Hello Guys! Nina-chan here!
Today, I decided to bring back one of the very first fanfictions I published. I published it back in 2012, and it did fairly good, at last by my standards. However, I recently stumbled upon it and realized that there was a lot of room for improvement, so I decided to go ahead and rewrite it. It's still the same concept and storyline, is just smoother and easier to read now.
I hope you all enjoy the story. I'm a sucker for the IchiRuki couple. For those of you who already read it, I hope you enjoy the changes I made, and for those reading it for the first time, I hope you like it. Currently, I don't have too many one-shots written, so may this one be one of many more to come.
Thank you all for reading!
Nina-chan~
PS: The story takes place some time after Ichigo recovers his shinigami powers. Honestly, when I first wrote this story, that's the part I was at. And quite frankly, I'm too lazy to go and change to whole fic just to include everything that has happened ever since. I'll rather just stick to what I have and not mess with it too much.
I Just Love You
The city of Karakura was being hit by a storm. Throughout most of the morning, people were going crazy buying everything they needed to survive the storm and making sure they had everything they needed. But now, as the storm was starting to pick up, no one wanted to be anywhere but home. The sky was covered in dark, thick clouds and the rain had been getting heavier by every passing minute. The worse part of the storm wasn't here yet, but it wouldn't take very long for it to arrive. While everything was running normally in the morning, by now most of the stores had closed, all the schools had sent their students home and the streets were practically deserted. The only people crazy enough to be out were those who were on their way home from work. Them, and Kuchiki Rukia.
The black-haired shinigami was currently sitting in a bench at some empty park. She didn't know where she was exactly, but she didn't care. She didn't care that she was soaked from head to toes. She didn't care that any minute now, a serious storm will be hitting Karakura. All she wanted was to be alone. She didn't want to be anywhere but where she was right now. The cold raindrops mixed with her own tears, something she was very glad for. Yes, the great Rukia Kuchiki was crying like some little girl. And for the first time in a long time, she didn't care. All she wanted to do was to cry until her eyes ran out of tears. She didn't care who saw her, because right now, her heart was completely destroyed. She could care less if a Hollow appeared out of nowhere. On the contrary, she will be glad for that. After all, she knew dying again would be less painful than suffering what she was suffering.
'I am such an idiot. I can't believe I fell for it. Why in the world did I ever think that someone like him could be so in love with someone like me? I should've never come here. I should've never fallen in love with him. I should've never believed on him. I should've stayed away from him. But no, I decided to go ahead and listen to my heart. The one and only time I decided to do so, and look where it got me. I should've known better.'
Tears kept rolling down her cheeks without stopping. She brought her knees up to her chest and tried to hug herself in an attempt to somehow warm herself up. She had been outside, in the rain, for a good hour or so, and it was starting to get really cold. Her black jeans and pale blue shirt weren't doing much to protect her from the cold, considering they were soaking wet. She was shivering uncontrollably, her lips were purple and her pale skin looked paler than normal. As the minutes went by, she felt colder and colder, yet she didn't move. Her mind was screaming for her to move and seek refuge, yet her body wasn't moving at all. The wind was starting to become stronger, and Rukia knew that at any given minute, the storm was finally going to start, yet she made no effort to move. All she wanted was to stay here and hope the storm will take her somewhere far away from this place.
'This must be how it feel to have your heart completely shattered. I really should've listen to my brother, he was right after all. He was just going to end up hurting me.'
As the wind started to pick up, the cold started to get unbearable. She tried hugging herself a little tighter, thinking that might help, but it really did nothing for her. It would be just a matter of time before she passed out due to the cold. She wasn't a med student, but she knew that much. Rukia closed her eyes for a second, trying to get the tears to stop, but it wasn't working. The more she tried to calm down her tears, the more she cried. She even tried to push away the horrible scene that has caused her to be this was, but she couldn't. Is like no matter what she tried to do, she had no control over her emotions.
She closed her eyes, hoping that by the time she opened them again, she would be somewhere far away from this place. She didn't care where, as long as it was as far away from there as possible. But at that moment, she felt a warm coat being dropped on her shoulder and an umbrella protecting her from the rain. That was enough to snap her out of her 'trance' yet she didn't move. She didn't need to. She knew who the person standing behind her was. She could tell just by the smell of his coat. A smell that she had grown so used to, and now was just so goddamn painful.
"Here you are midget. I've been looking for you all over the place. Do you have any idea of just how worried I was?" Rukia didn't need to look up to know who that voice belonged to. She could recognize that voice everywhere, anytime. That voice was the only one that had the power to completely calm her down and made her cry stronger than she was before, all at the same time. The last thing she wanted was for him to see her on this state, so she decided to keep her head low and not look at him. Who knows what might happen if she actually dares to look at him.
