Welcome to my new Bleach story! This takes place after the Rukia Rescue Arc. Rukia is going to Ichigo's school and living in his closet but his family doesn't know about her yet.

Disclaimer: I will only say this once. I do not known Bleach!

Enjoy!

"You make me wanna dance! Yeah! Love and sing and Dance!" Rukia sang as she jumped around Ichigo's room, bobbing her head to the song that blasted in her ears.

"Rukia nee-san! What're you doing?!" asked Kon as he ran up to the petite Shinigami. Unfortunately, the music prevented her from hearing his cries. She was unaware of his presence as she "danced" around the room, ending in the flattening of Kon against the floor as one particular hop landed with her foot in the face of the small stuffed lion. Kon groaned in pain under the weight of the violet-eyed girl as she took off the headphones and looked down at the mod soul with an excited smile.

"Kon!" she said, picking him off the ground and dusting him off. "Look at this device! It's amazing!" she said, proudly showing him the blue iPod she had "found" in Ichigo's backpack.

"It's a small metal box that plays music!" she explained, very excited with her discovery.

"Th-that's great Rukia." Kon agreed as his head lolled side to side, still in a daze. Rukia, satisfied with his reply, happily turned her music back on, resuming her recent activities of jumping around, this time dancing with the stuffed lion in her arms. After the dizziness passed, Kon grew comfortable as he was hugged to the chest of the Kuchiki.

'Mmm. Cozy.' he thought with a content sigh at being craddled in the bouncing bosoms of the dancing girl. 'Not as big as Orihime's but still, very, very cozy.'

"Oh! This is my favorite part!" she cheered, interrupting his inner musings. She held out her arms, spinning in big circles as she sang along to the vamp of the song. Kon screamed as he flailed in the air at the speed of her turns, growing dizzier and dizzier as the walls of the room spun around him at an alarming rate. Rukia, completely oblivious to his state, continued to sing and twirl happily.

"You make my heart beat beat beat, like a drum! Badum, Badum, Badum!" Kon started to feel the girl's grasp on him slipping and wasn't surprised when he flew from her grip. He crash landed on Ichigo's desk, successfully knocking over more than a few items, only alerting the energetic girl when the resounding sound of shattering glass echoed off the walls of the room.

Rukia immediately turned her head to the source of the noise, her eyes widening when they locked in on the broken pieces of a frame, scattered across the floor.

"Oh no." she said, turning off the music as she ran to the frame. "Oh no! Oh no!" she fruitlessly attempted to fit the small shards of glass back into the frame.

"Kon! Look what we've done!" she exclaimed, shaking the toy, that had just about had enough.

"We?! I believe you're the one that flung me across the room in to a hard, painful desk!" he yelled, however immediately softening when he saw the genuine guilt in the Shinigami's eyes.

"You're right. You are not to blame. This is all my fault."

"I'm sorry Rukia nee-san! I didn't mean to make you feel bad! I'll take the blame! All of it!" Kon cried dramatically, jumping into the small girl's arms.

"It doesn't matter who takes the blame!" she yelled, shoving him back to the floor. "Ichigo's gonna be crushed when he see's what happened!"

"What's the big deal, can't he just buy a new frame?" Kon asked, rubbing his sore, plushy, head. He'd been through a lot in these past few minutes.

"No! Yuzu made him this frame for his birthday! She sculpted it and painted it all by herself." She explained as she dusted the shards of the glass from the Kurosaki family photograph which, save for a small tear in the right corner, was cometely intact. The frame had broken into three large pieces, and the gold paint had been, chipped in a few places. Though the glass cover was completely shattered, the frame could be saved. "We have to fix it!"

"What do you need me to do, nee-chan!" he asked, loyally.

"Do you think you could glue the pieces of the frame back together while I go out and get a new glass cover?" her request earned a determined nod from the mod soul, that immediately went to work searching for the glue. The Kuchiki gave him a small, appreciative smile before running out the door to complete her task.

Rukia returned to find Kon frantically fanning the now, intact frame, more than likely trying to get the glue to dry.

"How's it going, Kon?" she asked, hoping all was well.

"The glue isn't that strong. It can stand just fine, but once you lift it, it'll just fall to pieces again!" Kon explained, frantically fanning his arms harder.

"We'll just have to make sure Ichigo or anyone else doesn't lift the frame until I can get stronger glue and we can glue it properly. For now, we'll just have to do our best to keep Ichigo as far away from his desk as possible until it is completely fixed." she said as she carefully turned the frame over and placed the glass and photo inside before sealing it with the cover.

"There!" she sighed as she gently placed it back on the desk. "Good as new!" she said, admiring how, save for a few, barely noticeable chips in the paint, the frame really did look pretty much the same as before the incident. "Great job, Kon!" she praised as they high-fived.

"Now remember, mums the word." She reminded him, putting a finger to her mouth as he nodded in understanding.

She suddenly heard the sound of the front door opening and immediately jumped into her closet as she listened to the conversation on the floor below.

