vanished, which was not that much of a surprise—they were both very talented and powerful in their own right, leaving Tatsuki-chan, Asano-kun and Kojima-kun there. That was enough prey for the lions, as they gave chase around the campus until they all went out of breath, panting heavily as they collapsed in the backyard. She started to giggle, then it was Tatsuki-chan, next was Asano-kun, and they all joined in the chorus. After good five minutes, her soul-sister stood up and dragged the other two boys to leave the place after flashing a smile at the new couple.
Being the gentleman he always was, Kurosaki-kun helped her up after he got on his feet. Wrapping her small hands in his big calloused ones, he asked her earnestly to be his girlfriend, to which she replied positive in seconds flat with the widest smile she could muster. He returned the gesture and proceeded to ask her out on a date, but it would have to be next month since their schedules were packed by respective part-time jobs, and the time was only decided two days ago that it would be today in the evening. Therefore, right after school, she ran back to her home and rampaged through her wardrobe, thus bringing her into the current situation she was in.
Only a tiny pinch of people knew that under the airhead and ridiculous façade, Orihime was in fact a perfectionist; not that she has never presented herself in that way, but because she wanted to hide her weaknesses so much that she acted as the clumsy girl which was known by many. You can actually see it from her daily life: a tidy house despite living only by herself, clean and well-ironed clothes, nicely-combed hair without a stray piece out of place, neat and delicate handwriting even for exam papers, nearly-perfect scores in tests and exams, and so many more that she could really surprise anyone with her tidiness. Being such a person, she would never allow herself to go out for the date under her standards of being presentable. That would mean washing herself from head to toe with a light fragrance, wearing her best set of clothes with her most favourite dress or skirt, and possibly putting on a gentle touch of makeup. Yet now, time was running out, and she doubted that if she could finish that much within…
"Only 45 minutes left!" She cried as she jumped up. "Ugh, might as well start with my bath first…scrap that! A shower!" She rushed into the bathroom and dived right under the water despite the initial coldness bit her body, making her jump and yelp. She got it done within ten minutes; a whole new record for a girl with long thick hair, and wrapped only in her towel she searched for her decided set…
Then the door bell echoed in the room. Orihime froze still as dread washed over her along with the warm feeling of a familiar reiatsu. It couldn't be!
"Inoue?" She sucked in a sharp breath as Ichigo's voice came from the other side of the door. "Are you okay?"
"Y-Yes, Kurosaki-kun! I'm fine!" She squeaked, eying around the messy room. "I thought we're meeting at seven at the shopping area?"
"Well, Dad's so annoying with that ruckus he made about our date, so I decided to come over earlier to pick you up." He explained, and his annoyance with his father evident in his tone. "It's alright, Inoue. You don't have to rush, since I came earlier and unannounced. I'll be waiting downstairs."
The gears in her mind whirled immediately. For politeness, she ought to let her guest in and show her hospitality. However, given with her current situation, naked with nothing except her towel and a messy living room with all her clothes lying on the floor, it was best not to startle him. Furthermore, she would never want to give anyone, especially Kurosaki-kun, the impression that she was an unruly girl. That was also one of her greatest taboos which must never be violated. She really did not have much choice but make him wait outside. "Okay, I'll be ready within half an hour."
"Ah, just take your time." With that, she could hear the steps fading as he went down the stairs. Well, even though she promised to be out in 30 minutes, to make anyone wait for long was also against her principle. She blow-dried her wet hair hard, slipped into a random set of clothes, put on some skin-care products hastily, dumped her personal belongings and girls'-going-out necessities into her bag and dashed out of her home. After locking the door, she leapt down the stairs and nearly got tripped over by the last step. She was pretty sure that she would fall soundly on the floor if she was not held back by a strong pair of hands.
"Be careful, Inoue!" Ichigo's concerned face came into her line of sight. "You don't want to ruin your look before even starting, do you?"
"He-he…sorry!" She giggled sheepishly as he helped her stood straight, and she could finally look at his attire. He was dressed in his usual style, but Orihime noticed that he made an effort to be different for their first date. He wore a white t-shirt with some black printed designs on the front and the three-quarter-length sleeves, a black vest lined with white on the zip, and a pair of washed-out blue jeans held by a black leather belt with silver studs at his waist. The clothes were loose-fitting to cover up his muscular build, but they enhanced his height and lean figure. She hardly saw him with accessories other than his watch, but the additional thin chain with a piece of simple silvery pendant around his neck brought out more of his cool and handsome unruliness. It seemed that those black-and-white sneakers were bought recently, and he would shift and wriggle his feet to adapt to the unused tightness. In all, he looked just like a model walking straight out from the fashion magazines.
"Y-You look great, Kurosaki-kun!" She complimented, trying to hide the fact that she has been staring at him.
"Y-You too, Inoue." He replied as he tried not to stare too hard on her choice as well. He cleared his throat, "Anyhow, we should get going, or else we won't have time to enjoy ourselves."
