Disclaimer: I do not own bleach in any way

Looking up at the clear blue sky and taking in the scent of the blooming flowers, as the nice breeze kept you nice and cool and seeing how the weather was perfect today, not a cloud in the sky. It seemed impossible to think anything could go wrong in any way or form.

However, with all the things that I have been through I know that this was just wishful thinking. I know that the most beautiful and perfect moments could go wrong in the blink of an eye. Even with this knowledge it is nice to forget the worries of responsibility and reality, to just live in the moment. Yes, that is a wonderful feeling. I closed my eyes and inhale deeply taking the sweet aroma of the Spring flowers as the wind blew my long hair to the side. "Orihime!"

Looking over I can see Tatsuki running over to me. "Sorry it took so long. I had to help Sensei with something. Have you been waiting long?"

"Not at all, Tatsuki. It's fine." I reply with a bright smile on my face. She returns my smile and I can just tell that nothing will go wrong today. "Shall we go?"

A quick nod tells me she has caught her breath. With the wind at our backs we begin our walk home. We remain silent as there are no words that need to be spoken. Another cool breeze lifts my hair. A frown forms on my face, it's difficult to smell the flowers with the wind at our backs. "Is something the matter, Orihime?"

I come out of my daze a little startled. "Huh? Oh, I'm fine, don't worry. I was just thinking."

"Oh, I get it." A goofy smile grows on her face as she playfully knocks my head with her knuckles. "You were thinking about Ichigo again weren't you?"

"What? I was not!" I say astounded at her accusation. Even though I can feel my face begin to burn at the mere mention of his name not to mention the image of him that comes to mind when she mentions him.

"Is that so? Then why are you blushing?" She teased as her goofy smile grew even bigger. She began to laugh before saying, "You're always dazed or in ditz mode whenever he's around or you're thinking about him."

"Hey, I do not act like that!" I say frantically trying to hide the fact that I am in fact like that. Turning to face her and confront her about the matter. I lost my balance and started to fall backwards.

"Ah, Orihime!" Tatsuki called while reaching out to catch me. Unfortunately, it was too late and I pulled her down with me as I fell. Tatsuki caught herself so she wouldn't land on me. Our eyes meet and it is so hard to breath.

"Orihime…." Her voice is so weak as she moves closer. My chest begins to ache. "H-Hime…"

"Tatsuki, Orihime! Are you two okay?" I can hear Ichigo call as he runs over to us. I sprang up as my mind goes blank.

There he is the one I love, my knight in shining armor. My Kurosaki, Ichigo. The world stops for us as he approaches me. Everything else fades away and we are alone in our flowery field. "Uh, are you two okay?"

"Yes, yes. I'm fine. How are you?" My heart is beating so loud. I can't help but wonder if he can hear it pounding through my chest.

"Um, I'm fine I guess. How's Tatsuki?" He asks scratching the back of his head.

What does he mean 'how's Tatsuki'? Does he have something for her? Looking at him questioningly I notice that he isn't even looking at me. He's looking past me. I follow his gaze and see Tatsuki on the ground. "Ah? Tatsuki, what happened? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She says as Rukia helps her to her feet.

"Eh, Rukia? I didn't know you were here too." I say feeling like an idiot for being so oblivious to what's around me. Tatsuki is doing her best to hide a laugh with her hand.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Ichigo asks from behind me.

I let out a 'Gyak' as I jump away I surprise. My whole body freezes as I hear Tatsuki burst out laughing. Even Rukia has begun to laugh at me. I can feel the temperature rise in my face as I become totally embarrassed. I can't take it anymore. I turn and run away from them.

I can hear there startled voices become more distant the further I ran. I can hear Tatsuki calling after me as she runs to catch up. I don't want to stop. I'm way too embarrassed to stop. I won't even stop for Tatsuki. Even though I know I can't run forever and I'll have to stop soon. It doesn't matter I just want to put as much distance as I can between me and Ichigo.

I finally have to stop and I end up by a park. I collapse on the gate panting as I do my best to catch my breath. Tatsuki is right beside me trying to catch her breath as well. As the pace of my breathing regulates the pounding of my heart quickens. It hurts so much its unbearable. Tears begin to well up in my eyes and they quickly roll down my cheeks.

"Orihime," Her voice is so soft and fragile. So calming and yet it's so very painful to hear. I can feel her hand on my shoulder. Comforting me when I'm in so much pain, it makes my chest tighten.

"Cruel," I mumble through my sobs.

"Huh?" She's confused

I look her in the eyes. She is unaware her laughter hurt me. She doesn't know the pain I feel. "Tatsuki is so cruel."