"Leave, I don't want to talk to anyone, let alone you. All I want is to be by myself. So leave." She tried her best to sound as strong as she could, but it wasn't working out. Her voice kept breaking with every single word she said, and she still couldn't control her tears. It was then when Ichigo was able to tell just how badly she was crying.
In any other given situation, Ichigo would just act like his normal self and try to beat some sense into his midget, but he knew why Rukia was in this state. He knew that it was because of him that she was this was. He was way too worried about her to get in a another fight with her. All he wanted to do was to take her home where he knew she will be safe and sound. He was also worry that she might catch hypothermia or something along those lines Judging by her skin color, Ichigo knew that she wasn't too far from achieving that.
"Listen Rukia, I know you probably hate me right now, but please, let's go home. You are completely soaked and is absolutely freezing out here. Your small body is not going to resist this for very long. You can become seriously sick. Besides, the storm is starting to pick up and in any minute is going to get pretty bad out here. So please..." Ichigo tried reaching for one of Rukia's hands, but she just push him away. Ichigo took a deep breath. He should've known this was coming. After all, she was just as stubborn as she has always been.
"Didn't I told you to go away!?" Rukia screamed. "I don't want to see you. I don't want to talk to you. I don't want anything to do with you."
"Well that's too bad, because I'm not going anywhere without you. You can yell all you want, but I'm not moving from here, not without you." Ichigo bent down until he was at a level in which he could see Rukia's face. Gently, he placed his hands on her cold cheeks and moved her face so she could face him. Tears and raindrops were falling down down her face. Her normally pink lips were almost purple now. But what pained Ichigo the most was her eyes. Her usually bright and shiny eyes were dull, red and puffy. She had definitely been crying for hours. Ichigo couldn't help but feel like he was the worse person in the world. He was the one that was causing Rukia so much pain. He's the one that's making her cry. The one person that he swore to protect and love with his whole life, was crying because of him. But right now, he couldn't let his guiltiness consume him. He needed to take Rukia somewhere safe and warm before it was a little too late.
"Well then, if you are not going to leave I will." As soon was Rukia stood up from the bench, she started to feel dizzy. Everything around her started to spin and her legs felt weak. Slowly, everything started getting darker and her eyes began to close on their own.
As soon as Ichigo noticed that Rukia was about to pass out, he wrap his strong arms around her to prevent her from falling to the grown. This girl was going to be the dead of him. 'Well, at least I can take her home now.' Ichigo fixed his coat around Rukia to make sure it covered most of her body, then picked her up. He was so glad the park wasn't that far from their apartment. It was only about a ten minutes walk. But he could make it there in half the time.
'Oh Rukia, you are going to be the death of me.'
Rukia felt like shit, plain and simple. She had been woken up by the horrible sound of thunder and the rain hitting the windows. Yet she didn't want to open her eyes. She was so warm and comfortable, not to mention it smelled like heaven. 'Wait a second...' Rukia finally managed to open her eyes to notice that she was no longer soaking wet or in a park bench, like she expected. Instead, she woke up was in a comfortable bed in a somewhat organized room with pastel yellow walls, hugging a pillow. She was covered from head to toe in various thick and warm blankets. Her throat hurt and when she tried to move, she found out that almost every single part of her body was aching. It took her a good ten minutes just to sit up in the bed. Slowly, her eyes started to roam around the room, yet for some odd reason, it didn't seem like her brain was really processing what was happening. As she looked around, she didn't saw much. The room was fairly organized, the only part that really caught Rukia's attention was a desk covered in papers and medicine books. It was then when it hit her. Yes, she was no longer in the park. Now, she was in Ichigo's room, on his apartment. Well, actually she was on their room, on their apartment. The both of them had been living together for the past year.
Rukia, wanted to slap herself. Her plan was to be mad at him and stay mad at him. The last thing she wanted was to be around him, yet here she was. She noticed that she was no longer wearing her soaked clothes. Instead, she was wearing her favorite purple sweatpants and one of Ichigo's shirt, which was ridiculously big on her. As mad as she wanted to be, she was glad Ichigo had at least cared enough to go and search for her. He probably had to feel something for her right? Maybe there was still a chance for her.
'No Rukia, don't forget what you saw today. Do you honestly believe he would care for you? He was probably looking for you out of obligation. Don't fall for that again.' That little annoying voice on her head had return, and it never had any good advice. Rukia was ready to get up from the bed, pack her stuff and leave, but when she was about to do so, she was interrupted by a deep voice coming from the room entrance.
