Author's note: Well, I haven't written anything in forever but recently I have become obsessed with Bleach (especially the Ichigo/Orihime pairing : p ) and suddenly I feel inspired to try writing again.
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or any of the characters.
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"Hey Ichi-nii, isn't that Orihime-chan?"
Ichigo shifted Yuzu from her piggy back position on his back and glanced up from the gravel road he had been staring at to follow Yuzu's finger. Sure enough, she was pointing directly at Inoue Orihime. For some reason, it didn't surprise him that she was walking shoeless through a cemetery and placing one or two flowers on seemingly random graves as she went. However, her dark garb did seem out of place on such a normally cheery girl. She wore a long sleeved black dress that he couldn't help noticing was skin tight and although it wasn't indecently short, it covered as much as her school uniform did, it was definitely shorter than something one would normally wear to a cemetery. The only familiar parts of her attire were her ever present hair clips, even though they were completely unnecessary since her hair was up in a bun.
"Inoue!"
At the sound of his voice, she whirled away from the grave she had been placing flowers on and smiled at him before raising her hand in a wave.
"Hi Kurosaki-kun, Kurosaki-san, Yuzu-chan, and Karin-chan!"
Ichigo squatted a little and allowed Yuzu to slide off his back before he approached Orihime, his family trailing behind him. He was careful to avoid stepping on anyone's grave as he climbed up the steep hill to greet Orihime. He couldn't help but admire the way the rapidly rising sun was reflecting off her hair or the way that as the wind picked up a few tendrils of hair escaped her bun and danced in the wind. He shook his head to rid himself of such trivial thoughts as he reached her. Just as he was about to greet her, his loud mouth father interrupted.
"Good morning Orihime-chan! It's a beautiful day isn't it?" His father exclaimed as he threw his hands up toward the sunny sky as if to validate his previous statement.
Ichigo glared at him. "Why are you being so informal? You barely know her."
Isshin just laughed it off before giving Ichigo a hearty clap on his back which almost made him trip. He sent his father another death glare as he managed to regain his footing. "Silly boy! Any friend of yours is a friend of mine!" He turned to smirk at Ichigo and finally acknowledged the way his son was scowling at him. "You know Ichigo, if you weren't always scowling maybe you would have more attractive female friends like Orihime-chan. And then you could bring them home to meet your handsome father!" Isshin struck a muscle man pose for good measure.
"Shut up you old pervert! Why are you worried about meeting attractive high school girls! Why don't you find someone your own age!" Ichigo looked like he was about ready to snap so Karin wisely decided that maybe now was the right time to intervene.
"That's enough you two! Behave. We're in a cemetery for Christ's sake. Try to behave with at least an ounce of respect." Both men huffed angrily and turned away from each other with crossed arms. Orihime couldn't help but smile at their similarities. "Any way Inoue, what are you doing here? This someone you knew?" Karin asked as she gestured to the gravestone where Orihime had been placing flowers before she ran into the Kurosakis.
Orihime glanced at the plain tombstone before turning back to Karin. "Nobody I know. I just thought it was sad that he didn't have any flowers. You'd be surprised how many of them don't have any flowers. I've been walking around this cemetery for at least two hours and I'd say only 1 in 4 graves have flowers. Of course, this number could be misleading because I'm pretty sure at night the little blue men come and steal the flowers because they need them to build their flower castle which they need for their Queen who wan-" She rambled before Ichigo gently cut her off.
"So why are you here Inoue? Do you usually ditch school to wander around the cemetery? Is this why I didn't see you at school all last week?"
She smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her neck before answering his questions. "Well…..things have been pretty hectic since I got back from…" She glanced at his family before carefully choosing her next words. "..my 'vacation'." Ichigo raised an eyebrow. Interesting word choice. Hueco Mundo sure as hell wasn't what he would consider a vacation. "and school suddenly didn't seem so important when all of a sudden you find yourself homeless an-". He cut her off again, this time not so gently.