I run again knowing full well she won't follow this time. Even if she did she won't know what to say to me and I wouldn't stop to hear her attempt at an apology. I keep running towards home. Not once do I look back to see if I'm being followed. I hear no one calling after me, no rushed footsteps chasing me as I reach my street. I can hardly breathe now but I won't stop until I'm in my apartment. I mount the stairs two at a time and reach my door in seconds. I slip inside quickly closing the door behind me and locking it.

Tears roll down my cheeks in full as I ball my eyes out sliding down the door. I cry in my hands until no more tears can emerge. I have no sense of time anymore. Hours could have gone by without my realization. I look up from my hands to look around. The little light that lingered in my apartment hurt my sore eyes . My head spins as I move it. It's already dark out. How long did I sit here in tears?

The phone rings causing my temples to throb painfully. I curl up in the fetal position and bury my head to block out the unwelcome noise. Why won't it stop, just leave me alone. I don't want to talk to anyone. I just want to be alone.

Silence. The phone finally stopped ringing. I sigh in relief as the throbbing in my temples slow to a dull ache. Yet the phone rings again. They can't take a hint. I bury my head even deeper in my arms to block out not only the phone but everything else as well. I want all the noise, the pain, and the thoughts to go away and leave me to sit here in this nothingness.

The phone rings longer this time as though trying to deny me my peace and quiet. All the pain and thoughts return at once as the ringing dies once more. I can feel tears well up in my eyes once more as there is running up the stairs outside my apartment. I close my eyes tight wishing the intruder away. But they don't leave instead the intruder bangs violently on the door. "Go away." I whisper.

"Orihime, are you okay?" the intruder shouts. "It's me, Tatsuki."

Tatsuki? My eyes widen as I start to get up slowly to avoid as much pain as possible. I just want to fling the door open and jump into her arms. I want her to hold me and tell me everything will be okay as I cry on her shoulder. More than anything I want her to tell me she loves me.

Huh? My eyes widen as much as they can go. Love? Why did I think that? Do I, towards Tatsuki? No, that isn't possible. I'm in love with Ichigo. I don't even like girls.

Tatsuki's POV

I glared angrily at the door that separates us. One hand rests on it as the other hand pounds on it frantically. I wince at the pain that throbs throughout my hand and wrist. "Orihime, is everything okay? Open up."

There is no response or movement. I know she's there. I heard her when I first called out to her. After that all movement had stopped. There's something wrong. My mind goes through many different scenarios as I hit the door. What if she's injured? What if I hurt her so much she…. No, don't even think it. She wouldn't do anything like that. Would she?

I can't chance it. I ram the side of my body into door. If I have to break it down to make sure she's okay then so be it. With a few slams into the door I can feel my arm start to tingle with pain. I won't stop until I know she's okay. If it's for Orihime I can go through anything to make sure she's okay. I take and extra step back and prepare to put all my weight against the door. "Tatsuki, that's enough."

"Orihime," I'm by the door in an instant. "Are you alright?"

She doesn't respond. I feel frantic with worry. "Orihime, open the door."

"No," With that one word I'm completely destroyed. My knees start to shake as I fall to the ground. My vision blurs as tears fall down my cheeks. I can't stand this feeling, this unimaginable pain of loss. "Go away, Tatsuki."

"D-do you hate me?" I choke on the words as if they are poison. Again there is no response or movement on the other side of the door. That confirms it, she definitely hates me. The question alone was hard to say but this, this is just too much to handle. "Orihime, I-"

"I don't hate you." Even though her words were weak and barely audible they were water to a fire that threatened to consume me.

"Orihime, I am so sorry." Tears still roll down my cheeks but I no longer know why. Again there is no response. "I never meant to hurt you. Can I please come in so we can talk about this face to face?"

"I'm sorry, Tatsuki. I can't see yo- ah anyone right now" Wait 'can't see me', is that what you wanted to say? Do you not want to see me anymore? "Can we talk about this tomorrow? Before school, can you wait until then, Tatsuki? Please wait."

"Yeah, whatever you want." I feel so broken I can't feel any emotion anymore. All I can feel is the intense pain in my chest that refused to go away. Slowly I get on my feet and turned to leave. "See you tomorrow."

"Tatsuki?" Is that concern or is it just my imagination? I continue to the stairs where I hear her door slowly creak open. Should I even turn around and try to tell her things will be okay? Would she even listen if I said anything? I turn around and let a sigh escape me. No one is there. The door remains closed.

I walk home at a slow pace trying to figure out what went wrong. It was all so perfect until Ichigo showed up. I let out a long sigh. I know better than that though, this isn't Ichigo's fault. It's my fault. I should never have brought him up. If I hadn't none of this would have happened and we would probably be laughing about one of her weird daydreams in her living room right now.

