Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.
Chapter 1: Death by Accident
"No… Tatsuki, I'll talk to you later, okay?"
At first glance, people would probably notice her because of her 'wealthy endowment'. If they bothered at all to get to know the girl with 'big boobs', they might overlook her chest and discover more hidden and positive traits in her good character.
"Ah… that's her, the beauty of Karakura High School…" The boys would murmur amongst themselves, feasting their eyes on her curvaceous figure.
"She's so pretty…" The girls would lament enviously, examining her breasts and legs critically, trying to find – and failing utterly – a single flaw in the smooth, alabaster skin, and that long, lustrous burnt autumn-orange hair.
Passersby would stop and stare for a while, and blink the fogginess in their eyes away, and move on with their separate lives. That girl exuded a divine aura that set her apart from people of the norm. Some would come over and engage her in small talk, merely out of curiosity; while others could care less, and their images of her would slowly rust into red dust in their minds after a few days. A handful of the braver ones, she could tell, were drawn to her only because of her high spiritual energy. Some humans are more sensitive than others, after all.
All that attention, and Orihime was – more or less – oblivious to that.
She gets good grades and fights her way into the top 20 ranking in Karakura High School, seniors' division. Her teachers would smile and occasionally ruffle her hair, showering her with congratulations that were getting just a tad bit old to hear. They said that she could enter Tokyo University if she kept her standards up, and that she'll be a valuable asset to the community.
Orihime would smile, say thanks, and take leave quickly.
She wanted to hear something else. All that praise from both teachers and friends alike was fine and okay, she deserved them, but she desired something else. More than just praise, from someone special.
Right now, while pocketing her mobile phone, she tried valiantly to fit one of the bulkier grocery bags beneath her small arms, and balance a roast chicken platter on top of her relatively flat head. Ah. She felt the chicken wobbling above her, and the weight slanted to the left side. Teetering just a little, and it fell.
Before hitting the grey pavement, however, a longer arm reached out and caught the platter with ease.
Orihime looked up, looked past the similarly grey Karakura High School boys' uniform, recognized the sharp chin, narrow jawline, and finely chiseled nose. All the good features of his face paled in comparison to his gaze, though, and now it was centered on her, with a hint of amusement and exasperation. That look made her knees weak, and she knew all along that only HE could have that effect on her. Only, if only he knew. If only he knew that she didn't mind his natural orange hair color, instead finding his quirky sense of humor endearingly funny, even though most of his jokes weren't understood fully. She wished for all her heart that he would at least make an effort to acknowledge her feelings for him. Not a day passed without her stopping to pause in front of her mirror, adjust her hair into the familiar, casual windblown style, and indulge in the fantasy of her confessing and he, accepting. They would hold hands, embrace each other, and…
Continuing down that train of thought would only make her blush, and he to question her, so she put a dam to her thoughts, all the while smiling at him in gratitude.
"Thank you so much, Kurosaki-kun." If only he would know that she wanted badly to refer to him by his given name… Ichigo.
Kurosaki Ichigo took those heavy grocery bags under and out of her arms, ignoring her feeble protests. He cocked his head to the side, looking at her quizzically.
"Come on. I'll walk you home." He said. Without waiting for her reply, he spun off and walked into the setting sun, which dimmed his silhouette, casting him in a golden glow of late-afternoon sunlight. Her look of longing was so palpable, that young man was a dunce for not noticing.
Then suddenly, the deputy soul reaper badge attached to his belt shuddered, and yelled out in a mini robot voice, "HOLLOW! HOLLOW! HOLLOW!"
Ichigo, for his part, set Orihime's groceries down first, and gave her an apologetic glance, before disappearing in a blurry shimmer, right in front of her. He was there for a moment, and then he wasn't. The grocery bags toppled over, spilling the potatoes and carrots on the sidewalk.