"Don't even think about getting up from that bed. Considering how long you were out there for, you are probably going to be sore for a couple days." If Rukia's body wasn't aching as much as it was, she would've jumped in surprise. Seeing Rukia's reaction made Ichigo smile, yet he remained silent as he walked towards the bed and sat on it. Carefully, he handed Rukia a big mug of warm tea.
"Here, the herbs on the tea should help with the soreness and to lower your fever." Ichigo explained. "Fortunately for you, I was able to catch up with you just in time, a couple more minutes in out there and you probably would have end up visiting my dad at the clinic. And you and I both know how horrible that would've been." Ichigo joked.
Rukia said nothing, but grabbed the tea. She didn't realize how cold she really was until she began to feel the warmth of the tea spread everywhere. It was there when she realize just how sore her throat really was. After a couple more sips, Rukia lower the mug and then touch her forehead with the back of her hand. She indeed had a fever, not a very high one, but still a fever. Ichigo smiled at her action.
"Did you honestly thought that staying outside, in the freezing rain, for a couple hours wasn't going to get you sick? You are so lucky is just a low fever and an aching body and not something worse." As a med student, Ichigo could go on for hours telling her about the consequences her silly actions might have had on her, but he knew that is the last thing she wants to know about, and the last thing he wanted to talk about. They have way more important things to discuss. "You have no idea just how worried I was Rukia. I looked for you everywhere. I was about to go to the Soul Society see if you were up there when I finally found you. Please, I beg of you, don't ever do something like that again. If you want to have some time alone to be mad at me, just let me know and I'll walk away, but don't ever do something like that again." For the first time since she had woken up, Rukia dared to look directly at Ichigo's eyes. She could see the worry on his warm hazel eyes. She could see just how worried Ichigo was, and she hated herself for being the one causing him such distress.
'Not again Rukia, not again.'
For the first time in a long time, Rukia couldn't get a hold of her emotions. A part of her wanted to apologize to Ichigo, for making him worry so much. Rukia knows better than anyone how protective Ichigo can be, and Rukia was sure he had lost his mind trying to find her. Also, she could see in his eyes that he was honestly worried about her. Rukia knew how bad Ichigo was a masking or faking his emotions, so she knew he wasn't lying. But at the same time, memories from what happened earlier today flooded her brain and she wanted to scream and punch him until she no longer had strength left in her body. She didn't know what to do anymore, so instead she did nothing. While a part of her wanted to be angry at him, Rukia had to admit that after three years of relationship and one year of living together, she had become a big sucker for Ichigo. Sure, they still had their silly arguments and sometimes they got a little too serious, but neither one of them could stay mad at each other for very long. Over the few years of their relationship, Rukia had discovered that she couldn't stand knowing that Ichigo was sad, hurt or worried. It would just kill her, specially if she was the one responsible for making him to feel that way. Ichigo was no better, yet he always seemed to be able to handle it better that she could. But she knew deep down, Ichigo was always beating himself up whenever something happened, even when it wasn't his fault. Even when all she wanted was to apologize and forget about what had happened, she couldn't. This wasn't something she could so easily let go off.
"I'm sorry Rukia." Ichigo finally broke the uncomfortable silence that had settled in the room. Rukia looked at him with wide eyes, surprise written all over her face. While Ichigo had changed over the last couple years, he was still the stubborn person he always was. It was very rare for him to directly apologize for something, let alone say sorry. The times he did apologize, was because he knew he screw up big time. "I know you are angry at me and probably hate me and you have all the right to feel this way. I know I can't excuse myself, and I know I can't change the fact that you are angry at me. I'm not exactly expecting you forgive me, and if you don't want to see me again, I'll understand. I'll leave whenever you ask me to. But all I want if for you to give me a chance to explain what really happened. I'm not going to sit here and try to tell you that what you saw never happened, but I want you to know how it happened before jumping into conclusions. If you still angry at me afterwards and want me to leave, I'll do it. All I'm asking you to do is hear me first."
As much as Ichigo had changed over the last couple years, he was still pretty stubborn, and for him to apologize like that was not very common. Typically, he would apologize through his actions, but never with words. He must be really sorry, however, Rukia didn't even want to look him in the eyes. She just kept staring at her lap, trying to get a hold of her emotions.
'Stupid human emotions!'
"You have nothing to explain Ichigo." She finally manage to speak up. "I saw exactly what happened. Are you going to try and tell me that what I saw never happened?" Her voice was hoarse due to the soreness of her throat. Honestly, she sounded horribly, and it hurt to speak, but she needed to get everything out of her.