Now we were having our first fight since… well ever. It was strange and yet so very painful. Should it really be this painful or is there something else that is bothering me. Like something that shouldn't have happened. I let out a sigh, I know exactly what that something was. The thing that almost happened before Ichigo showed up. I almost kissed her. I relive the scene as a shiver goes down my spine. That should never have happened. There is no way I have feelings for Orihime and there is no way she has feelings for me. It was just a spur of the moment thing. Nothing more then that, right?

No matter how I look at it, it just seems wrong. There is no way I could like her in that way. She is just a friend and nothing more then that. I'm in so caught up in these thoughts that a knock makes me jump. Now out of my daze I realize that I'm standing in my room.

"Tatsuki," Mom calls. "Is everything all right?"

"Everything's fine." I say as I make my way to my bed. There is still no emotion in my voice. The door opens. I ignore it as I collapse on my bed.

"Orihime called for you. It was just before you got in. She seemed pretty upset. Is everything okay between you two?"

I don't answer. What can I tell her? That I ruined our friendship by trying to do something that just sort of happened. No, then she would try and get involved and bring peace between us. I don't want to deal with that right now I have enough to worry about so I lie, "I don't feel well that's all. She's just worried about my health."

"Do you have a fever?" Mom asks. She's not going to let it go. "If you're sick you should stay home tomorrow."

"I'm not staying home tomorrow. I have to go to school." I sound way too eager. Now she knows something is wrong. Come on think, get out of this. "I don't want to worry Orihime anymore then she already is."

"You shouldn't put yourself in harms way for others, especially when it comes to your health, Tatsuki." Mom says sternly but at least she bought it.

"I'll be fine Mom, I'm sure it will be gone by tomorrow. I plan to sleep it off." Just go away and let me think.

"If you say so, but if you're not up to it don't force yourself." She lingers awhile longer before leaving me alone to my thoughts once more.

I'm more aware of the time as it flies by now, then before on my way home. I still have no idea how I should even begin to apologize to Orihime. The muscles in my legs ached as well as my hand, arm, and shoulder. I wish I had stretched and massaged my muscles when I returned home. I let out a deep sigh as I look at my clock. 10:06PM. I should take a bath to soothe my muscles and calm my nerves.

Orihime's POV

7:20AM. She's late. It isn't like her to sleep in. I wonder if she even got any sleep last night. I could barely get any sleep last night and it's taking its toll on me now. I want to go back to bed. A yawn creeps up on me as I think of bed. My soft and comfortable bed is calling out to me.

"I take it you didn't get much sleep either." A cold voice said.

"Gya! Where did you come from? And why are you so tall?" Tatsuki is standing in front of me and is now twice my size.

"I came from my house and I'm not tall your sitting on the ground." She sighs as though I have already thoroughly annoyed her.

"Eh?" She was right but I don't remember sitting down. I don't even recall seeing her walk down the street. Was this just a dream?

"Honestly, Orihime. Are you even aware you were asleep just now?" Tatsuki sounds really annoyed. Is she still upset about yesterday? "Come on, let's go."

"Yeah, sure." I try to be positive as I get up and brush the dirt off my skirt. I give her a bright smile. She smiles awkwardly in return. "Are you okay, Tatsuki?"

"I'm fine, let's go I don't want to be late." She goes on ahead as I stand there breaking under her cold words. She looks over. "Are you coming or not?"

"Of course!" I run to catch up only to trip as I caught up with her. She makes no attempt to catch me as I fall.

"What's wrong with you this morning?" I look up at her teary eyed and heartbroken. "Wait, don't tell me you're thinking of him already?" You've been thinking that all along haven't you, Tatsuki. "Isn't it a bit too early in the morning to be a ditz?"

"I'm not thinking about Ichigo." I look up at her with a pout. It doesn't look like she believes me in fact she looks well beyond annoyed now. It would be best not to upset her today.

I pick myself up and walk by her side in silence. I wonder why she is so upset this morning. I can't ask her because she is most likely upset because of what happened yesterday. Why couldn't I have just let her in instead of letting this drag out? The longer it takes for us to figure this out the worse things are going to get and we're already pretty close to school. We need to talk about this. "Hey, Orihime."

"Y-yes?" She caught me off guard.

"If you weren't thinking about Ichigo, then…" Tatsuki trails off.

"Geez, Tatsuki, I thought we dropped this. Isn't there something else you want to talk about?" I hope she takes the bait. Nothing. "Fine if you won't start a conversation then I will."

How do I even start? Do I get straight to the point or should I just ease into it. "Um, Orihime, about yesterday,"

I give her my full attention. She looks over and finally gives me a real smile. I can feel it warm up my chest. "Could we not talk about it just yet?" Good feeling's gone. "I know you wanted to talk about it before school but, I just can't talk about it right now. Is that okay?"

