Hello! This is my first IchiRuki AU fanfic so I do hope you guys like it. Also - sorry if there is any kind of OOCness. R&R, please? (:

24 Hours

The morning had barely arrived and, Rukia Kuchiki, the creative director of an important fashion magazine – more precisely, Vogue Japan – was already working.

Some would of call her workaholic, but, for Rukia, she was merely doing her duty. And, as in a matter of fact, she loved her job. She had worked very hard to get to the position she currently was, as well the respect she soon gained in the industry and, definitely, she wasn't going to give up so easily, no matter what others would tell her.

Truth was, everyone was used to tell Rukia that she would fall if she kept with her usual routine. And by everyone, she meant even her assistants. Not that she was rude to them – as in a matter of fact, Rukia was a great boss, except she barely had time to talk to the other people in the magazine.

Already in her office, – a big room with the walls all painted in white, as well with a few details in pink and black, including her desk; with most of it in glass, however with a few details as well – in pink and black – Rukia was already looking at the amount of papers in her desk, some of them with pictures of the models as well the trending topics, and others with merely text.

She was looking at two pictures – for those who weren't experienced, it would seem as if they were completely identical, however, for Rukia, she could see many differences between them. And, in her job, she wanted everything perfect; even the tiniest mistake would drive the petite woman crazy – probably a consequence of her family always wanting the best of her, including her brother.

Picking up her phone, she soon dialed a number – her assistant's. Soon enough, the girl answered her phone, quickly addressing Rukia with her usual formality.

"Hinamori, can you come by to my office?" Rukia asked, still looking at the pictures that her assistant had delivered earlier, but somehow had not noticed the few differences between one and other.

"Of course, Kuchiki-sama!" As soon as Rukia heard Hinamori's voice, she hung up the call, reviewing the other papers – as well typing a few things in her computer, which she'd later send to the editor-in-chief.

A few minutes later, a knock in the glass door was heard, revealing the petite woman with a light green bun holding her hair in a very formal way – and, apparently, bringing more papers with her for Rukia.

She was Momo Hinamori, Rukia's assistant in the magazine. A very kind and sweet girl, actually, that always did her job with extreme efficiency – however, for some reason, she'd always help more the editor-in-chief, Sousuke Aizen, better than she helped Rukia; which, honestly, confused her sometimes, especially with her choice of bosses. But that was probably because Sousuke already had another assistant named Gin Ichimaru which, honestly, scared Rukia a little.

"Kuchiki-sama, here are the paperwork Mr. Aizen sent for you to review." She said, leaving the few papers by Rukia's desk, which did not wait any less before seeing what it was about – topics about a few fruits that were healthy, as well were the fruits of the season; considering it was summer.

"Thank you, Hinamori,"

"Now, I want you to look at those two pictures," The Kuchiki soon handed the pictures to her assistant. "Do you see any differences between them?"

Hinamori spent a few seconds looking at the two papers, her expression a little confused since the photos looked identical to her – until she found one difference.

"Oh! There's one difference here." She seemed surprised, which only made Rukia sigh a little.

"No, Hinamori… There are eleven differences between each photo." Her voice came out slightly disappointed, not with Hinamori, but with herself. Rukia, somehow, could never put the guilt in others, but in herself. It was a foolish mistake that even she didn't realize, and if someone else did, they wouldn't tell her. Hinamori's expression, however, was slightly disappointed – which only made Rukia feel worse; she definitely hated to scold her employees.

"I'm so sorry, Kuchiki-sama…"

"It's alright," Rukia smiled softly. "Just send the one you're holding in your left to print, yeah? And try not mistaking them next time."

With that, her assistant merely nodded, walking away from the room.

Rukia, as per usual, was now focused on nothing more but her work.

"Ah, damn!" The orange haired guy exclaimed, sighing in disappointment. They had just said no to him in another job interview.

In all honesty, Ichigo would always wonder what was really wrong with him. His resume was reasonably good, he had good grades at school – however he did not finished college, since he needed the job to pay for it. Perhaps was his orange hair? Probably – that always gave him problems, especially while in school when almost every guy from a gang would try picking up a fight with him.

He was, now, thinking and walking in the streets of Tokyo, unsure of what he should do next – he knew his sisters would probably try making him work with his father, especially Yuzu, the youngest one. But truth was, after Ichigo's mother died two years ago, he ran away from home, going from job after job – but now, he was twenty two and needed a stable job, at least one that could help him pay for his own education.

