A/N: Because I eventually had to give in and write at least some Ichigo/Rukia action. And, yes, Ichigo will continue to "manipulate" Rukia in this fic. Don't worry; she gets back at him in the next one. Also the title for this fic comes from the Bleach omake.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of its concepts/characters and I never will.
"Here," a scratchy voice says somewhere above her. Rukia opens one eye lazily to find Ichigo standing over her, holding a can of soda.
"Oh, I can't have that, Kurosaki-kun! Such drinks are terrible for a person's skin." It is second nature to her by now to put on her schoolgirl act to annoy him, even if they're at the beach and no one from school is with them. She is not completely sure why she does it, but she thinks it may be partly due to the fact that when she puts on that voice, he puts on that scowl of his. The one that shows he is annoyed, but not angry; the one that shows that Rukia is currently winning their never-ending competition to bother each other to the point of almost insanity. But this time Ichigo simply sits down next to her under the umbrella and shoves the cold can into her face, scoffing.
"Drink, idiot. Your face is all red." Maybe at one time she would feel sadness at this, remember another man a long time ago who once told her to drink, but today she only feels a slight hint of nostalgia. She takes the soda from Ichigo but doesn't drink from it.
"Ichigo, this soda has already been opened."
"So?"
"So I can not drink from it. I do not want to catch whatever it is that you have."
Ichigo glares at her.
"What?! I don't friggin' have anythin'!"
She peers at him in disbelief.
"Then why is your voice so strange? It sounds like you have a cold."
"Because I've been yellin' at Karin and Yuzu to stay close to the shore all day! There's nothin' wrong with me. Now drink the stupid soda."
She gives him one last withering look before placing the soda can to her face. The water that has gathered on the outside feels nice against her warm skin and she can't get over how nice it is to just lay on the beach and do nothing for a day, even if she will be trying to get sand out of her clothes for the next year. She closes her eyes peacefully, listening to the seagulls making their distinctive calls and the water rolling against the sand. A nap would be lovely, she thinks. But her peaceful rest is disrupted by a finger running down her thigh. She sighs, opening her eyes to stare at Ichigo. He is looking in a completely different direction.
"Your sisters are here."
"They're all the way over there playin' volleyball. They wouldn't notice if we just up and disappeared." He sounds hopeful. Rukia stifles a bit of laughter that is trying to force its way out. With all the time he has spent saving the worlds, it can be hard to remember that he is actually just a hormonal teenage boy. Much like the fact that no matter how many years she has lived, she is still a hormonal teenage girl, which she is feeling rather severely as he moves his hand over to the inside length of her thigh. She attempts to push the hand away, but she does not put much effort into it.
"Ichi-"
He lies down beside her, face flushed from a mixture of heat and teenage wanting. He still has that serious look that he always has but the scowl is completely gone. He gives her a quick kiss before pulling away, grimacing.
"Stupid blanket," he mutters before rolling off of it pulling a shell out from under it. He lies back down on his side, looking slightly annoyed. He closes his eyes, apparently planning on following Rukia's earlier lead and napping. Rukia looks him over. He is really handsome, she muses to herself, when he's not being completely stupid. He does have that crazy hair color and that irritated face all the time, but she has to admit that it fits him perfectly. She puts a hand out to skim over the large scar down the center of his chest and his eyes quickly open. She ignores him for a moment, continuing to look at the scar her brother left on him. It still looks brutal after all this time. At the time, it had been nothing to laugh at and, to be honest, it still isn't. But Rukia can't help but smirk at the fact that Ichigo's (admittedly few) chest hairs don't seem to grow there. She has stated this in the past to him, to his displeasure, so she does not say anything on that particular subject. Instead, Rukia moves closer, placing her face next to his. It is not the most comfortable position to be in, sand creating bumps that are digging painfully into ribs but the fact that the two of them are facing each other while on their sides means Karin and Yuzu won't notice anything even if they do look over. Rukia brushes her lips against his softly before deepening the kiss. She can feel Ichigo's hand over her stomach and she lets out a rare laugh (he would call it a giggle) at the sensation. She feels the corners of his mouth turn up a bit at it and takes it as a good sign to lightly stick her tongue between his lips. Ichigo makes a sound of approval, before moving his hands upward tentatively. Another humorous characteristic that he has (and there are many, as Rukia is quick to point out) is his seemingly unconquerable fear of breasts. Rukia had made a comment about that once, but he had reacted in much the same way as he had about his chest hair, or lack thereof. He had retorted that it was a 'good thing he was with her then'. She had gotten angry and it had been a few weeks before the two had wound up making up/out in a friend's closet.
The two continue for a few more moments, before Ichigo once again pulls away, a disgusted look on his face.
"Gross."
"E-Excuse me?!"
"Hate to break it to you, Rukia, but you're tastin' like salt water."
"I can't help it if I swallowed some ocean water earlier."
"Well, too bad," Ichigo says, standing up and walking away. "It tastes nasty." He gives her a lazy wave over his shoulder as he goes to join his sister in their game. Rukia stares after him in shock. He did not just tell her that her breath smelled bad. That is wrong. That is impossible. That is-
She quickly takes a sip of the soda, and then gulps down some more to get any remnants of the salt water out of the mouth.
"Stupid Ichigo," she mutters, taking another long sip. "Stupid, stupid…" She looks down at the now finished soda before glancing back up at Ichigo's distant back. "Damn it!"
Rukia supposes that it was only inevitable that Ichigo would one day get ahead in their little competition. Even if he usually is a complete moron.
