A/N: Hey guys! So I know it's been forever since I've posted anything, but the husband and I have been busy backpacking Europe for the last 6 weeks, and before that we were preparing for this trip. But good news! I have been writing on every train and bus along the way, so I have a new story here for you guys...and it's complete as well! It's a short one, but I'll be updating MIT before too long so there is that to look forward to as well! Hope you enjoy, and as always let me know what you think with a review or a message ^_^
It was the day of the annual SWA beach trip. This year however, they couldn't rent the entire beach out, so there were humans there with them as well. That meant that they had to be in gigais, so as not to startle anyone. That was all well and fine with him though. He could still compete in the sand sculpting contest, which he would undoubtedly win, and that was really all that mattered to him.
Though once that was over with he found himself a little bored. He discovered an area of the beach where swimming wasn't allowed, due to rough waters and riptides, and decided a walk sounded like a good idea. The feel of the water and the wet sand under his feet was very relaxing, and it helped that there was not another living soul down that particular stretch of sand. Being alone was something that he was used to, but lately he'd grown restless in his solitude.
Longing for company was something he was not familiar with, and he didn't know what to do. Other than his sister and lieutenant, there was no one he could call a friend, he only had acquaintances. And that was only because of his position in the Gotei, otherwise he might not know anyone but his family. His reputation preceded him wherever he might go, so making new friends would be difficult to say the least.
Walking further out until the water was up over his ankles, he stopped to take in the scenery. It was a beautiful day and the sun was shining on the water in a way that made it look like there were diamonds scattered across the waves. Trees were bowing to the breeze and the sky was a magnificent blue. In the distance however, it looked as though there would be a storm moving in on the fun within an hour or two.
He was about to turn and head back towards the sand when a bright glint to his right caught his eye. What he saw was quite breathtaking. There stood lieutenant Matsumoto, clad in a tiny white bikini with the wind in her golden hair and the sun's rays reflecting off of it. She was standing atop a large break wall made of rocks, enjoying the breeze and the light mist of water from the waves crashing into it. He may have been a nobleman, who'd been celibate for sometime, but he still recognized that the woman was indeed very beautiful.
The annual beach trip was normally one of her favorite days, but this year with all the humans around, she just wasn't feeling it. She was used to men staring at her, but in a bikini their looks went from stares to leering very quickly. It was one thing to be looked at as though her body was appreciated, but in this case she felt like she was being sized up. Like they were preparing to devour her whole, and she couldn't shake the uneasy feeling it gave her.
She was familiar with that feeling thanks to her days in th Rukongai, and when she got to the academy she had promised herself that she would never put up with it again. So she decided to wander off alone down a worn path through the trees, before she decided to deck one of the creeps. Sometimes being alone was best, and she had learned to survive on her own very early thanks to Gin. He'd left her alone more often, and for longer, than she cared to admit. At least to anyone other than herself.
Honestly though, she was starting to hate being alone. She'd felt lonely since long before Gin had left her for the last time. And she'd let it get the best of her on a few occasions, leading to a very brief and misguided fling with a guy who was all wrong for her, and a few one night stands. The problem with those situations, was that she always ended up feeling not only more lonely afterwards, but also feeling bad about herself. One night stands weren't who she was, no matter how much the gossip hounds tried to make it true. If only she could find someone to be her companion, someone who wanted more than just her body in the end. But how would she go about doing that? She hadn't dated anyone besides Gin before. If you could even call what they had dating.
Reaching the end of the pathway, she came to an outcrop of rocks, made into a breakwall along the water. The breeze was light and the splashes of mist from the waves crashing against it felt perfect. She decided to find a spot closer to the edge and just take it all in. She might even be able to work on her tan without prying eyes ruining it.
Or maybe not. After about twenty minutes she felt eyes on her person and began looking around. Was that Captain Kuchiki staring at her from a distance? Or was she just imagining it? He was probably just enjoying his privacy, same as her. Why would he be staring at her? There was no way he was interested in anything that had to do with her. Though she would admit that he was the best looking eye candy Soul Society had to offer. So maybe she could enjoy the view from her perch a little longer.
He wasn't sure how long he'd been standing there staring at her. But she must have felt his gaze because she started to look around until her head turned in his direction.
He knew then that she'd definitely seen him, for she gave a small wave. If he'd done nothing in response,she might not have known he was staring, but he'd instinctively waved back. Great, now she probably thought he was some kind of creepy perv or something.
This was not the first time that his attentions had been captured by the woman, but certainly the first time that she may have noticed. Oh Gods...when he put it like that it only made him seem more creepy. But that had never been his intention. He'd admired her from afar ever since their days in the academy, keeping his distance because being interested in a commoner was not allowed. Although he did eventually marry one anyways, it seemed it was not meant to be and he was a widower within a few short years.