Orihime stood there, momentarily stunned. Sure, she understood his duties as a deputy soul reaper. Sure, she knew the slaying of hollows were actually good for them, purifying their hatred of mankind and sending them to Soul Society, where their chaotic souls would be at rest. Sure, she knew that he put duty foremost, before anything else. She was the 'anything else'. Whenever that badge shrieked and announced the close presence of malevolent spirits, he would be off in a dash. It didn't matter when; at school, he shouted a hasty excuse; and like now, he just gave her a look of apology.
What girl in her right mind would ever fall in love with a guy like him?
There wasn't a day, where she'd blame herself for her unrequited affections, wanting to sever her feelings for good. Everyday she tried, with little results.
She loved him far too much, that ignorant bastard.
Biting her lip to stop the bitterness from travelling to her eyes, that will no doubt trigger the flowing of tears, she gave a shaky sigh and bent down, returning the askew vegetables into the bag.
Something felt wrong. The sense was strong and pungent, and a hovering unease settled in deep within the recesses of her mind, pausing her movements. The ground beneath her vibrated slightly, announcing the arrival of an incoming vehicle. Her back felt unexpectedly warm. She could see her darkening shadow growing clearer in the outlines, as the artificial yellow light surrounded her in a semicircle.
The rush of horns blaring in the silent air, before coming in contact with her bent body.
That was the last thing she heard, before closing her eyes forever.
…
The rest of the week was hung in austere gloom, at the death of a student in Karakura High School.
Students in her class shed tears only for the sake of mourning her. The teachers' eyes were also rimmed with red. At some point in History class, Ms Sato broke down, and sobbed profusely, losing her composure in front of moody students. Between gasps and sniffles, she reminisced, along with the rest of the class, about Orihime being an unmeasurably smart student, always taking the initiative in class, breaking the attendance records, helping out the teachers… etc.
Tatsuki stared out at the window, appraising the blue sky and white clouds. Her sense of hearing had diminished. She had no heart to listen to anybody.
Today was track and field day, so many people were gathered at the field, wearing shirts of different colors of different teams, stretching and warming up before the competitions. A sparrow hovered at the windowsill, and she didn't even blink. Her eyes were empty and sunken.
Chad and Uryu were in pitiful but identical states. Uryu kept fingering his needle pouch, and when he withdrew his finger, it was covered in small punctures that were bleeding. Chad stared straight ahead, ever the strongest in terms of emotional stability, but you'd get the sense he wasn't in his body.
Diagonal from Chad's place, a desk was unoccupied.
Kurosaki Ichigo was absent today.
…
Opening her eyes required a Herculean effort.
When she did, the bright glare made her close them again.
Meh.
She felt for something beyond her fingertips, finding nothing but only warmth, trailing down her arm and warming her heart. She felt comfortable, all troublesome thoughts brushed away with a feather-light pressure. She tipped her head back, feeling the long strands of her thick hair brushing at her knees. Hm? She reopened her eyes, gradually adjusting themselves to the blinding light. Since when had her hair grew that long?
The orange tresses retained the same shade of auburn, but it flowed past her chest, past the triangle between her legs, and tickled her shins. Eh?
She was naked, too. Nothing wrong with her limbs. In fact, they felt lighter than they had ever been. She waved her arms up and down, snickering to herself as she imagined how Ichigo would see her.
But at least she was warm. The light mellowed out around her, and she looked around, seeing nothing beyond the intense golden-white, glittering field. The color reminded her of the sunset.
"That's strange…" She murmured softly, rocking to and fro on her heels thoughtfully. She couldn't remember anything that happened previously, that something that perhaps landed her in this oblivion. Only the name, Ichigo… Ichigo…. Ichigo. She scrunched her nose up, twisting and turning the name into anagrams that didn't make sense.
And the field whitened, forcing her to close her eyes once more. She heard bells chiming, soft piano music playing, but that must be in her head.
A/N: I accidentally wrote the wrong name... Hehe... Story will continue.