Arriving at home, the man sat down on the couch, picking up the newspaper on the small coffee table in front of him, already looking for another job that people were constantly offering and announcing on those things.

Truth to be told, it was more difficult than he ever thought.

Noon was already ending, and the Kuchiki woman was still working – eyes on her laptop screen, and then on the papers afterwards. She was currently writing an article about the new trending clothes as well the It item of 2014; as he boss told her earlier to do.

Not that she would think it as a bad thing; but her boss was an extremely exigent man. Of course, Rukia would like to think it was because he loved her work and wanted to see she giving her best at it as always – but truth was, and barely had she known, he only always asked so much from her because he found amusement in it. And some things he didn't even ask for; his assistant merely put them together in her to-do list only because he felt like it.

"Ahh, good! Everything is finished for today!" The raven black haired girl said it with a small smile, finally organizing her paperwork one by one until she could organize it – as well – in a small suitcase she'd always use to put them.

Not that Rukia didn't like doing all of the hard work, but she was as well human – and she felt extremely tired. And, perhaps… Something else.

Walking out of her office, as well calmly walking by to take the elevator until she could reach the lobby, Rukia suddenly felt some kind of dizziness, as her vision started to seem a little blurry, with the woman touching her head with the palm of her hand, feeling her skin to be slightly hot.

Oh, great, now she had a fever.

But Rukia could not let the fever win over her, no – she still had more work to do. What would her superiors – what would her brother think of her if she could not complete the tasks given to her?

Suddenly, thinking about Byakuya's actions towards her if she failed made the small girl feel only worse. The last thing she wanted was to upset – or, worse, give shame to her brother or her family. Kuchikis would not fail, after all – that was something that every person from that family would think and achieve; the success.

Finally reaching the lobby, Rukia gave a few, small steps towards the door, until her blurry vision got only worse – as everything soon seemed to turn black for her and, with her dizziness, the Kuchiki soon fell on the floor, blacking out.

She opened her eyes. With a bit of difficulty, Rukia could see where – and what she was doing. She felt her back against something soft – which later she would know that it was a hospital bed. Looking at the white roof, she soon realized that, she wasn't home, or either at her work.

She was…

"Damn! My things!" She exclaimed, remembering of her purse and suitcase that had all of her work together.

"Hey! Calm down, workaholic. Your things are safe." She heard a familiar voice – a voice that she hasn't heard in days, or was it weeks? Rukia wouldn't know, she was too busy to socialize.

Looking at her side, she soon realized who the voice belonged to – her best friend, Renji Abarai. But not only him, her uncle Ukitake was also there, as well Hinamori and her other friends – Rangiku and her other best friend, Yumichika.

"Guys…" She said softly, with a small, happy smile.

Which, apparently, only annoyed Renji.

"What do you mean by 'guys'?! Are you insane?! You could have died!" Practically shouting, the redheaded guy was soon punched by Rangiku in the head.

"Shut up, Abarai! Can't you see she's not feeling alright?!"

Rukia could not resist but laughing a little – honestly, she had missed her friends.

"Are you feeling alright?" She soon heard Ukitake's voice, the same voice that was always so kind and sweet, and always made her feel nice and comfortable. He was like a dad to her, since her own died a few years ago.

Rukia simply nodded, seeing the other man smiling. Ukitake, unfortunately, had a very sensitive health and, in consequence to that, he was usually visiting the same hospital she was at now.

"Good. The doctor said you got a small fever, and that you will be able to leave the hospital in about three days."

Three days?! He was kidding, right? She could not miss three days of work – her boss would kill her! Her brother, her brother… What would he ever think of her? And, most of all, where was he at? With those thoughts, Rukia looked around quickly, trying to find anything that could tell her that Byakuya Kuchiki was really there. But, unfortunately, she had found nothing. That was how her brother behaved, after all. He would not miss his duties to look after someone like her.

"Byakuya passed here earlier, if that's what you're thinking about," And, as if Ukitake read her mind, his words soon had a huge impact on the younger Kuchiki, which felt incredibly happy – and, at the same time, a little guilty for making her brother lose his precious time to come by the hospital to visit her. He was probably ashamed.

"Nii-sama…" Rukia practically murmured, feeling happy and guilty at the same time – until realization came to her mind, of course.

"My work!" She exclaimed, trying to quickly get out of her hospital bed until Renji stopped her – one more time, apparently.

"We've already talked to your boss; you are not going to work until you're well enough to get out from the hospital." Renji said, which only made Rukia get annoyed. "And don't give me that look! We were worried about you, you know, idiot?"