But even when he was married and in all the years since, Matsumoto was always able to capture him and his imagination. If she were a noblewoman, he was sure he'd have done all he could to keep other men from claiming her as theirs. She was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen, and he didn't mean her body. Though it was very nice, her face was what really got him. Those blue eyes and that mischievous smile made him wonder what hid behind them.
If ever given the chance, he would be sure to find out. But just as for the last hundred years or so, she was out of his reach. Even if he did have the courage to talk to her, he wouldn't know where to start. Though as it turned out, fate was about to intervene.
She'd given a little wave in Kuchiki's direction, and he responded in kind. So she was right, he had been watching her. 'Let him look.' she thought to herself. She was certainly going to admire him as much as possible from this distance.
Settling herself on the flattest rock she could find, she stretched out and let the sun warm her skin against the slight chill from the water. Leaning back she braced herself with her arms and tilted her head up towards the sun. Sure, she couldn't see Kuchiki this way, but she knew he was still there. She could feel his gaze still resting on her, and for some reason, she didn't feel uneasy about it.
An hour or so must have passed before the light and warmth began to fade. The water on her skin had gone from pleasantly cool, to downright freezing. Looking over to the beach, Kuchiki had moved back to the sand and was just stirring from what looked like a relaxing nap. Thunder rolled overhead and she realized the party was over, time to get up and get going back to the meetup spot.
It was just her luck of course that as soon as she made to get up a huge wave crashed against the rocks, and she was soaked with ice cold water. That was followed by her slipping on the now wet rocks. She'd not only landed on her ass, but she'd also somehow managed to cut her leg pretty badly on the way down. Shit that had hurt! Too bad she was stuck in her gigai or she could have used shunpo to get herself to Unohana. Her soul candy was sitting on her towel, back where everyone else was. And then things went from bad to worse.
He'd eventually broken himself from his trance and made his way back to the sand, stretching out and enjoying the sun. He must have inadvertently fell asleep though, for the next thing he knew he was awakened to the sound of thunder. Large dark clouds had made their way over the area and the storm appeared as though it would be rough.
Looking to her perch on the rocks he could see Matsumoto stirring as well. He felt bad as he watched her get drenched by a large wave of water, and then even worse as she slipped and fell. She was grabbing at her leg and he surmised that she had gotten hurt. But before he could make a move to go to her aid, another much larger wave crashed over her and suddenly she was gone.
Worried for her safety he began scanning the waters below where she had been. She was hurt and possibly unable to swim, he had to find her. If only he'd thought to bring his soul candy with him, he'd have been able to get to her without a problem. But alas, that was not going to be possible, he was just going to have to do it the hard way. Making his way into the water he saw her blonde head rise above the surface, arms flailing against the rough waters as the waves tried to drag her under and throw her against the rocks as well.
With no time to think, he dove into the cold water and started swimming in her direction as fast as he could, trying to keep an eye on her all the while. When he finally reached her, he realized that she was caught in a small riptide and was unable to get herself out. Getting as close as he could without getting sucked in himself, he reached out for her and wound an arm around her midsection, pulling her to him. There was a small cave under the rocks, so he swam there, planning to check her injuries and allow her a moment to breath before helping her climb back up to higher ground.
The saltwater made the gash in her leg burn like hell, and the waters were so rough she was having trouble getting her bearings and keeping her head above water. The power of the tides and waves combined kept dragging her back down, and she was starting to feel a sense of panic. Just when she started to think that she might drown out there, she felt a strong arm wrap itself around her waist and tug her back up. Her back collided with a muscled body and she knew without looking that it had to be him. She was being saved by the great Captain Kuchiki.
Gasping for air, and doing her best to swim with him she managed to ignore the pain in her leg long enough to get to solid ground. They had entered a small cave just under where she had been swept away. And by small she meant tiny, she wasn't sure either of them could stand at their full height once inside.
"Lieutenant Matsumoto, are you alright?" His deep voice asked, his face just inches from hers.
"I think so...at least I will be. Thank you. I might have drown out there if it wasn't for you." She replied sheepishly. She was embarrassed, but also feeling flush due to his proximity to her.
"A thank you is not necessary, but you are welcome nonetheless. Come, let me get a look at your leg. It seems a deeper wound than I would have thought." He said quietly, pulling back and lifting her leg at the knee.
"Oh great, so you saw me fall? That's just wonderful." She griped, more to herself than to him.
"You do not need to be embarrassed, I am simply glad that I was able to assist you." Taking the zippered hoodie he'd been wearing off.
"OOOWWWW! What the hell are you doing?" She yelped out between gritted teeth.
"My apologies. You are still bleeding, so we must put pressure on the wound." He stated, tearing the fabric in half and tying each piece around her injured calf.