Even though we need to deal with this as fast as possible I have to respect her decision. I won't bring it up until she's ready. I give her the brightest smile I can manage and say, "Of course."

She returns my smile with another distant one before she looks away. My smile turns into a frown as the last of her warmth fades from me. I remain silent to let her think about whatever she needs to think about, even if her distance really bothers me there is nothing I can do about it right now.

We arrive at school and make our way to class in silence. I sigh as I make my way to my seat and sit down. This is going to be a long day. A chill runs down my spine as I feel a set of eyes on me. They pierce into me as if searching for something inside of me.

The feeling went away as Ochi Sensei entered the room. Everyone stood and bowed as we greeted her. As we sat down I could feel those eyes on me once more. I fight off the shivers that threaten to consume me. I'm unable to do anything about it. I know who it is too. Tatsuki is watching me.

Her eyes are on and off me all morning. I quickly become terrified of looking over at her. I'm afraid of what I'll see when I do. Even if I was to look at her and she was to smile it would still scare me. There is something different about her now. I can't place it but her presence is somehow off like she has changed. It happened on the way here. She just slowly changed.

I glance up at the clock and am momentarily shocked. The day was going by really fast. Or my fear is taking more of a toll on me then I thought. There is only a few minutes left before lunch now and I have to get out of here. Tatsuki is watching me again and sending a shiver down my spine once again.

I'm watching the clock now. There is one minute left. I have to get out of here. Thirty seconds. Find a nice quiet place. Twenty seconds. I need to get away. Ten. Relax. Five. Come on.

Ding-Dong, Ding-Dong

I was up and out of the class before anyone had really moved. I had to get as far away as possible. That's all that is going through my head while I make my way down the hallway. I see the stairs. Where do I go? The roof is small so if I go there Tatsuki would most likely find me. I know, I'll go outside and hide behind a tree or something. As I get close to the stairs I can hear other people start to leave the class rooms. I sigh with relief. It will be a lot harder for Tatsuki to catch up now. With the students crowding the halls and the head start I had I could relax a little.

"Orihime, why did-" I turned in shock. Tatsuki had already caught up with me and I couldn't even sense her presence. Instinctively I took a step back. My eyes widen with fear and my heart skips a beat. "Ah, be careful."

Everything slowed down. I felt as weightless as a feather. Tatsuki reaches out to me her face full of fear. I reach for her hand. Our fingers graze against each other then they're out of reach. Everyone holds looks of terror and fear. Some of them look like there screaming. Though the only screams I can hear are coming from Tatsuki.

Tatsuki's POV

People were screaming as it was happening but did nothing more. I thrust my arm out to try and catch her. Our fingers merely grazed and she's out of my reach as time returned to its regular pace as she fell down the stairs. I could feel my chest tighten as all of it happened. "Orihime!"

People continue to scream as I leap down the stairs to her side. She's unconscious as I lift her into a sitting position. Ichigo jumps down the steps beside me. "Is she alright?"

"I don't know. She just fell." Tears threaten to emerge as I speak.

"Rukia, go tell Mizuki Sensei what happened." She nods and takes of in a hurry. "Tatsuki, help me carry her."

"Right," I grab her legs as Ichigo wraps her arms under hers. As we slowly lift her I realize Ichigo has a perfect view of her chest. "Hey, Ichigo, if you look down her shirt I'm going to kick your ass."

"What? Is that the thanks I get for trying to help? Besides you're one to talk." He snaps as we slowly make our way down the stairs. I look at him blankly not understanding what he's talking about. Slowly I follow his gaze which had dropped. My face burns bright red as my eyes shoot back up. He looks at me with a sly smile on his face. "Does this mean I get to kick your ass?"

I shoot him the dirtiest look I can muster as he grins victoriously. We don't speak as we make our way down the hall. Our eyes no longer meet as we are more concerned with were we are going. Even though my eyes do occasionally betray me as the drift back to Orihime's skirt every now and then.

"We're almost there." Ichigo says as I snap my eyes back ahead of us.

I can see Rukia standing outside the infirmary. I quicken my pace forcing Ichigo to do the same. I need to get there fast so everything will be alright. So I will be told that everything will be alright. So that the unbearable pain I feel in my chest will go away. I can't stand any of this.

Rukia sees us coming and alerts Sensei before making her way over to us. "There's already a bed ready for Orihime. I informed Sensei on the situation. Don't worry, everything will be fine."

The last part was completely directed at me as if she knew everything I was going through. Her eyes are lit with concern as she takes Orihime's legs from my grasp. Our eyes met for a moment.