"Homeless?" He repeated. "Why the hell didn't you say anything? You could stay at my house until you get back on your feet!" Ichigo exclaimed.
"Orihime-chan! You don't have anywhere to stay? How horrible!" Yuzu said as her eyes started to fill with tears.
"I agree with Yuzu! Why do bad things always happen to good people! But don't you worry your pretty little head Orihime! You can become my adopted daughter just like Rukia and I'll provide you with shelter and food!" Isshin assured.
Orihime waved her hands wildly. "Oh no! I gave you guys the wrong impression! When I got back it turned out no one had been paying the rent on my apartment so the landlord kicked me out but I've been staying at Tatsuki-chan's house so I'm really fine! No need to worry! I've just been busy trying to sort everything out so I haven't really had time for school."
Once she felt that she had explained everything clearly she decided to get back to answering Ichigo's question. "Anyways, the reason I'm here today is because my mom died. Her funeral is going to be here." She explained.
There were a few moments of silence as everyone absorbed her words. It hit especially close to home for the Kurosakis because the reason they were here today was because it was the 7th anniversary of Masaki's death. "I'm sorry to hear that Inoue." Ichigo said. "Sorry for your loss." He added awkwardly after a moment.
She smiled at him. "Thank you Kurosaki-kun."
"I guess that's why you are all dressed up." Karin said. "Most people don't get dressed up just to visit someone's grave." The Kurosakis' attire was a testament to this fact since they all wore jeans with t-shirts. Ichigo looked at Orihime more closely and realized she was pretty dressed up. Besides the dress, he could see she had also put on some light make-up.
Orihime nodded. "Yeah. I didn't think it would be appropriate to show up to the funeral in casual clothes. But unfortunately, I don't really go anywhere where I would need to dress up so the only thing I had to wear was my dress from Sora's funeral and some black heels that don't really fit." So that explained why she was shoeless. "Do you think the dress is too short?" Ichigo almost suffered a nose bleed when she turned around to let Karin see the dress from the back angle. He wondered if the fabric could possibly be any tighter across her skin. "It used to reach all the way to my knees and it was much looser but I got taller and then these came in…" She gestured to her breasts and then she cut herself off when she realized what she had just said and flushed bright red before letting out a nervous giggle.
Karin shook her head. "It's not obscene or anything. Its not really that short."
Orihime let out a sigh of relief. "Good. I would have bought another dress but I'm trying to save up money for rent." She suddenly started ruffling through her bag. Several flowers fell out as she continued her search. Eventually she pulled out her cell phone and her eyes became comically large as she realized how late it was.
"Oh no! I went through all the trouble of showing up three hours early in case I got lost and now I'm going to be late anyways because I lost track of time! It was nice talking to you Kurosaki-kun and family but I have to go." She had barely taken two steps when she stepped on a rock. "Owwwie!" She yelled as she stopped to try to get the rock out of her foot.
As she hopped on one foot Ichigo noticed a middle aged greasy looking grave digger leering at her from a few feet away. He briefly wondered why he hadn't noticed him there before but quickly came to the conclusion that a certain someone's presence had distracted him to say the least.
"Hey Inoue!" She stopped her hopping for a second and turned over her shoulder to look at him. "How long has that guy been there?" He gestured to who he meant with a tilt of his head. She followed where he was gesturing and regarded the gravedigger for a moment.
"I don't know. Probably since I got here. He's sort of been following me around." She confessed.
Ichigo's fists clenched at his sides. "I don't like how he is looking at you."
She regarded the grave digger for a moment before she replied. "I think he looks pretty harmless. Besides, if he tried anything I could take him."
He turned to her perplexed. "Why are you so comfortable with this?"
She shrugged. "I get this a lot actually. I'm kinda used to it by now." The way she said it wasn't like she was bragging about it, it was just a fact.
He wasn't sure why that made him so angry. "Well, I'm walking you to wherever this funeral is going to be."
Her eyes widened in surprise. "You don't have to Kurosaki-kun. You should be with your family. Aren't you here to visit your mom?"