"That was some family picnic!" Isshin explained as he busted through the door of his own house with an ear to ear grin. "If only you could've been there, my beautiful wife. Especially so you could see me defeat our brooding son in frisbee!" he exclaimed with tears in his eyes as he caressed the photograph of his deceased spouse. His musings were interrupted, however, by a hard kick to the side that sent him flying several feet.

"That's only because Karin was catching all of my throws you useless old man!" he cried after successfully pummeling his father.

"Oh Masaki! See how our children treat me?!" he cried dramatically as Ichigo and Karin rolled her eyes.

"Thanks for cooking, Yuzu. The food was great, as usual!" Karin praised with an apporving nod from her older brother as all three children ignored their sobbing father on the ground.

"It's no problem! I love cooking! Especially when it's for my family." Yuzu replied with a humble smile. Ichigo effortlessly dodged a flying kick from his father before turning to walk to his room.

"Well I'm gonna head to bed." he said with a wave.

"You sure go to your room a lot these days." pointed out Yuzu. Karin smirked and Ichigo immediately dreaded her comment.

"Yeah, are you hiding a girl in there or something?" Karin joked with a teasing smirk, failing to realize how spot on she was. He withheld any signs of nervousness as he replied,

"Nah! I just like to get away from this imbecile as much as I can." he said pointing to Isshin who was still complaining to their long gone mother. "Anyway, see you guys at dinnertime." he said as he turned and continued to walk to his bedroom.

As he opened his door, he immediately sensed that something was amiss. He looked around his room, taking note that everything was in order and wondered what could trigger this strange feeling. He closed the door behind him before calling to his secret roommate.

"Rukia, I'm back." he said, opening his closet door only to see Rukia lying on her "bed" bobbing her head to music on his iPod! He marched up to her, and snatched the plugs from her ears with a glower. She looked up at him, completely unperturbed by his piercing glare as she only smiled up at him politely.

"Oh good! You're back! How was the picnic?" she asked as she skipped past him out of the closet.

"Don't try to change the subject." he ordered in annoyance. "I've been looking for this!" he said, gesturing to his iPod.

"Yay! You found it! You want a cookie?" she asked sarcastically as she pulled a manga out of one of his drawers.

"Must you be so irritating?!" he exclaimed angrily before seeing exactly what was in her hands. "And you should not be buying this type of manga!" he scolded, ripping the Icha Icha series one book from her hands.

"Hey! I was about to read that you know?" she grumbled as he pulled some clothes out of his dresser.

"Yeah, I know. That's why I stopped you. Do you know what they do in those books?"

"No, you snatched it away before I even got to the action parts!" she exclaimed, earning herself a confused look from Ichigo. "Look, if you think the manga is too violent for me, I promise, I've probably seen worst." she explained.

"Icha Icha isn't... this is... nevermind, just don't buy any other mangas from this author." he ordered as he finished gathering all his clothes and stormed out of the room, ready to shower. Once the door shut firmly behind him and his companions heard his footsteps disappear down the hall, they turned to each other and smiled.

Operation distract Ichigo so he doesn't get suspicious? Success.

"Rukia, you've been acting strange all week." the orange-haired teen stated randomly as they walked home from school one day.

Ichigo's words caused the small death god to stop in her tracks, sweatdropping under the heat of his gaze. She had been acting strange? She was just trying to make sure he didn't get to close to the frame on his desk. She could've sworn her diversions were flawless! I mean all she did was tell him he should do homework on his bed, lead him to fake hollow alerts when he asked too many questions, kick him when he got to close to his desk, or pull out Hentai manga when he got suspicious. What about that was strange?

The Shinigami pushed her thoughts to the side and gave the teenager the most natural smile she could muster.

"I don't know what you're talking about! I've been perfectly normal, Ichigo! And the fact that you're suggesting otherwise is very insulting." she accused, her forced scowl twitching as she stared into his knowing amber eyes. This wasn't working!

"Something's bothering you, there's no use in hiding it." he stated firmly, fixing her with an intense glare. "Spill it, Kuchiki."

'I should've known I couldn't hide this from Ichigo for long. I live with him for Pete's Sake!' Rukia thought frantically. The thought of what he would do when he found out made her sweat. If there was one thing Ichigo cared for above all else, it was his family. He'd be so angry! He'd never forgive her for what she (and Kon) had done to Yuzu's picture frame!

"I'm waiting, Rukia." Ichigo said with crossed arms.

No! She refused to let that happen! She refused to let this ruin her relationship with Ichigo. She needed to come up with a lie that would satisfy him, and judging by his impatient body language, she needed one fast.

But what? What could she possibly say that would explain the way she's apparantly been behaving this past week?

And then it hit her.

"I like you." she blurted just as Ichigo was about to speak. He rolled his eyes at the comment.

"Okay? Now are you about ready to tell me what's been bugging you all week?" Rukia glared at the red head, as a vein pulsed in annoyance. The idiot probably thought she meant it platonically. How dense could he get?