This is for the best is what her eyes said to me. I nod and let her take over. I stand there as they enter the infirmary. I am unable to enter. It would make everything real. What's worse is that it would verify that all this is my fault. She had been acting weird all day. Why couldn't I have waited until we were alone to confront her about things? Why did I have to call out to her at the stairs? Why couldn't I have just waited?

I walk to the wall by the door and lean on it. My tears finally win as they spill down my face. I slid to the ground in full tears. I hug my legs and let out my sob that I am no longer able to control. I feel an arm drape around me as I sob. I wipe the tears from my face in a hurry before I look up to see who it is.

Rukia smiles at me warmly as if nothing had happened at all. "Everything is going to be fine. Don't worry about Orihime, she's a strong girl."

"I know she's strong. But that doesn't change the fact that this is all my fault." I say while trying to control my tears. "If I hadn't called out to her then none of this would have happened."

"Tatsuki, this is not your fault and no one is blaming you." She hands me a handkerchief. I shake my head to her gesture. I don't want her kindness. I want to be yelled at and blamed for all of this. I want her to be angry. "Sometimes, things happen that we have no control over. Even if it doesn't seem that way, we don't have control over a lot of things. Even the simplest of things we cannot control. Just like we can't control the way flowers grow. We can influence it a bit but that is all. Just like we can't control a situation, it may seem like we have control but the reality is we don't. Some things just have to happen and in the end it will all work to a bigger conclusion. You and Orihime have a strong bond with each other. I'm sure any difficulties the two of you face your friendship will only get stronger."

Astounding, it's not even close to what I want to hear but it's exactly what I need to hear. What's even more astounding is how well it fits with the other problem I am facing with Orihime. "How are you so good at giving advice?"

"Oh, I have a few lifetimes worth of experience so naturally I give good advice." Rukia says with a sly smile on her face.

For some reason I almost want to know what goes on in her head. The normally nice and energetic, Kuchiki, Rukia lacks a sense of reality. She believes in ghosts, demons, and death gods along with other insane stuff like that. I should have known asking her a question like that would end up like this.

"Come on. Let's go see how Orihime is doing." Rukia says brightly as if nothing was wrong with what she had just said.

"Yeah," I say but I'm still not ready to face Orihime. Rukia offers me a hand up but I just shake my head.

Rukia sighs and grabs my forearm to drag me up. I oblige not wanting to fight her as she drags me into the infirmary. The first thing I see is Orihime lying on a bed still unconscious. I look over and see Ichigo talking to Mizuki Sensei on the other side of the room. They haven't noticed us.

"How is she?" Rukia speaks for me.

They both look over. Sensei shows mild concern while Ichigo doesn't really seem to care. "Well." Sensei starts. "Inoue, has a mild concussion and needs to stay here for a while. Other than that, she is perfectly fine."

I look over at her only slightly relieved. Even with the good news I can't help but feel like I'm going to be sick. I need to sit before I collapse.

It must show on my face because Rukia brings me to the chair by the bed Orihime is in. All I can do is nod in thanks as she sits me down.

"Anyways, as I was just telling Kurosaki, I have a meeting I need to attend in twenty minutes. So if one of you would like to stay here and take care of her, I will excuse you from class."

I'm sure Tatsuki, would love to stay." Rukia chimes brightly as she grabs Ichigo and drags him out. "I'll lend you my notes, okay."

The door slams shut as I stare at where they just stood a moment ago. I can't believe that just happened. Does Rukia know what's happening between Orihime and me? Has Orihime begun to open up to other people now? "Do you mind staying, Arisawa?"

"It's no problem," I manage to say but only half-heartedly. Truth be told, I don't even want to be here. In fact I don't want to be anywhere near Orihime right now. Even if this presents a good opportunity to discuss yesterday's events. I know I need to apologize to her properly. I did so much wrong yesterday that I don't even know where I should begin to apologize. Though I really need to apologize for what I almost did to her. It was as though I had no control of myself.

"Arisawa, Is everything alright?" Sensei asks. I don't respond. "You're very pale and it looks as though you haven't slept well."

Was it so obvious that anyone could tell? Geez, no wonder Rukia's advice was so spot on. I probably look like Orihime had this morning. "I'm just worried about Orihime."

"What about the lack of sleep?" She crossed her arms and gave me a 'yeah right' look.

"I had a really bad dream last night. It kept me up most of the night." That at least was the truth. I had relived that moment with Orihime, but we weren't interrupted and I ended up kissing her. I wasn't able to control myself and I kept going. She screamed, called me disgusting. She pushed me away and told me she hated me. Then she ran away. I couldn't go after her. My body wouldn't move.

"Hmm," She considers it for a moment. "Do you want to discuss it?"

