Orihime couldn't see anything but dust and debris before her. Ichigo had delivered the final blow on Grimmjow. She clutched her hands in worry. Was Ichigo alright? Was the battle over? What was Grimmjow's condition? Was either of them dead? Orihime could hear Nel's whimpering.
Finally, the clutter cleared. All Orihime could see was destroyed buildings and sand stretching for miles. There was no Ichigo. Orihime started to panic.
" Kurosaki-kun? " Orihime called out. No response. Oh, no! Orihime was about to run towards the edge of the broken building, where she and Nel took safety on, when Ichigo appeared, looking very tired. He stepped onto the building, but then collapsed.
" Ichigo!" Nel cried as she and Orihime rushed over to the Substitute Shinigami.
Orihime knelt down next to Ichigo as Ichigo tried to sit up. " Kurosaki-kun, are you alright? " Orihime asked. Ichigo nodded while giving his friend an intense stare with a sorts of emotions swirling in his eyes. Orihime could pick out only a few of them. Relief, Anger, Determination, Kindness and something else that she had seen before, but she couldn't put her finger on what it was.
Orihime was so relieved that Ichigo was okay that she wrapped her arms around his neck. Ichigo stiffened at first, probably from shock, but soon relaxed in her hold. A tear escaped from Orihime's eye. She would punish herself later about her sudden actions, but right now, Orihime was glad Ichigo wasn't dead or severely injured.
" Inoue, " Ichigo said after a long moment of being in Orihime's arms. Orihime released Ichigo and looked him in the eye.
" Yes, Kurosaki-kun? " Orihime asked.
Suddenly, Ichigo picked up Orihime's hand and pressed it to his cheek. Orihime blushed. " Are you okay, Inoue? " Ichigo asked, giving the healer a rare smile.
Orihime's face flushed even more before smiling, " I'm alright. I mean, I'm not hurt at all, and even if I was, I don't want to be a burden to Kurosaki-kun. Kurosaki-kun should worry more about himself, because he was just in a intense battle and he could have gotten very hurt. It's nice that you are worried about me, but - "
" I'm glad you're not hurt, " Ichigo interrupted with a strange tone in his voice that made Orihime's heart do somersaults. Ichigo returned the hug Orihime had given earlier. " And, don't ever leave me again. " Orihime's eyes widened, but she smiled softly into Ichigo's shoulder.
While Orihime and Ichigo were embracing, Nel, whom had been forgotten, pondered if Ichigo had lied to her about rescuing a friend. It seemed more like he was rescuing someone he was in love with.
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This is my first fanfiction for this website. It can be found also on my Wattpad account (link is in my profile) and my Deviantart account (which is the same name as mine on here) I hope you liked 'She's Not A Friend'!