Public Display of Affection

By: Crim

This was written for Rukia's Birthday Drabble Challenge at fuckyeahichiruki on Tumblr. The prompt was "she knows what she wants." Please do not redistribute on any other site. All characters belong to Tite Kubo.

…

She's being difficult. Really difficult. To the point where might have to think this relationship over. That's how frustrated Ichigo was. He had been dragged all over the 2.1 million square foot shopping mall since morning and he still had nothing to show for it. Ichigo thought it'd be easier to pick out Rukia's anniversary present if he just took her with him and let her choose. It wasn't that she was being indecisive. This mischievous runt was purposefully leading him around in circles for her own personal amusement.

"She knows what she wants, but she's just toying with me." Ichigo grit his teeth with the last ounce of his patience.

Rukia made a sudden stop in her steps, making Ichigo bump into her. "There." Rukia's finger pointed straight at the grandiose water fountain in the center of the mall.

"We passed this fountain a billion times already. And you're crazy if you think I'm buying you one."

"I know. I only went in circles just to make sure if this is what I really wanted."

This idiot wasn't making sense. "What, you were scoping out other venues and surveying the different angles of the fountain this whole time or something?" Rukia didn't say a word. She just pursed her lips together to form a sheepish smile that translated to "You caught me."

Ichigo sat on the ledge of the fountain before his legs decided to collapse. "Rukia, I'll forgive you if you could seriously make up your mind and show me what you want for your birthday. It's kind of hard to believe that nothing in this mall appeals to you."

"I never said I didn't find anything... It's been right in front of you this whole time, dumbass..." She glaced at her watch with a satisfied smile. "So get off your ass so I can get my present!"

Ichigo raised a brow at her, but begrudgingly got up from his brief rest. Suddenly, the water in the fountain started to change color and ribbons of water sprayed up into the air, as if dancing along with the upbeat music that began to play. The color-changing water shot up at different pressures and patterns in rhythmic harmony to the music. All the onlookers stopped to view the mesmerizing aquatic feature. That was when Ichigo finally saw the sign from the distance. "Grand Fountain Water Show: Runs at every hour after 1 PM."

All his frustrations disappeared when he came to realize the purpose of this wild goose chase. Rukia got on her tip-toes to reach her tall lover. She planted a surprise kiss on his lips while the water behind them changed its color into a bright pink and red combo. "Happy Anniversary, Ichigo."

Before Rukia started to walk away thinking the light show was ending, Ichigo grabbed her hand and pulled her into his arms. "Pssh. It's not over yet." When Ichigo went in for the final intimate kiss, the aquatic backdrop started spewing water like colorful fireworks. The synchronization was spot on. This was the stuff that seemed to only exist in those romantic-comedies. None of the onlookers would believe that it was originally a spontaneous whim. "Happy Anniversary, Rukia." When the show ended, the couple simply smiled at each other after realizing that the ordeal they had to go through for this moment was all worth it.