Time To Say Goodbye
By: Ryou's 01 Fan
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Bleach….although I would very much like to.
AN: Well this is my 4th Bleach fic…...it will be of course about Rukia and Ichigo.
AN #2: "Baka" = means dumb/fool in Japanese
Chapter 1: Telling Him The News
Rukia was sitting in Ichigo's bed listening to him, rambling on and on about school and what had happened that first day back. It was the afternoon of the first day of school. The sky had been clear and everyone had been so excited to be returning back for another year at school.
'I should probably tell him now,' Rukia thought.
She had received very important news from Renji that morning.
"Hey Rukia! Are you listening to what I'm saying?" Ichigo asked her, a frown forming on his face.
"Of course," Rukia responded.
"Really? What did I just say then?" He said staring at her.
'This should be interesting,' he thought.
"You said, 'Hey Rukia! Are you listening to what I'm saying?" she said with a smile on her face.
"That's not what I meant," he responded, throwing a pillow at her.
"Hey! That's my pillow!" She said catching the pink, furry pillow she used to sleep with every night.
"Not really. It was Karin's remember?" He said opening the closet door.
"Yeah, I know," Rukia said looking at the furry thing in her hands.
'This will be the last day I use it,' she thought to herself.
It was sad, but she knew that eventually, it had to happen. And it would tomorrow…
"So do you want to go?" Ichigo said, taking out a dark blue sweater from the closet.
"Go where?" Rukia asked.
"To the park with Chad and Inoue. There is going to be a small carnival and then later some fireworks," Ichigo said putting the sweater over his head. He felt like a normal teenager again, making plans and hanging out.
"Sure, but first I need to tell you something," Rukia said slowly.
"What?" He said looking at her.
'It better not be one of those weird questions,' he thought.
"I got a-," was all Rukia said when the telephone rang.
"Hello?" Ichigo answered.
"Hi Kurosaki-kun! Chad and I are already here in the park. The carnival rides are going to open up in 5 minutes. We'll save you a spot since the lines are already getting long," Inoue said excitedly.
"Ok. We'll be there in 5 minutes," Ichigo said. He put down the phone and grabbed Rukia's hand.
"Come on! The rides are going to open up soon," he said grabbing a surprised Rukia and heading out the door. This would be the first time Rukia would go to a carnival and he wanted her to enjoy it as much as possible.
"Ichigo!" was all Rukia said as he dragged her along but he didn't hear her.
At the Park…
"Hey, there they are!" Inoue said as she saw Ichigo and Rukia running towards them.
"Hey guys!" Ichigo said when they had finally reached the group. Rukia was beside him taking big breaths.
"Ichigo!" She finally said. "I don't even have my shoes on! Baka!"
Ichigo looked down at Rukia's feet and sure enough, she had no shoes or socks for that matter. Her feet were all dark and there was even some blood in a spot where she had stepped on a sharp stick.
"Oh, sorry Rukia. Here, have my shoes," he said, immediately taking off his white sneakers. "I have socks so it's okay."
He is acting surprisingly nice today, Rukia thought. When will I find the right time to tell him?
"You baka," she said again as she put on his shoes. They were a little big on her but it was better than going around barefooted.
"So what do you want to do first Kuchiki-san?" Inoue said grabbing her friend's hand.
"I don't know. I've never been to one of these before," Rukia said looking around here and admiring all the colorful lights around them.
"Really? Then let's start off at the Ferris wheel!" Inoue said as she led the way.
"Hey Chad! Let's go get some food! I'm hungry," Ichigo said patting his growling stomach.
"Same here," Chad said. They headed towards a hotdog stand.
The rest of the afternoon was spent eating and playing games. Ichigo had won two furry monkeys at a booth. He gave one to Rukia and one to Inoue.
A few hours later…..
Finally, the fireworks were going to start. The sky was black and a crowd had gathered in the park where refreshments were being sold.
"Ready Rukia? It's almost time," he said staring anxiously at the sky. Ichigo loved fireworks.
'I can't do this,' Rukia thought to herself. 'I can't pretend that today is like any normal day. I have to tell him.'
"Ichigo? I have to tell you something," Rukia said looking at him. Ichigo must not have heard heard because he was still looking at the sky.
"Ichigo!" Rukia said a little louder this time.
"What?" he asked, still not looking at her.
"I'm leaving tomorrow," she said as the first firework exploded into the dark, cloudy sky.
"What?" He said, not noticing that the first firework had exploded.
"I'm leaving tomorrow morning. I tried to tell you earlier but you didn't listen," Rukia said slowly, looking up at him.
"Why?" He said. This couldn't be happening. He had sensed something was wrong earlier but he hadn't had the guts to ask her for some reason.
"Well, Renji called me earlier today. He told me that if I wanted to improve my abilities and get a better position, that I better do it now. Nii-sama is letting me….improve and you have gotten so much stronger Ichigo," She said looking at him. "You don't need me anymore."
Ichigo looked away. It wouldn't be fair to ask her to stay. She has her own life and he shouldn't interfere…..but then why was he getting so upset about it? He looked back at Rukia.
"Do you….want to go back?" Ichigo said slowly.
"It would be nice to see my companions again. It's been so long and…..you know I don't belong here Ichigo," Rukia said quietly. She couldn't look at him. Goodbyes were always so hard for her…..especially after what happened to Kaien.
"Yeah," was all Ichigo could say. They watched the rest of the firework show in silence.
After the show ended, Inoue and Chad had left with Keigo and the others to watch a movie at Keigo's house. Ichigo had claimed that he was tired and Rukia followed his lead which left them walking alone back to Ichigo's place.
"You know, you should have gone with your friends Ichigo," Rukia finally spoke up. Ichigo continued staring straight ahead.
"Naw," Ichigo said. I can see them any day…..he thought. "Hey, you want to walk for a bit longer?"
Rukia turned to look at him and nodded. She couldn't tell what he was feeling at the moment.
Ichigo lead the way past the houses and the parks and stopped when they got to edge of the river. The full moon was shining bright on them and the water was as calm as ever with the water standing almost still.
"I used to hate this place," Ichigo said looking up at the moon. "This is where it fell apart for me…her murder."
Rukia stayed silent. Ichigo had never brought up his mother's death since the first time he had told her about it.
"If it wasn't for you Rukia…..." Ichigo continued, "My family and I might not be here. You risked everything for us, for me, and that is something I will never forget."
Rukia nodded slightly. She didn't want to speak but she confirmed that she understood what he was saying by nodding.
"I couldn't let you leave until I said that Rukia," Ichigo said looking at her with the tiniest of smiles. "Thanks."
"Thank you Ichigo," Rukia finally spoke. They stared at the moon for a bit and then slowly made their way back to the house. Minutes later they were inside his room. Ichigo went straight to bed and Rukia opened the closet door, hesitating before she made any other movements.
Should I say goodbye? She thought.
"Goodnight Ichigo," She said softly like she always did every night.
"Yeah, goodnight Rukia," Ichigo said, his back towards her. He didn't want to say the other word either. Rukia nodded to herself and crawled into her small bed before closing the closet door.
It's not like we are never going to see each other right? Ichigo thought as he drifted off to sleep….
Yay! First chapter is done! Haha, please rate and comment and feel free to give me suggestions, and advice. I have a general sense of where I want this story to go. I know I haven't updated in a while (Cough*4 years*Cough) and my writing skills are probably rusty. Goodnight people!