He briefly wondered how she knew what today was but brushed it off once he realized Tatsuki had probably told her. "Don't worry about interrupting family time Orihime. In fact, I'm ordering Ichigo to accompany you. I don't like the way he is looking at you either." Isshin added. Both Yuzu and Karin nodded their agreement. All three offered a wave to Ichigo and Orihime before setting off for Masaki's grave.
"You really don't have to Kurosaki-kun. I've been wandering for hours and the funeral is probably a lot further away than you think it is. Besides, I can take care of myself. I don't always need you to protect me." Orihime said with a somewhat bitter tone that surprised Ichigo. When he didn't respond for a moment she began to walk away again.
Ichigo jogged a few steps to catch her. "Inoue, I don't protect you because I think you need me to. I want to." He placed a hand on her shoulder once he reached her. "Let me walk you."
Orihime sighed. "Well, if you insist." Ichigo offered her a soft smile. "What are you doing?" Orihime asked when Ichigo suddenly crouched in front of her.
He glanced at her over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow. "Well, I don't want you to step on anymore rocks. I'm going to give you a piggy back ride."
Orihime's face turned as red as her hair. "T-t-that's really not necessary Kurosaki-kun. I'm really heavy and it would probably hurt your back and-"
"Inoue, it's really not a problem. Hop on." Orihime hesitated before reluctantly looping her arms around his neck. As soon as she did he placed his arms under her knees and stood. It took him a moment to get his balance before he could start walking. He was glad she couldn't see his face since as soon as she got on his back he was distinctly aware of how tight her dress was. She might have well as been naked! Although he had to admit the feeling of her breasts pressed against his back and his hands touching her smooth legs certainly wasn't an unpleasant sensation. His face flushed red as he tried to think of anything else to distract himself.
"So what way do I need to go?"
"Well, I sort of went around in a big circle but I'm pretty sure we can cut through that forest area." He followed her finger to a grove full of tall trees and who knew what else. He could see that the terrain of the forest was going to be much more difficult to navigate than the developed grassy hill area they were currently on. He had serious doubts that going through the forest would be a wise course of action but he didn't feel like fighting with Orihime so he headed toward the trees.
After a few minutes of awkward silence filled with the sounds of Ichigo sneaker's crushing brush and twigs as they trudged through the forest Orihime decided she had to initiate some type of conversation. She briefly wondered why it was always so hard to talk to him. How the hell was she ever going to be able to tell him about her feelings for him if she couldn't even start any type of conversation with him? She thought part of her problem might have been how distracting it was to be pressed up against her long time crush's back. She could smell him and feel his muscles straining through his t-shirt as he carried her. Her musings were cut off when she realized he had said something. "What?"
"I said were you really planning on walking through here barefoot?" She glanced down at the path and realized that probably wouldn't have been a very good idea. There were rocks and woodchips everywhere. The cemetery was planning on expanding in these woods but they hadn't gotten to it yet and it was currently completely undeveloped.
She shrugged before realizing he couldn't see the gesture. "Whatever I stepped on I could have healed with my Shun Shun Rikka. The only problem was the grave digger. It might have looked pretty suspicious if I continued stepping on things and wasn't hurt."
"About that Inoue, you really shouldn't walk around by yourself. That guy could have been dangerous. Why isn't Tatsuki with you?"
"She has a big karate competition today. She offered to miss it to come with me today but I didn't want her to. And you really shouldn't worry so much Kurosaki-kun. You don't have to carry the whole world on your shoulders. You'll probably give yourself an ulcer."
He raised an eyebrow. Was she criticizing him? He suddenly felt defensive. "You make me worry." He countered.
He felt her body stiffen on his back. "Why? Because you think I'm too weak and pathetic to take care of myself?" He didn't think he had ever heard her sound so mad, especially at him. He wondered where the hell that had even come from.
"No. Because sometimes you're too nice for your own good. And you always seem to be attracting unwanted attention. You have random creepers following you around all the time, you take walks in the middle of the night by yourself, and you don't seem to ever worry about anything!"