Any blood that was left in my face drained as I shake my head. "All right, But if you ever need any counseling or advice for anything, you know where to find me." I nod as she glances at her watch. "Oh, is that the time already? I'm sorry Arisawa, I need to go to my meeting. Please look after Inoue, while I'm gone."

I nod again as she rushes out leaving me alone with the one person I do not want to be alone with. I swallow hard as I glance over at her. She looks really uncomfortable. There are a few strands of hair on her face. I lean over and gently brush the strands of hair to the side of her face. Orihime moans at the contact. I pull my arm away in a hurry. My heart begins to race as fast as it can. Orihime grips the sheets of the bed moans again, louder this time. My body feels odd, like it's heating up. "I love you."

It was barely audible, but being in a quiet room with no one else around, I could hear it perfectly. It made my heart sink. Orihime was having a wet dream about Ichigo. She moans again making my chest tighten. Why? Why does it hurt so much? I know she has a thing for Ichigo. She always has. So why does it bother me now. It's not like I have a thing for him. Unless-"Tatsuki,"

My eyes widen as I stood up. My chest ached even more. What? Is she? Dreaming about? Me?

"I love you, Tatsuki."

Orihime's POV

My head spins as I regain consciousness. Everything is a bright white blur except for a shadow to my left. I look to it for comfort. The shadow calls out my name. I smile, the voice and its presence is so calming and peaceful I never want it to go away. My eyes start to focus and I can immediately recognize the person. I sit up quickly.

"Ah, T-Tatsuki" She gets up and forces me down. Her grip on my shoulders is so tight I can barely move as a blush forms on my face. Tatsuki's grip is relentless though she avoids looking at me. "Tatsuki, Wha-what are-?"

"You have a concussion. You shouldn't move too much." She mumbles while letting me go. She sits back down. Our eyes never meet. "How are you feeling?"

"I-uh." I can't find any words to say. She looks terrible, even worse then she did this morning. What can I say to cheer her up? Well there is one thing I could say but I don't dare say it. How would she react? There is no guaranty it would cheer her up or she would even respond positively. Tatsuki let's out a long sigh. She's no longer even looking in my direction. I can feel tears form in my eyes. She doesn't even notice.

"Hey, Orihime." Tatsuki scratches the back of her head with an awkward expression on her face. "Um, what were you dreaming about?"

"Eh, I –uh." My face burns up as I recall the specifics of the dream. Tatsuki gave me a quick glance then her attention was back at the window. I can't tell her the truth she would think it's gross. "I was dreaming about eating food. Yeah, lots of food!"

"You're lying." Tatsuki lowered her head. "You were moaning. You said 'I love you'."

I fell silent. I felt horrible for lying to her but how can I tell her I was dreaming about her? "I'm sorry, Tatsuki. I didn't want to tell you because you got mad this morning. I was dreaming about Ichigo, and I-"

"You're still lying!" I winced at her accusation. Tears flowed freely down her cheeks. There is so much hurt in my eyes. It's so painful to see her like this. Why did I lie? "You called out my name! Not Ichigo's!"

"Tatsuki, I-" She runs out before I can properly explain. A tear rolls down my cheek. Why couldn't I just tell her the truth? Tatsuki always listened and she always understood. Why would I question her understanding now?

Mizuki Sensei walks in with a concerned look on her face. She must have seen Tatsuki in tears. Her concerned gaze turned to me as she walks over and takes Tatsuki's seat. Once again I don't want to have anyone around me.

"Is everything okay?" She asks but I don't want to speak. If I talk I won't be able to control my own tears. I shake my head hoping that's enough. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Again I shake my head as tears roll down my cheeks. "Do you want to stay here or go home?"

I know what she's trying to do and it won't work. If so much as let one word escapes my lips then everything will come out. The only person I want to talk about this with just ran out in tears. No one can know about this other then Tatsuki. I raise my hand and stick up two fingers indicating the second option. I don't want to miss class but I can't be around anyone either. "Alright, but you still shouldn't move too much so just stay here for a little while longer. I'll go inform your teacher of your absence." She stands up. "When I get back I'll give you quick check and then you're free to go."

I'm left alone again. I let out a sigh as everything seems to crash down around me. Why am I such an idiot? Why couldn't I just tell her? If I had we wouldn't be in this situation right now. Tears start to flow down my cheeks more freely as I begin to think of Tatsuki hating me for all of this. I have to get to her as soon as I can. If I don't then….

I don't know if she'll ever hear me out, or if she'll ever accept any of my feelings. If I were to tell her and she thinks I'm disgusting for it, I don't even know how I would take it. I'll lose my best friend. Without Tatsuki I'm nothing. I wonder if she even knows that. I really hope she does and she returns my feelings.

