Tabisaki

(Goal)

Jyuushiro woke up with a bad case of the coughs, again.

He just wished for once, he would have one day without any coughing. He also wished he could get out of this sickbed but he knew neither of the two were about to happen.

The sudden burst of his door opening jarred Jyuushiro from his thoughts as two nurses rushed in with a stretcher followed by Unohana-taicho.

"Unohana-taicho, what's—"

"I'm sorry Ukitake-taicho, but there seems to be an overflow in the infirmary and not enough beds for all the sick and injured, so I hope you don't mind if I stick one patient in here. It's just one and I made sure it was one I thought you might get along with. Besides, I figured she would like to room with you than some lowly officer or any of the other captains. She's unconscious for right now but she should be up in a day or two. So you should have someone to talk to in a few days. I'll be back in an hour to check up on the progress. Please notify me if she wakes up or if there are any problems. Thank you and I apologize for the inconvenience", she bowed then left in a hurry. Not even giving him time to respond to what she was saying.

After the nurses finished bandaging his guest, they bowed to him and also apologized for the intrusion.

Jyuushiro nodded and smiled at the women as they left. Then he looked over beside him to get a look at his new roommate.

Her head was turned to the side and she was breathing heavy, as sweat gather at the edge of her forehead.

He figured she was having a bad dream and decided that he should at least try to comfort her.

"Hey", he shook the sleeping woman.

She turned to face him and muttered something he couldn't understand.

He looked more closely at the face and realized that the face belonged to none other than the captain of squad two and the woman that had suddenly captured his interest, Soifon.

He sat on the edge of the bed, careful not to sit on top of her and tried to comfort her again.

"It's alright Soifon. It's just a bad dream", he whispered in her ear while wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "I'm here and I won't let anything happen to you", he said.

"Thank you", she responded but he figured it was only to the air since she hadn't opened her eyes yet.

He sat next to her for hours, just stroking her hair and humming in her ear until he eventually feel asleep.

Soifon woke up with two long, slender arms engulfing her in a warm embrace and soft snoring buzzing in her ear.

The last thing she remembered was an arrancar holding her up by her neck and licking its lips with its long snakelike tongue, eyes glinting lustfully and evilly.

She turned to see who her bed occupant was and nearly passed out again.

It was none other than the captain of squad thirteen and her new found crush, Jyuushiro Ukitake.

Soifon didn't know whether she wanted to scream or kiss the man but she voted for letting him sleep, seeing as how it wouldn't kill her to stay warm in his arms for a little longer.

So she laid her head back down on his shoulder but this time, she turned to face him so she could watch him while he slept.

She was surprised at how peaceful he looked while he slept but she figured all people were at peace while they slept. Not her though.

Soifon had terrible nightmares of a certain ex-captain leaving her for another ex-captain and thus she never slept well and was always cranky and moody the morning after.

Jyuushiro was the only person she told about her nightmares and he was the only person who could comfort her when they occurred. That's why she liked him so much. He was so easy to talk to and he always made you feel comfortable around him, whether he did so intentionally or not, he was just that comforting.

Soifon hadn't told anyone about her crush on Jyuushiro and had no intention of telling anyone. Not even Jyuushiro himself. But she figured he had a right to know and personally, she wondered how he would react if she told him and whether or not he felt the same way about her.

Soifon decided that she could think more on the subject in the morning. She just wanted to snuggle up with Jyuushiro for as long as she could and just breathe him in.

The sun warmed its rays against Jyuushiro's skin and awoke him.

At least he wasn't having a coughing fit this morning.

Jyuushiro looked down in his arms to see a smiling Soifon sleeping peacefully.

He smiled to himself at how beautiful her smile looked and wished she did it more often, or did it more often to him.

Jyuushiro decided that he should return to his own bed before she woke up and decided to kill him.

Just as he was about to climb back into his bed he felt a hand tug on his haori and a smile voice whisper, "Stay".

"Are you sure?" he turned to Soifon.

"Please", she pleaded with him.

"Okay", he smiled then hopped back into bed with her.

"I'm sorry to be such a burden but I—"

"Say no more. I'll stay as long as you like", he whispered in her ear.

Soifon smiled at his words for she knew they were true and he understood her without her even having to explain herself.

That's what she liked about Jyuushiro, his ability to be understanding no matter what the situation is and his willingness to comfort you in any way.

I wonder if he wouldn't mind . . . No, no, NO! I can't believe I just thought that she blushed.

"What's wrong?" he asked, sensing her tense up in his arms.

"Nothing", she said a little too quickly.

Jyuushiro just chuckled quietly to himself. He knew why she had tensed up on him but knew if he said anything, she'd be even more embarrassed. So, he decided to just smile and keep his mouth shut.

"You know, eventually we'll have to get up", she started, changing the subject.

"But we don't have to do it right now", he complied.

"Yes, but when we do . . ." she trailed off.

"I know", he finished for her.

"So, do you want to—"

"Meet for tea and cookies later?" he asked.

"Sure. If you're not too busy later".

"I'm not. And you?"

"Oh I think I can steal a moment or two", she smiled up at him.

"Say . . . around sunset then?"

"Sounds perfect", she agreed.

Just then, they heard a knock at their door and knew that their moment together was about to come to an end.

"Ukitake-taicho, Soifon-taicho, are you awake?" they heard a nurse ask.

Jyuushiro sighed as he removed himself from Soifon's warmth and slid back into his cold bed.

"Yes we are", he answered cheerfully but she could still see the disappointment written on his face.

The nurse opened the door and bowed before she spoke, "Soifon-taicho, Unohana-taicho needs to see you now. If you please, follow me", she held the door open for the petite captain.

Soifon sighed and removed herself from her sheets and walked over to the door.

"Good day Jyuushiro", she bowed to the white haired captain.

"Good day", he bowed back.

Jyuushiro now had a new wish, no, more of a goal. His goal was to capture Soifon's heart and make it his.

He knew it would be hard and damn near impossible but not unachievable.

He smiled to himself as he walked out the door to go visit a very good friend of his in the eighth division.

Jyuushiro, either you're a mad man or a fool in love but one way or another, I will capture your heart Soifon. And with that he shunpo-ed off.

Well, here is the end of chapter one. I hope you liked it. This is my first real fanfic of Jyuushiro and Soifon but I think this was a good start. I am writing this for my friend kyokoaurora.

Jyuushiro does seem determined to win Soifon's heart. Almost as determined as Shunsui is with Nanao. (no wonder those two are friends)

Just to give you a heads up on the next chapter . . .

Jyuushiro wasn't mad at her, in fact, he understand why she did what she did but that still didn't mean he wasn't a bit hurt by her actions.

Well, that's all you get. Please review.