A/N- Well this is my very first fanfiction. Hope you guys like it. Please spare me if the edges are too rough. Didn't get time to proof read so forgive the typos, if any :D

Title: Then Came you

Summary: And when she smiled he felt the gravity shift and every springtime he'd ever known had come to bloom in his heart.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.

Warnings: Swearing. Sexual content.

Then Came You-Prologue

Ichigo closed his eyes trying to sleep.

"GODDAMMIT!", he swore under his breath as he tossed and turned until his blankets were in a messy knot. He opened his eyes, annoyed to find them wide and alert. Punching his pillow into a comfortable position, Ichigo tried to sleep again to no avail. What would he not give to fall into the embrace of the sweet and elusive sleep which would dull his senses. He lay there on the bed willing his mind to shut down but it didn't happen and he knew the reason why and knew it well.

Today was "the day". It was now officially five years. Five fucking years since he saw her, heard her sing song voice and chiming laughter. Five years have passed without him hearing about any strange and possibly hazardous food ideas or that abnormally cheerful "Ohayo Kurosaki-kun!" greeting.

Five years since Inoue Orihime went missing without a trace.

Ichigo liked to think that he remembered everything about her; she was after all his precious nakama. But soon he found out that shards of memories of the times he'd spent with her kept fogging up one by one. They were not completely gone but were rather out of focus and just out of reach. Her smiles, those gentle brown eyes, the surprising caramel hair...he remembered them as if from an old movie...there, but not quite, in his reach.

Everyone was shocked by her sudden disappearance. They had all waited in vain, searched in vain, hoped in vain...for Inoue Orihime. The amazing and lovely healer, however, never came back.

Slowly things had gone back to normal, or to some semblance of it, for even without her, life had gone on. There was a void in all their hearts which, with gentle passage of time, had been filled with mundane routines of daily life...after school there was college and then they went to different jobs. They were all busy now. Some stayed in the same small town, where they had so many adventures together, some moved away to other cities and some went back to another dimension, but they all took time to meet up at least once a month.

In the beginning, when the pain of loosing their friend was still fresh and raw, during such occasional gatherings, they could all feel a void, a sense of loss. It was evident sometimes when suddenly a laughing group of friends would become subdued for no reason and during these pregnant pauses there was no one to smile and blush and get everyone to start talking again by asking a weird advice on an equally weird song composition or giving a space-aliens-are-awesome talk. No one realized it or none of them delved deep into their hearts, at least not him, but they all knew life must have been a little more brighter, a little more happier and a little more warmer had there been another person present amidst them.

It took a great deal of time for them to recover, especially Tatsuki, who had all but faded after her best friend had gone away. She had dropped her karate practice and her job as an instructor at the dojo to go looking for her elusive friend but never found her.

Ichigo had searched for her too...for over two years. It felt unnatural to him not having her there. He knew that once again she was taken from them...from him. Once again he failed to protect her. He couldn't help but wonder if it was his fault that Inoue went away. He had spent countless hours thinking about why she did what she did but could never come up with a plausible explanation. Sometimes he could feel Tatsuki wanting to say something, her eyes hard and narrowed but she never did and he never pressed her.
Nothing changed one simple truth...one fact of the matter. Inoue was gone.

This time there was only one difference. Wherever Inoue Orihime had gone...she chose to leave...she wanted to go there and that gave him some peace of mind. Maybe she was happy. Maybe it was what she wanted.

He still had her "goodbye" note which Tatsuki gave him saying that it was probably meant for him more than it was meant for any of them anyway. Still shocked at Inoue's departure Ichigo pocketed it without really knowing what he was doing or what she was saying.

Even now, after five years, the letter was still with him. The ink, once glistening, was now faded and the paper, once crisp and white, was now slightly worn out and dull after being read and re-read so many times by him.

Don't be dismayed at good-byes. A farewell is necessary before we can meet again and meeting again, after moments or a lifetime, is certain for those who are bonded as we are...I have given each of you a piece of my heart and have kept you all safely tucked in my chest.
We will meet again...if not in this lifetime then in next and if not in that one then in the next one. It's a promise!

I had wonderful time with you all...and I'm so thankful that I got to know you all. Even though I'm leaving I'll always think of you.
I'm sorry.
I love you so much.

Goodbye.

Ichigo knew this letter by heart. He could make out the places where the ink had splotched due to her tears and the handwriting, though neat, bore the signs of slight shaking of her fingers.

He could never forget how he felt the first time he read it. He read the letter three times before it dawned on him what Inoue had actually done. He was filled with rage and confusion and worry and a sense of betrayal. Why did she leave? Back then he was so sure he would find her...find her and bring her back after talking some sense into her. He knew he would find her. He'd have that creepy Geta-Boshi trace her reiatsu to the ends of all the three worlds. But nothing helped. Even Urahara couldn't locate her. She had all but disappeared from the face of the earth as well as Soul Society and Heuco Mundo. It was unbelievable...it was maddening and heart breaking not just for him but for everyone. The girl who could make anyone smile, who could light up a room just by entering it was truly gone.

And he can't do a fucking thing about it. Ichigo knew he couldn't give up just like that but eventually he did...he had no choice but to accept that Inoue was indeed really gone for good.

Ichigo closed his eyes once again as he lay on his bed, trying to get the sleep that was eluding him for some reason, and tried to remember her face. He found it hard and could only bring up misty image of long hair, a bright smile and a pair of flower shaped hairpins.

Strangely that night he dreamt of a very beautiful girl with long and luscious caramel hair swaying at her waist, sparkling honey eyes filled with impossible dreams, a smile brighter than a hundred suns and lovely pink lips that spouted sweet nothings into his ears. And for the first time, after a very long time, Kurosaki Ichigo slept soundly...even if the reality he was going to wake up to was void of everything he'd dreamt of.

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A/N- So what did you guys think? This was basically a plot development chapter. Like it? Don't like it? Have anything to say? Please take time to review. It would mean a lot. Constructive criticism is always welcome, I know I still have a lot to learn.