No, Tatsuki does know. She has to know. Whenever I needed someone I always went to her so how could she not know what she means to me. It's because she knows this, she was hurt from my lie. I'm going to set things right.

I wipe the last of my tears from my face as Mizuki Sensei walks back in. "How are you feeling, Inoue?"

Somehow I manage a smile. "I feel a bit better."

"I want you to remember the color red, okay." I nod. "Alright, now do you feel dizzy at all?"

"No," I reply hoping to leave as soon as I can.

"Alright could you stand up and walk over to me."

I oblige. My knees are shaky at first but that goes away as I start to walk. I stop just in front of her and she holds up a finger. "Follow my finger with your eyes."

She moves her finger back and forth, up and down. I follow with ease. "Alright," she says as she drops her hand. "Now what shape did I ask you to remember?"

Shape? She didn't ask me to remember a shape. "Um Sensei, you asked me to remember the color red. Not a shape."

"I know. Your fine, Inoue, you may go home. If you have any further problems then I recommend you see a doctor." I smile in thanks and head for the door. "Inoue, one more thing before you go."

I turn to look at her even though I want to leave more than anything. "Yes, Sensei?"

"Arisawa didn't return to class. I don't know what happened between the two of you but you should work it out before your friends interrupt. They're worried about you, so you two won't have long."

I smile and bow. "Thank you, Sensei."

I leave without further word and make my down the hallway. I'm grateful to her for telling me about Tatsuki's absence from class. I have to hurry and find her while there is still a chance she'll believe me.

Tatsuki's POV

I lay on my bed not moving as my sob begins to die down. I don't know how long it's been since I got home or what time I even got here. I just went straight to my room and began to cry. I don't know why Orihime was so desperate to keep me in the dark about this. She can talk to me about everything but when it comes to a problem she's having with me she isn't willing to sit and talk about it? What the Hell? I was always there for her. I always listen to her. I always do my best to be there for her. So why is she having a problem coming to me now. Why isn't she telling me anything anymore?

That's a stupid question. I already know why. It's because of this morning. It's because I wanted yesterday to disappear. I didn't want to talk about it and I still don't. What I want is that one moment to disappear. If it did then none of this would have happened. I would still be at school and Orihime would be okay and happy. But no, I had to lose control of myself. I had to try and kiss her. What was I thinking?

There is a slight knock on my door causing the blood to drain from my face as I roll over to face the wall. I don't respond as the door opens. A moment of silence goes by before the door closes once more. I sigh in relief. Mom probably thought I was asleep and left.

The bed sinks down behind me. Fear sinks in as I realize that she heard my sobs and expects me to talk about it now. I close my eyes and wish her away though I know it won't work. She wipes away my tears with a soft hand and whispers my name. My heart skips a beat. This isn't mom. She would say my name like that. Not with that seductive tone. My eyes shoot open as I turn to face the person behind me.

Orihime is sitting behind me. She looks down at me with a beautiful smile. My heart begins to race at the sight of her. I begin to understand now why I had tried to kiss her yesterday. She's beautiful and I'm in love her.

The thought shakes me slightly as I sit up. "Orihime, what are you doing here?"

I do my best to keep my composure in her presence. But as she smiles even more beautifully then before it is near impossible to just remain sitting there. Oh, how I want her right now. "I'm here because I'm worried about you. Also I want to make things right."

Nothing will ever be right again. Not unless we're together. Not unless I can hold her in my arms and call her mine. I want to embrace her and tell her everything I feel right now. If I tell her though she would run away and call me disgusting just like in my dream. Well, at least now I know what it was trying to tell me.

"Tatsuki, I'm so sorry about everything I did. I never should have lied to you or run away from you yesterday. And I'm sorry for not letting you into my apartment. I just couldn't trust myself around you." What is that supposed to mean. How could she not trust herself around me? Unless…. My eyes widen. Don't tell me she feels the same way. "I don't even know where to start. But, I love you."

No way, she does feel the same way. "I think I may have always had feelings for you but I thought it was just admiration but yesterday when all that happened, I finally realized my feelings for you. I finally realized that I'm in love with you."

She remains silent as everything she said sinks in filling me with unbelievable joy. I want to embrace her and never let her go. But her eyes widen as if just realizing what she said. "I'm sorry. I said something strange. I should go."

She gets up and hurries to the door before I could say anything in response. I get up and go after her catching her at the door. I grab her by the shoulder and turn her around. There is slight fear in her eyes as I press her against the door. There is a moment where I just hold her there looking into her eyes. Then I kiss her.

I can feel her body stiffen at her surprise before she relaxes and kisses me back. I release her and wrap my arms around her waist and she wraps her arms around my neck as we deepen the kiss. Soon we have to break for air. Our eyes meet and my heart explodes with the love that I feel for her. "Orihime," I pant. "I love you."