His usual harsh words as well the way he addressed her so informally – forgetting that she came from an incredibly wealthy family – always had made Rukia happy. She was, after all, nothing but a simple girl. And she liked to be treated like one.

"Idiot! I need to get to my work! This issue cannot go without—" Once again, Renji stopped her, this time sighing – and, apparently, everyone else would agree with him, since their reaction was practically the same.

"Rukia," His voice, now, was serious. A tone she usually would only hear from Renji if he really meant something – or if the subject was indeed something serious to think about.

"Can't you see? You work all the time, it's killing you. You don't have time anymore to go out with your friends or spend some time with yourself anymore, because you're always at work. I am sure Aizen will understand if you spend one day away from your work if you're sick," He was wrong with the last part. Her boss could – and was – be the devil at times. "But if you keep with this routine, Rukia, you won't last long."

His last words were like a rock falling over her head; she wouldn't last long? What? Rukia was deeply confused, as well already coming to the realization that yes, as in a matter of fact, she couldn't do it all alone. Perhaps, she needed some outside help – she already had Hinamori, of course, but Hinamori only helped her at her office. Perhaps she needed someone that would help with her things every day.

"Thank you, Renji…" She sighed a little, smiling brightly to him afterwards – as he had the same reaction. "Perhaps… I need some help. An assistant."

For a moment, she could swear he seemed rather confused by her choice – but didn't judge, knowing it was already a start for someone as focused and addicted to work as she was. But then again, Renji only smiled, with words that soon surprised her.

"Then I suppose I have the perfect solution for your problem."

Another day at the Kurosaki house – and there was Ichigo, alone as well trying to find any other job offers. As per usual, he had just being said 'no' from his last job interview – again. Honestly, he was starting to get pissed off – but Ichigo would never give up, no; he was too determined for that.

He had just got home from another unsuccessful job interview; as well he already had taken more copies of his resume. Seriously, was his hair causing all that trouble for him? Although the last thing he wanted was to dye it, if someone was going to hire him, it had to be for his hard work and abilities. Of course, he had some friends – especially Ishida – that constantly were telling him to come back to his house and help his father with the hospital, but Ichigo couldn't just come back home like nothing ever happened; even though he still had contact with his two sisters, whom he called every time he could.

Miageta yozora no hoshitachi no hikari…

Listening to the ringtone of his phone, Ichigo quickly started searching for it – not remembering correctly where he had put it, considering he didn't take it with him when he first left. Finally finding it in the small kitchen, he quickly picked it up, listening to a very familiar voice afterwards.

"Yo, Ichigo!"

It was his best friend Renji Abarai, one of those that he was always hanging out with. Renji was a good guy – except for annoying Ichigo at times, which would cause in several useless arguments between the two redheads.

"Hey, Renji! What's up?" With a wide smile, Ichigo asked – hopefully his friend would have some good news for him after the last – and hard – few days.

"Ah, not much. Listen, are you still desperate for a job?" His words slightly annoyed the Kurosaki male; yes, he was desperate, but he wouldn't admit it – and neither want his friends to notice it.

"I am not desperate, dumbass. But why's that?"

"I've got a present for you. It's a job."

Definitely, it was the best news Ichigo heard in weeks. Coming from Renji, he was sure it had to be a good job – either that or the redhead was clearly messing with him. If the second option was the true one, Ichigo would definitely punch Renji for the bad taste joke.

"Really?!" He asked, obviously excited. "Coming from yo—" Ichigo paused a little, he shouldn't complain when, in fact, he was desperate. "What kind of job it is?"

"Oh, you'll just have to work for my best friend, Rukia,"

"She's a very hard working girl, and I bet you two will quickly become friends." He could hear Renji say with, now, a more serious tone. Well, if Renji was saying that – and in that tone – he was surely telling the truth, right?

"Rukia, huh? What kind of name is—" Ichigo started, but was soon interrupted by Renji.

"Shut up, idiot!"

"You start in three days."

Ichigo couldn't help himself but laugh a little, as well smile softly – finally something good was happening in his life and, after everything that happened before, it was like God was finally smiling to him.

"Thank you, Renji."

As the call ended, Ichigo soon sat down on his couch, with a big, silly smile on his face. Finally he would be able to pay for his college and become a doctor – just like his father; after his mother, Masaki, died, Ichigo decided that what he really wanted to do was to protect and save people's lives.

He just hoped Renji wasn't wrong and that this Rukia woman wasn't a crazy person.