"I think you worry enough for the both of us. You might find this hard to believe Kurosaki-kun, but I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself as long as the creeper isn't an arrancar or something."
He pursed his lips and unconsciously tightened his grip on her legs as he tried to think of something to say to that. "You've changed."
"Do you think so?" She replied with a curious tone. He was slightly relieved that she had lost her malicious tone. But he was still a little peeved.
"Yeah. I do. That's why I said it."
Her melodious laughter further soothed the tension that had been building between them. She rested her head on his shoulder before replying. "I don't think I'm that different. I just think you didn't really know me before." He didn't need to ask her what she meant by before. "I used to put a lot of energy into keeping up a happy façade but now I just don't have the energy to fake it. A lot of things that used to seem important just aren't anymore. Like school. I wanted to get good grades and go to college to make Sora proud, but who really cares?"
He noticed it was getting much easier to ignore how her body was pressing against him as he focused on her words. He felt as if someone was stomping on his chest as he listened to the pain in her voice. What exactly had she been through in Hueco Mundo?
"You know what I just realized? Since Yamamoto thinks I'm a traitor and I'm not allowed back into Soul Society, I'll never see Sora again. I mean, I know it was unlikely I would see him anyway, but every time I went to Soul Society I always held on to the tiniest bit of hope that he would be there."
Ichigo felt his anger at Yamamoto rising. He had been angry at everyone who had gone against his wishes and invaded Hueco Mundo to save Orihime, but the only person he had taken serious action against was her. She had been exiled from Soul Society and told she wouldn't be welcomed even after she died. "Yamamoto is such an asshole. Just wait Inoue. I'm going to make him reevaluate your exile and-"
"Don't worry about it Kurosaki-kun. I'm not surprised Soul Society doesn't want me. It seems to be a reoccurring theme in my life. My parents didn't want me, even Aizen didn't really want me! He just wanted to use me because he wanted you." She laughed even though there was nothing funny about any of it. She felt Ichigo stiffen and realized he had stopped walking. "It was just a joke Kurosaki-kun." She said softly.
"Damn it Inoue!" His arms dropped from her knees as he reached up to his neck to remove her arms. Before her feet could even reach the ground he had slammed her against a big oak tree. It didn't really hurt her, but she was shocked as she stared into angry brown eyes. She had seen him this angry before but his anger had never been directed at her.
He grabbed the sleeves of her dress and roughly pushed them up her arm so he could see her wrists. His abrupt actions knocked her out of her stupor. "What are you doing?" She asked somewhat indignantly.
"I'm looking for scars." He replied without looking at her as he ran his fingers across her wrist.
She angrily pulled her wrists away. "Why would I do something like that? And even if I did, I could just heal them and you'd never know anyway."
He slammed his hands against the tree so that she was boxed in by him and the tree. "What is wrong with you? What is with all your self hate!? Don't you realize how amazing you are!? If your parents or Soul Society don't realize that then fuck them!" The anger slowly drained out of his eyes as her eyes filled with tears. "Inoue….I'm sor-" She had launched herself into his arms before he could finish as she broke down into sobs. They both sank to the ground as her legs gave out from beneath her. He awkwardly wrapped his arms around her and comfortingly rubbed her back.
After a few minutes, her sobs started to die down until she was just sniffling. She slowly pulled away from him and he reluctantly let her go. She raised a shaky hand to her eyes and tried to wipe off some of her ruined mascara. "I ruined my make-up." She stated in monotone.
"You still look amazing." She offered him a small smile in thanks.
With everything going on, neither one of them noticed she was practically sitting on his lap, but noticing now neither said anything or made any attempt to move.
"You know," her voice broke slightly as she looked up at him with tearful gray eyes "do you remember when Sora died?" He nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Neither one of them had ever discussed that horrible night with each other. "After Sora died, your dad asked me if there was anyone he should call. And I didn't say anything because I couldn't think of anyone to call. I think he thought I was still in shock or something because he just smiled at me and started looking through the phonebook. Until then, I didn't even know my parents were even in Karakura. I'd always thought that when Sora ran away with me he had taken me hundreds of miles from those horrible people so they wouldn't chase after us." She swallowed and wiped away more tears before continuing. "But I guess he realized they wouldn't even be looking. After he got her on the phone, your dad gave the phone to me. Do you know what she told me?"