The painful memories of what had happened earlier took over Rukia's brain.
After the whole war fiasco had finally finished, Ichigo was offered to go and permanently stay at the Soul Society. At first, Ichigo was very inclined to say yes. Becoming a full time shinigami and everything else that came along with the title would've been great, however, he wasn't ready to give everything up just yet. He knew the second he decided to leave, there was no coming back. So he decided to stay among the living for a little longer, enjoying as much as he could, while he still could. In the meantime, he decided to go to school and and help his dad out around the clinic. Originally, Rukia had decided to go back to the Soul Society and resume all of her responsibilities as a shinigami, but it was then when she came to realize just how much she lived life among the living. More importantly, just how much she missed Ichigo. So, after calling in a few favors and convincing her overprotective brother, she was allowed to return to Kurakura and help Ichigo keep an eye on the city. The two of them were trying to live their lives as 'normal teenagers,' or at least as normal as it can get when you have all kinds of monsters going after you. Now that the war was over, there weren't nearly as many attacks as there were before, but there was always something going on, however, it was nothing they couldn't handle.
Since she was going to stay in the human world for as long as he did, Ichigo managed to convince Rukia to go to school with him. It would be a great way to keep her busy during the day, and it would be a completely new experience for her. Rukia had accepted, the idea of spending even more time with Ichigo and doing something new was a perfect one for her. While Ichigo was studying to become a doctor, she was just taking random classes here and there, since she still didn't know what she could do. Regardless, she was loving the experience, and the fact that she got to share it with Ichigo made it even better.
The two of them had managed to work around a schedule very close to one another, that way they would get out around the same time and have breaks around the same time. Usually, the two of them would finish classes and then walk home together. Today was a little bit different. Because of the upcoming storm, the university had canceled all afternoon classes, and some professors canceled some morning classes. Ichigo was among the few lucky students who got out early due to his professor canceling class. Rukia however, didn't ran with such luck. So as soon as Ichigo was out of class, he had sent her a text letting her know he will be waiting for her in the outside food court. As soon as she was out of class, she headed towards the meeting place. That's where her nightmare began.
It wasn't very hard to spot Ichigo among the massive student body that had taken over the food court. After all, his hair was a pretty good give away. Once she had spotted him, her world crumbled down. There was Ichigo, and a girl Rukia didn't recognized, kissing. The girl had his arms wrapped around his neck, and didn't look like she was going to let him go any time soon. Rukia completely froze. She didn't know what to do. A part of her wanted to go and beat the living daylight out of both of them, and another part wanted to run and get as far from there as possible. And that's exactly what she did, she ran. For a fraction of a second, she thought she heard Ichigo calling her name, but she decided to ignore it. She didn't want to face anyone, let alone him. She didn't understand how he could do this to her. Ichigo had been the first and only person Rukia trusted and loved with all her might. She had never before trusted someone this much, not even her brother, not even her best friend, no one. He was the only one she had ever loved this way, and he had hurt her the way he promised he would never hurt her. Rukia couldn't remember how dying felt like, but she was sure it felt somewhat like this.
"I know you saw what happened." Ichigo stopped her before she could start speaking again. "I'm not going to lie to you and tell you that it didn't happened, but what happened is not what you think it happened. Please, let me tell you everything that happened, and if after that, you still think I'm the worse person in the entire galaxy and you don't want to see me, I'll leave. But please, listen to what I have to say first." Ichigo knew how Rukia must be feeling, and he felt like the biggest piece of shit for making her feel that way. He had swore to protect her and never make her cry, yet, he had done the exact opposite.
Rukia made direct eye contact with Ichigo. She could see the sincerity in his eyes. 'He went out in this weather to look for me. He took care of me while I was unconscious, and even know, all he's thinking about is my well being. I guess the least I could do for him is listen to whatever he has to say.' Not trusting herself to speak, Rukia nodded, letting him know that it was okay for him to tell her his side of the story.