"Um!" She nodded and walked by his side. While her hand gripped the strap of her bag nervously, a hand came into her view, which led up to Kurosaki-kun who held it out to her. She understood his questioning eyes with a tint of nervousness in them, so she smiled and placed her smaller hand in his. In no time, the long fingers rolled up and ensnarled it to a gentle hold, and they headed towards their destination to the bustling Friday-night shopping area. They did what most couples did on their first date: had a nice dinner at a decent restaurant paid by the gent, did some shopping to buy a gift for the other—a new wallet for him to replace the old one and a pair of ear studs in the shapes of a moon and a star for her even though she still yet had her first piercings—and stopped at a cosy café for a drink before heading home to call it a day.
"Thank you very much for such a wonderful day, Kurosaki-kun!" She smiled as she grabbed her cup of hot chocolate in her hands and sipped carefully so she would not burn her mouth.
"It's alright, Inoue. Don't mention it." He returned the small gesture as his facial expression softened from the usual scowl. "I'm glad that you enjoyed it."
"Why wouldn't I?" She giggled and sighed dreamily. "Truth be told, I've dreamt of us on our first date many times, but the reality was incomparable to my fantasies. What I meant is that it was awesome and exceeded my expectations!" She added the last part quickly and deepened her smile to a beaming one. "It was absolutely lovely and perfect…if only I could be just as be…"
The orange-haired teen raised his brows. "Why you aren't, Inoue?"
The equally-orange-haired beauty in turn gasped and looked at him in surprise. "H-How come did you know what I think, Kurosaki-kun?"
"Well, you do have quite a habit of speaking your thoughts out albeit in a low voice." He chuckled with a bit of light-heartedness to let her know that he did not mean to ridicule her, but more like finding it as amusing. She relaxed, and he probed again, "So, why do you think that you're not good enough?"
"Well…" Her smoky-grey eyes dimmed a little from her insecurity and concerns. "I try to be as great as I imagined myself to be, but I tend to have terrible results. Just look at me today, and I say I'm no good to match you…" During the whole time, she secretly stole glances at others, and being a keen observer she was, she noticed how people looked at them with narrowed eyes and murmured among them. Since she was conscious of how people look at her, she could not help but feel disturbed. Ugh, she really should have prepared her clothes the day they confirmed the date!
Ichigo took his greatest might to force his mouthful of latte down and not to show his discomfort when the hot liquid scorched his oesophagus, in case startling her into her worried side. His eyes flew wide as he judged her attire again. He knew she preferred to wear longer clothes of light to pale colours except her uniform, but he must admit that she looked awesome in that black mini-skirt. She chose a white collared shirt that was unbuttoned at her chest and showed a little of her cleavage, but the small rhombus bronze pendant of her necklace did a nice job to distract more attention from her bosom. To fend off the coolness, she had a black light blazer with the elbow-length sleeves rolled up to show the pink lining. The brown belt hanging loosely on her waist accentuated her curvaceous figure, as if her slightly-heeled short boots did not do the magic already as they made her sway her hips. Part of her hair was pulled to a half-ponytail, and her hairpins once again rested on her temples. She has gone beyond her usual beauty; she was gorgeous, and turning…sinfully sexy.
Why did she say that she was still not perfect? Then a whisper of Yuzu's voice floated into his mind, and he saw where her wariness came from. His strong dislikes with horoscopes or anything about fate was no big news, but not in his sister's case, so he at least knew the very basic characteristics of each one, and also that Inoue is a "perfectionist". With his experiences in handling downhearted sisters, he hoped he would not be wrong as he reached out to lay his hand gently on her clenching one.
"You don't have to strive so hard for perfection, Inoue." He said, his tone soft but certain. "We all are imperfect by ourselves, but it's because of our flaws we call for our soul's mate, in hopes that everything will be perfect when two come together, like Yin and Yang. That's why you don't have to push yourself so hard to be perfect, Inoue. It's not your fault that you can't be the perfect one as you wished to be, since you are already perfect to me. So stop worrying and rely on me. I'll take care of what you can't do well, okay?"
Orihime deciphered his words, and she could not help but be impressed by the wisdom behind them, and together with the warmth of his hand, they gave her new strength. She gazed at his deep-brown eyes, shining with earnest, and smiled, "Thank you, Kurosaki-kun. You really are a perfect boyfriend, and I dare say that you'll be a perfect husband and father!"
"Even though I'm a hot-headed, outspoken and rude punk?" He said with slight sarcasm as he mocked himself.
"Well, you did say so just now that being 'imperfect'," She pointed at him, "Is 'perfect'." She then turned to point at herself and giggled with a blush of happiness. Smiling contentedly at her answer, he stood up with the bill in his hand.
"It's getting late, and I think we should go." Agreed to pay for their own orders, the two orange-heads walked out of the café with linked hands, as they basked in the comfort of the other's company.
In fact, I am also working on part 3, where they are grown-ups and working! I hope that I can work that out well!
Anyhow, thanks for reading!
Kuroi Kokoro 09