For le Challenge of MisplacedSanity
Not like I don't have enough fics on my plate already...
Ichigo sighed and rolled over in his bed, his bright orange hair even messier then usual. Despite all the time that had passed between now and then, he was still bugged by something Tatsuki had said to him after Orihime disappeared. "Just what am I to you?"
She had said it in such an outraged and hurt tone that Ichigo couldn't just ignore it. He wondered vaguely why it hurt him to think of that. But Ichigo was not one to think too much of emotions, so not long after, he fell back asleep, the question's answer coming to him in a dream.
The carrot-top was awoken at 3 in the morning to the sounds of the clinic rushing to life, and his heart filled with dread, though he knew not why. It wasn't that uncommon for the clinic to open in the middle of the night for an emergency, but somehow he knew that the injured party was one of the few people he cared about. He pulled on a shirt and ran down the stairs, fearing the worst, but even that did not prepare him for the sight that was laid out before him.
Tatsuki, his best friend, the girl who used to beat him up daily, the girl he grew up with, the person who knew him best, was laying bloody on an operating table, her blood dripping off of the sterile surface. Orihime was in a corner, crying a veritable river, but Ichigo paid her no mind, instead he just took Tatsuki's hand in his and tried to choke back the tears that threatened to overflow. She smiled up at him weakly.
"Heya Strawberry..." she said, blood dripping from her lips. "If ya think I look bad... ya shoulda... seen the other guy..."
"Tatsuki..." He said, wiping blood from her face gently. "What happened?"
"I got... jumped..." She laughed gently, bitterly then winced. Laughing hurt her. "Some guys... said they wanted to send you a message... they said..." she coughed blood and Ichigo thought his heart might break. "They said... 'if we maim his girl... then he won't be so tough... anymore...'... and I said... 'Touch Orihime... and die...'... then they said they meant me..."
Isshin walked up just then, his expression grave. "Tatsuki, unless we get you to a hospital right now, you won't make it." He watched his son's face crumble, and he was reminded of himself and his beloved Misaki. Without a doubt, his tough, hard-to-read son was in love with the dying girl that he clutched the hand of.
Tatsuki looked at her best friend's father, she was truly scared, but was becoming tired and weak, her world becoming fuzzier by the minute. "...what are you... waiting for... then..."
Not long after, the ambulance arrived. Ichigo rode inside, not wanting to part with Tatsuki. They were halfway to the hospital when Tatsuki's heart rate began to slow drastically. Ichigo knew he needed to say something before it was too late.
"Tatsuki... to me you are..." Her eyes opened slowly, the light fading from them quickly. "You are the person I love..."
Tatsuki smiled her last smile and her eyes closed as her heart beat its last note. Ichigo went numb when Tatsuki's small hand went limp and the doctors pronounced her dead.
"Ichigo..." Tatsuki's ghost said, hugging him from behind. "I love you too..."
And Ichigo smiled. "Wait for me Tatsuki... I'll come visit soon..."