"No Ichigo. I mean I really like you." she added firmly, hoping he would understand what she was trying to tell him. Hell, she might as well speed things up and be blunt about it.

"I like you more than a friend." she "confessed" with a fake blush. She stared at the ground with practiced shyness, nervously avoiding his gaze. This was how the girls in some of her manga confessed. She stole a quick glance at Ichigo's shocked, slightly blushing face, and knew she had replicated their actions perfectly. Despite her flawless execution of a believable confession, warning signals were going off in her head. 'Mayday! Mayday!' rang in her ears, warning her of impending doom. But her plan was flawless, what could go wrong?

She would confess, making him believe that was why she had been acting weird, and Ichigo, who clearly harbored no romantic feelings for her, would reject her. She would feign disappointment, asking him if they could still be friends to which he would happily comply and everything would go back to normal. It was the perfect plan!

"Rukia, I-" his voice cracked as he spoke, and Rukia could clearly see the nervousness he felt.

'Aww, poor kid's probably feeling bad about rejecting me. I'll try to make this easier on him.' she thought before letting out a small sad sigh and gazing up encouragingly at the Substitie Shinigami.

"It's perfectly ok that you don't feel the same way. I just wanted to let you know how I feel. That's why I've been acting strange all week but I'll be back to normal now that I got that off my chest!" she gave him a small smile before turning to walk away. That had gone perfectly! Better than she'd expected! She inwardly rewarded herself for her outstanding acting skills, smirking at her success. As long as she made sure she didn't act weird around Ichigo anymore, her secret would be safe, and Ichigo would have no reason to suspect she was lying.

"Rukia! Wait!" she heard him call, causing her to stop in her tracks. What could he want now? She turned to see him walking up to her and was surprised to see a light blush on his face.

"What's got you all flustered? I'm the one that just confessed!" she teased in an attempt to lighten the mood and show him that things haven't changed between them. And for a long time, or what felt like a long time for Rukia, nobody talked. It was easy to tell that a lot of thoughts were running through Ichigo's head at once. Her heart pounded in her chest as she hoped he would believe her lie. She almost sweat at the embarrassing thought of him telling people about her confession.

"Look," he started after what felt like an eternity, ignoring her previous comment. "We've known each other for a while, and... and I guess I've come to enjoy your company sometimes." he stated with a scowl. Rukia almost rolled her eyes at the pitiful rejection. It was like something straight out of a manga. The guy reminices about their relationship, compliments the girl and then tells her that's why he thinks they should just be friends. It never quite made any sense to her, and it made even less sense that Ichigo called her back for it. Maybe he felt he owed her an explanation for not reciprocating her feelings?

"I mean, you're kind of annoying, you can't draw for shit, you're stubborn as hell, and I'll never have a normal life again because of you-"

"Is all of this really necessary?!" she asked, all but growling with irritation. Even though she didn't harbor any romantic feelings for him, it didn't make it any less irritating that he couldn't even find the decency in him to deny her a bit more gently. As his words sunk in, she became even angrier and gave him a hard punch to the head.

"And there is nothing wrong with my drawings!" she exclaimed, defiantly crossing her arms. When would he come to appreciate her beautiful art?

"Ow! See what I mean?! Just shut up and let me finish!" he yelled, rubbing the sore spot on his head as he and Rukia glared harshly at each other.

"What I was trying to say was that despite you being all these things and more..." he dropped his gaze to the ground, the firmness in his voice fading as he continued.

"You are annoying, but truthfully, I never have a boring moment with you. And no, you can't draw for shit, but I'll always be able to tell your art apart from everyone else's. You're stubborn, but, hell, so am I, and I don't think you'd be able to deal with me if you weren't too..."

And that was it. Rukia gulped as all her senses were halted by a certain foreboding. This couldn't be what she thought it was... could it?

'This doesn't sound much like a rejection anymore.' a short thought passed through her mind, though it was immediately slaughtered, and all traces of it destroyed before it could fester and place anymore doubt in the Soul Reaper's mind.

'No! That can't be! Ichigo's always just had a weird way of expressing himself! This is a rejection! Rejection! Rejection! Rejection!' she thought determinedly.

"And no, I'll never have a normal life again, but if it wasn't for you, my dad, my sisters, and probably I would be dead right now, and for that, I can never fully repay you." The light blush on his cheeks unwillingly returned, and it looked like it took everything in him to speak his next words.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is..."

'Rejection! Rejection! Rejection!' She'd perish the thought that Ichigo's words could possibly be a-

"Maybe I like you too."

A confession.

Hope you enjoyed! I have this whole story outlined and each chapter is mapped out, so how long it takes for me to update will mostly have to do with how much feedback I get. I'm writing this story, not only because I like the plot, but because I want to improve my writing skills. I can only do that if I receive constructive criticism. Please PM me if you are, or know, a good Bleach beta.

Can you guess who is going to say the quote in the summary? And did anyone catch a reference to a certain other manga? Tell me if you did!

Thank you for reading!

"At the end of the game, the King and the Pawn go into the same box."