Now that he mentioned it, she was feeling a little light headed. Though she was sure that it wasn't entirely from blood loss. He was even sexier up close and even though she knew it wasn't the time for those kind of thoughts, she couldn't stop her heartbeat from picking up it's pace.
Helping her to her feet, it turned out that she could not place weight on her leg. And he again cursed himself for not having his soul candy with him. He needed to get her to Captain Unohana as soon as possible, but it was going to take much longer this way. Deciding that carrying her would work best he lifted her into his arms. It was awkward holding her like that when he couldn't even stand up to his full height, but it would have to work. She let out a little yelp of surprise, and though he would never say it out loud he thought it was one of the cutest things he'd ever heard. He would also not mention the blush forming across her cheeks at his action.
"Hold onto me tightly. With the wind and rain, it is going to be difficult to get out of here safely." His own grip on her tightening a little.
She nodded and put her arms around his neck. He knew it wasn't the time for impure thoughts, but she was soaking wet and pressed against his bare skin. And when he looked down at her, he had a spectacular view of her chest as well. Gentleman or not, it was hard to ignore. Shaking the dirty thoughts away, he vowed to himself that when they got back home he would find a way to talk to her, to get to know her. It was time to branch out and stop closing himself off, and why not start with woman he'd been secretly admiring for so long?
Before he could take more than two steps towards the exit of the cave though, lightning struck extremely close by and there was a rush of heat, and electricity that lit up the air around them for a moment. The hair on his arms and the back of his neck stood on end, and she buried her head in the crook of his neck as the entrance completely collapsed in front of them. Using his own body as a shield, he protected her from the falling rock as best he could. It was now pitch black in the small space, and he felt her arms tighten their hold on him for a second. Was she scared?
"Kuchiki, are you ok? What happened?" She asked as he gently put her down again.
"I am fine, it appears that our exit has been cut off thanks to that lightning strike. Are you alright?"
"Yeah, no worse for wear than I was."
"Good. I will see if I can get some of the stones to move so we can get out of here. Just stay where you are." He stated.
They were trapped, really and truly trapped. No matter what he tried, the fallen debris had created a solid wall between them and the outside. Great, what the hell was he supposed to do now? He couldn't even use kido in his damned gigai!
"I guess we will have to wait for the others to realize we are missing and come looking for us." He said with a sigh.
"I'm sure they will, and hopefully soon." She replied.
It was dark, cold and damp in their little "prison" and she was trying to focus on anything but that. It felt like it was getting harder to breathe, and although it was dark she felt like the cave was getting smaller by the minute, the silence between them wasn't helping either. She couldn't see anything and she was freezing her ass off after being soaked by the ocean waves. As hard as she tried, she couldn't stop herself from starting to shiver, her teeth chattering together in response.
"Matsumoto, are you alright? What is that noise?" He asked.
"My teeth. I'm really cold...and I'm trying really hard not to completely flip my shit right now." She responded.
"I'm sorry...flip your shit? Why would you do that?" His tone full of confusion.
"I didn't want to say anything, but I'm claustrophobic...I can't handle small enclosed spaces. I feel like the walls are closing in on me, it makes me lose my mind." She said quietly.
The next thing she knew she was pulled against a warm body, and strong arms were holding her close. God, he even felt sexy. It was not at all what she'd been expecting though, and it took her several seconds to react.
"What are you doing?"
"Body heat...it will keep us both warm. Now, as for the other issue at hand, you are in my arms. If I am not being crushed, then you will not be crushed either. Though I know it is not that easy to ignore." He said quietly.
"Close your eyes. Firstly, take a few slow, deep breaths. I want you to picture a wide open field...it's a warm, sunny day with a perfect breeze rolling through every so often. There are wildflowers in shades of pink, red, purple, and even yellow as far as the eye can see. It is just the two of us, and we are stretched out on a blanket, watching the clouds roll by."
"Mmm, you're so warm." Was all she could manage to say in return.
She was definitely envisioning the scene he laid out for her, and she was feeling calmer by the minute. She appreciated everything he was doing on her behalf, no one had ever tried to help her through this kind of situation before. It was also hard to deny that being in his arms was helping the most. There was something about it that just felt...right somehow. As if the world around her stopped existing, and all there was, was the two of them.
"I am glad. Now, lastly...and even though I am not very good at it, I believe some conversation will help keep your mind off of things."
"Ok, well we're half naked, soaking wet, and curled up together in pitch black darkness...so what do you wanna talk about?" She asked with a giggle.
She couldn't resist the opportunity to tease him, even if it wasn't really the time for it. She might never get another chance to try and throw the nobleman for a loop. The only regret was that she couldn't see his face, but she definitely felt his heartbeat pick up and his lower half was now perked up from her words. He shifted awkwardly trying to keep her from feeling it, so he was either a gentleman or embarrassed, or both.