"The girl you saw me with, her name is Hikari Ichinose. She's my lab partner on my biology class, and quite frankly, she's been nothing more than a pain in the ass. From day one, she's been hitting on me and trying to get me to go out with her, even when I've told her, countless of times, that I have a girlfriend. I asked my professor if he could assign me a different partner, but he didn't bother. I didn't told you about her because she had never really approached me outside the classroom. Besides, I knew that if I told you about her, you would go and unleash Sode no Shirayuki's wrath on her, and I'll rather not be charge with murder." The two of them laughed for the first time since that morning. "She was pretty persistent, even after me telling her that I had no interest on her. I was waiting for you when she approached me. I didn't think much of it, but then she kissed me, completely out of the blue. You and I have been dating for almost 3 years, and if you remember our first kiss, I don't react very well to unexpected kisses." Rukia smile at the memory of her first kiss with Ichigo, but that would be a story for another day. "By the time I finally reacted, you were running away. I tried calling you, but you didn't seem to hear me. I figured you were going to be furious at me, so I decided to give you some time, so I didn't come home right away. However, when I did came, and saw you weren't here, I panic. I called all of our friends and my sisters, but none of them had seen you. The last thing I wanted to think about was you getting hurt because of me. So, I started looking for you all over town. My heart broke into a million pieces when I saw you at the park, sitting in the bench, soaked head to toes and shaking like a leaf. It made me feel like I was the worse person in the world."
Right now, Rukia didn't know how to feel. She wanted to believe Ichigo's story, she really did, but there was a part of her that didn't want to, just because she didn't want to get hurt again. However, looking at his eyes, Rukia could see that Ichigo was telling the truth. Not only that, but was also able to see just how much the situation seem to be affecting him as well. She was angry, but she didn't know if she was angry with Ichigo or with herself. Once again, Rukia felt some wild tears leave her eyes. 'Can I honestly do something else besides crying? I've spent the whole damn day crying.'
Gently, Ichigo wiped the tears in her face. "Rukia, I thought you knew this already, but it seems like I need to refresh your memory. I love you. I love you more than I ever thought I would love someone. You have given me everything. You gave me the power to protect those I love, and you gave me a reason to keep on fighting. You're the reason why my heart keeps beating, and there's no one in this world or the other that could ever change that. I want you to know that there's no one else in my life who could change my mind about you. You are my biggest treasure, and if I have to tell you every day how much I love you, I will. I just have one request, don't even scare me like that again, please.
To say Rukia was shocked by Ichigo's speech was an understatement. She couldn't believe her ears. Ichigo wasn't someone who expressed his feeling very often. He believe in the power of actions, not words. He might not tell Rukia that he loves her that often, but the little things he did for her that demonstrate just how much he loved her. Like letting her buy all the chappy related products she wanted, even though the absolutely hated the bloody thing. He always cooked delicious meals for her, and helped her study. It was those little things that showed Rukia how much he loved her. However, hearing him say just how much he loved her, was something she never expected to hear. It was then when she realize how wrong she had been. She jumped into the wrong conclusion, and as always, he proved her wrong. Rukia should've heard him out, she should've trusted him, because there was no way he would've let her down. She should've known that much. However, Ichigo's declaration was what it took for her to realize it.
Based on the silence that had taken over the room, Ichigo wa expecting the worse. 'She doesn't believe me. She's going to ask me to never talk to her again and she's going to leave for the Soul Society once again. Honestly, I don't know am I going to live without her.' At this point, Ichigo was ready for everything, but what Rukia did next was the one thing he was not prepared for. She kissed him.
"I'm sorry." Rukia apologize once the kiss was broken. "I...I over reacted. I should've listened to you, no matter how angry I was. I shouldn't have doubted you. I'm sorry."
This time, Ichigo kissed her while wrapping her arms around her tiny waist. "There's nothing I need to forgive you for. I think many other girls would've reacted the same way you did. On the contrary, I should be the one apologizing."
"You're forgiven." And with that, Rukia kissed him once again.
Ichigo couldn't help but smile within the kiss. Now that Rukia had forgiven him, he felt like and incredible weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Only the Gods knew how much he loved the woman in front of him, and there was no way anyone could ever measure up to her. He swore to never hurt her, and he was going to try his damn best to keep up his promise. Before Ichigo could say or do anything else, Rukia yawned.
"You should probably get some more rest, It'll help you get better." Gently, Ichigo pushed Rukia back, so she could lay back down.
"You'll stay with me?" After everything that had happened, Rukia wanted to have Ichigo as close to her as possible.
Ichigo sighted. He didn't had any homework, nor upcoming tests to study for. None of his projects were due any time soon, and due to the weather, he didn't have to go into work that day. So he figured joining Rukia for a nap wouldn't hurt him.
"I guess a nap wouldn't hurt me." Rukia smiled and moved towards her side of the bed, leaving Ichigo's side free for him. He laid down next to her, and almost immediately, Rukia placed her head on his chest. There was something soothing about listening to Ichigo's heartbeat and it never failed to lure her to sleep.
Once Ichigo noticed Rukia had fallen asleep, he kissed her forehead. "I love you, please don't ever forget that." And with a smile on his face, Ichigo closed his eyes and soon enough he joined his girlfriend in the land of dreams.