She smiles in response and that is all I need. I kiss her more passionately now letting my tongue enter her mouth as she enters my own. I pull her away from the door and towards they bed. She brings her arms down from around my neck and starts to undo my shirt. I do the same to her. Our shirts come off and we start at each others bras next never letting up on our kiss. We cast our bras aside only stopping our movement towards the bed to get our skirts off.

After our skirts were off Orihime practically threw me to the bed. Miraculously, our lips never parted through out the whole stripping affair. She is above me while she massages my breasts, pinching and twisting my nipples. I broke out of the kiss to let out a loud moan.

Orihime assaults my neck with her lips occasionally letting her tongue slide either up or down my neck, resulting in a shiver traveling throughout my overheating body. I pulled our faces together once more and resumed our passionate kiss as one of her hands travel south caressing everything her fingers touch. I do the same to her letting my fingertips caress her gently.

This time she breaks the kiss to let out a loud moan. I take this opportunity to flip her over. Now I'm on top and I assault her neck. I do everything she did to me and she has the same reaction. Her shivers excite me even more as I start to caress her most sensitive spot. She moans again and I give up on her neck. I want her lips and her tongue on mine.

Orihime moves further south to my panties and rubs my slit. I moan into the kiss, exciting both of us even more as we both move our hands under each others panties. I can feel her fidget under me. I stop and break the kiss. I look at her. Does she not want this yet?

Orihime pulls me back into the kiss and I continue on with my assault. Were both moaning in the kiss now but don't dare stop. We'll suffocate if we do. Our kiss is our oxygen. We can't go without it. I slide my free hand under her neck and pull her closer to me. I want to be as close as possible to her. Distance is unwelcome.

Orihime straightens up and let's out an uncomfortable moan as I enter her with two fingers. I feel around as much as possible but space is limited. She arches her back as I hit a certain spot. I return to it and caress it as much as possible.

Finally her fingers enter me and I can understand her discomfort. It hurts when she moves around inside of me. She doesn't stop as she continues to move her fingers relentlessly around inside of me. Slowly the pain fades and it begins to feel really good. I moan into the kiss once more as I move around inside her more insistently. She practically screams into my mouth but still we don't dare break the kiss.

The pleasure is too good now I can't stand it. I need to release soon. Orihime is getting close as well. She is moving her fingers more rapidly now as she moans uncontrollably into our kiss. Our grip tightens around each other as we release simultaneously. We shout our moans of ecstasy into each other muffling them significantly.

I collapsed on her panting as we finally broke our kiss strands of saliva dripped from our mouths as well and still connected our lips. As my breathing calms I begin to pull my fingers out of her. I accidentally graze her sensitive spot and she let's out another moan. This one isn't muffled so I can hear just how beautiful it is.

I can feel her become wet once again as I retract my fingers. I hesitate, should I pull my fingers out or go back in. Her voice is so weak as she speaks, "Tatsuki, don't tease me."

I smile slightly as I move my fingers ever so slightly at her entrance. "What do you want?"

"I want you. Inside. Now. Please. I can't." She whimpers. "I can't take it."

"As you wish, my Hime." I say as I thrust my fingers inside her.

She shivers with delight at the feeling making me become wet as well from her reaction alone. She begins to move her own fingers inside me once more. There is no pain this time only a pleasure beyond belief. Our lips meet and lock as our tongues try to find any unexplored territories. I never want this to end. I never want her to leave my side. I never want to see her hurt again. I'll never let anything happen to her. She groans into my mouth and I can already feel myself reaching my limit. I don't know how much longer I can last, as the thralls of orgasm are already making their way through my body. Again she pulls me closer and picks up her pace signaling the end of her own limit. I'm grateful she can't go on much longer. My arm is cramping terribly with all this awkward movement and positioning. We're definitely going to have to find a better way to do this.

Her grip tightens around me and her insides clamp around my fingers. She breaks our kiss and moans. It is the most beautiful sound I have ever heard in my life. I want to hear more so regardless of her release I keep going. I pump my fingers in and out curling them when I can't reach any farther. She moans out in ecstasy once more before she dries.

I pull my fingers out as I hit my limit. I moan and she continues with her assault until I dry as well. We look each other in the eyes and smile. She is so beautiful as she lays there still radiating in the after glow of the double orgasm.

We are too exhausted to speak or move but none of that even matters at all. Our expression says it all. Our eyes tell our love for one another. Orihime slowly closes her eyes and falls asleep. I manage to pull the blanket around us as sleep starts to take me.

I hope we didn't make too much noise and mom didn't hear us. Whatever, it doesn't matter she'll find out eventually, as long as Orihime stays with me. I really hope she does. I don't want to live without…

-The End-