Ichigo shook his head no even though he knew it was a rhetorical question. "She told me it served Sora right for thinking he was so much better than her and she told me she didn't give a shit about what happened to me and she wished she had never had me in the first place."
"Then why are you going to her funeral?" The question spilled out of Ichigo's mouth before he could stop himself. "She treated you like shit, you don't owe her anything. If I was you I wouldn't have shown up for her funeral."
She looked away from his eyes and started fiddling with her dress, picking imaginary lint from it. "Regardless, she was still my mom. If it wasn't for her I wouldn't be here." She adjusted herself on his lap so she wasn't facing him, instead her back was pressed against his chest and his chin rested on the top of her head. "Do you want to know how she died?"
Judging by how this conversation was going, he had a feeling he didn't want to know but he wanted her to know she could tell him anything and he had a feeling she needed someone to talk to. She didn't wait for his answer. "She was murdered by some guy who picked her up from a street corner near the park. I guess he decided he didn't want to pay and it would be easier to just get rid of her."
Ichigo had no idea what to say to that. Luckily, Orihime didn't seem to mind. She picked up his hand which had been clenched at his side and started tracing the lines of his hand before continuing. "She was a horrible person. They both were. My first memory is my father beating me because I spilt my milk on the floor and my mom is just sitting there watching TV. And as I start screaming, she doesn't even look at me, she just turns up the volume." Ichigo felt like killing something. He almost wished a hollow would show up. "But despite everything, I still wish that we were on good terms when she died. I feel sorry for her." She admitted.
"You're a better person than me Inoue." He used the hand she had been tracing to intertwine his calloused fingers with her soft ones. "I would never be able to forgive someone for something like that."
They sat there under the tree shade hand in hand for a few minutes before Orihime gently removed her hand from his and stood up, brushing dirt off her dress. She offered her his hand and pulled him up of the ground. She smiled sadly at him. "Thank you for listening Kuro-", she cut herself off "Ichigo. I've never told anyone that."
He brushed away a leaf that had fallen in her hair before replying, returning her sad smile. "No problem Orihime. That is what friends are for." He had a sudden urge to kiss her, but he repressed it. This was definitely not the time or place. If they ever got together, he sure as hell didn't want this date to be their anniversary. Besides, she was vulnerable and he would feel like he was taking advantage of her. "We should get going if you want to be on time." She nodded and locked her arms around his neck as he put his arms underneath her knees.
The rest of the trip towards Inoue Kayo's grave wasn't nearly as dramatic. They chatted about school, their friends, some new TV show coming out that they were both excited to watch, etc. Finally they came to the end of the woods and Ichigo saw a small congregation of people standing near an open grave. Orihime slid off his back and started searching through her bag for her shoes. "Are you sure you don't want me to take you all the way down the hill?"
"I'll be fine Ichigo. You've done enough." Finally finding her shoes he watched as she forced her feet into them and stood up wobbling. He reached out a hand to steady her. She smiled at him in appreciation. "Thank you Ichigo." For a second, he thought she was going for his lips but he was quickly proved wrong as her lips landed on his cheek. She giggled as his face turned red. She waved at him before she slowly started down the hill.
"Orihime!" She turned to look at him. "Will I see you at school tomorrow?" She nodded. "Good. I'll walk you. I'll meet you at Tatsuki's at 7." She nodded and gave him another wave before continuing down the hill.
He turned around to go meet his family at his mom's grave. For the first time in a long time, he was actually looking forward to going to school.
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Dang I'm rusty. That was like pulling teeth. I think it kind of rambled on but I couldn't find anywhere to cut. Oh well. Everyone is their own worst critic. Tell me what you thought!