When it Rains

Chapter 1:

Kurosaki Ichigo… he is so full of life and energy. He is like a child at times… always happy, laughing, smiling… without any cares in this large world so filled with darkness and sorrow. Well, he does have cares in this world, more so than most actually, I guess, but just looking at him, you would never be able to tell. Occasionally you can, but really, he is strong. Yes, he is strong, energetic, playful, and many times a klutz, and yet everything he does is with a charming, charismatic elegance. Complete opposites exist within him somehow… He truly is amazing… Ichigo… Sweet, charming Ichigo… how is it that this one guy could change me so much? Could make me feel so… so what?

I found myself staring at him, taking in every single move that he made; every motion, every breath… How the wind blew his hair around his face.

What the hell are you doing!? My mind screamed at me, but I couldn't look away from him. He turned to face me. What is this? This… feeling, emotion that I have… I don't… My thought trailed off as I gazed into his bright, shining eyes. I could see them so clearly, even in the dark night air. My heart… it's racing… I need to get out of here! My mind began to panic at my body's sensations. My brain was interoperating the signals to mean danger; fight or flight… but that wasn't right. This was different somehow. Yes… it's racing, but it's not bad… I don't want to run away… for once in my life I don't want to run or fight… anyone… especially not her… No, this is a good feeling… like I want to stay here forever… with her…

He smiled as he met my gaze… Those beautiful deep green eyes that seemed if you looked long enough, you'd sink down to the bottom of the deepest ocean.

Slowly, I felt tiny drops of rain fall like tears from the heavens; Sumire looked up with a smile towards the cloud laden sky. As the rain picked up in intensity, he closed his eyes. Within moments he and I were both drenched. He turned his hauntingly beautiful eyes back onto me.

"Hey Lucia-san, I've always loved the rain. I don't know why, there is just something about it that seems magical to me. When it rains… I feel different somehow. Isn't that crazy?" He spread his arms out soaking up as much rain as he could, smiling brightly.

"Magical? No, I guess it's not crazy if that is how you feel…" I said softly. He looked at me like he was a little surprised by my answer, but then his smile returned. He then held out his hands towards me.

"Come on! Let's enjoy the rain together then!" His face was radiating this heavenly glow as his smile grew.

Enjoy the rain? The logical part of me knew that this was ridiculous, that we needed to get inside, but just looking at his smiling like that made me pause… all I wanted was for this night to last a little longer; to stay with him and to keep him smiling. All logic was forgotten as I took his hands. If at all possible, his smile grew brighter and he giggled as he took off in the rain, his shorts somehow managing to sling itself around his slender legs as he moved, like a hypnotic dancer.

We ran through the trees wildly, gliding in and out of the branches while splashing through the biggest puddles. Anyone who saw us surely would have thought us to be mad, and maybe we were, but I no longer cared… about anything… at least, anything but him. I found myself following him dance and laughing along with him. His dance was contagious; he was like a lovely virus that infected every fiber of my being, a virus I didn't want to fight or cure. We danced in a circle, our hands locked together. I watched as he turned and spun, his arms leaving mine, to float elegantly above his head. His short hair was like a mystical veil circling his heart- shaped face. It was like he was an enchantress and he had me trapped within his spell. My hands reached up and captured his's once more.

As I watched him, time seemed to slow down and the rest of the world fell away. It was just me and him now.

Our once maddeningly fast and wild dance slowed as time passed and our energy began to fade. Eventually we ended up once again facing each other and each gazing at the other. He looked even more magnificent panting for air in the on pouring rain. The slowing of time changed to a stand-still; it had frozen and stopped completely in its tracks. As the minutes passed by us, I became more and more convinced that there was nothing… nothing in the world, universe, nothing at all around us. There was nothing but us and the rain.

Slowly he took a step towards me. We were closer at that point then we had ever been and I could feel my heart catch in my chest. He was so close… so close that I could feel the warmth radiating from his body. As though it was through a veil of mist, I could see him close his eyes and lean in closer to me. My heart stopped completely and I forgot to breathe as I felt his soft lips meet my own, just for a brief second; the gentlest, lightest touch imaginable. Like a tiny feather caressing my lips.

I didn't know what to do, what to think… my mind was shut down by the simple gesture.

"Ichigo?" I gasped, but my confused question was swallowed by Ichigo's tongue timidly entering my mouth. Firecrackers went off in my head at this new, surprising sensation. I was surprised, yes, but I didn't even think of pulling away. I suddenly realized that this was what I had been wanting all along. I moaned softly as I allowed Ichigo to explore my mouth. Hesitantly at first, I began to kiss him back. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before in my life. He tasted so sweet, like strawberries, and I wanted more of it. My hands flew to his hair and my fingers tangled themselves in the delicate strands. Our gentle, soft kiss had quickly become one of heated passion and desire. He brushed stray strands of hair from my cheek, as we were forced to break apart to breathe. We could do nothing but stare at each other, panting heavily. Slowly I removed my hands from his hair and looked away, embarrassed. I was sure that my face was colored a dark crimson only found in blood.

Icy chills shot up my spine and sent panic throughout my body as realization of what we had just done sunk into both of our minds.

"Taikei… I'm sorry… I don't know what I was thinking…" Ichigo stuttered quietly. I didn't know what to say, what to think, which seemed to be becoming a major problem of the night. My mind could barely even comprehend the meaning of the last moment's actions. I had to say something…

"No… no… it's all right… don't worry about it." I replied softly, trying desperately to replace my mask; regain my tough exterior. I felt his uncertain hand reach my shoulder. I turned to see his worried face.

"Taikei, are you angry with me?" He asked, his eyes pleading silently. I felt a sharp pain in my chest at the hurt tone in his voice. Shame and worry was clearly etched throughout his face. I couldn't stand the thought of causing him any pain. A new feeling rose up inside of me…

I want to protect him… I want to do everything I can to keep that worry off of his face. I want to make him happy; make him smile… I want to…

Shaking my head slightly to clear my thoughts, I looked up at him and smiled.

"Of course I'm not angry. I could never be angry with you." As my words faded, lightening cracked through the night sky behind him, illuminating his face beautifully. Once again I was caught up in his spell. Moments later, the thunder followed shocking both of us out of our trances. Startled, Ichigo looked up to the sky.

"I guess we better get back to the store Taikei, before we are both bedridden with pneumonia."

A smile ghosted his lips before he turned, head low and started to walk slowly away. Feeling a little uneasy, I hesitantly followed, hoping desperately that everything would make more sense when we got back to the store.