.
.
After all that we've been through
and after all we left in pieces
I still believe our lives have just begun
Because now the past can be outrun
& I know you are the reason
I still believe the best is yet to come
.
.
.
My Way To You
.
.
Can I find it?
.
(2 years after 423)
.
It was raining. Fast, angry, ruthless rain drowning the grounds and making everything seem so dark and depressing. Rain at night was the worst- like the darkness wasn't enough, the rain just added to the misery of it.
Ichigo leaned against the window, tired, annoyed with the stupid sound of the rain against his window, an offbeat pitter-patter.
He glanced out, staring at the dark skies and endless rain, his eyes falling randomly on a figure far off.
He stopped and stared. The figure wasn't easy to see- it was too dark and obviously this person was in a lot of black. Why was someone standing like that out in the rain, anyways, being completely idle? Ichigo wouldn't have even seen the figure if it wasn't for a gleam of pure white- the one that caught his eye.
He blinked. Once, twice, three times. He couldn't believe what he was seeing, really. It was- what was it?- too good to be true.
He flung himself off the bed, running downstairs and skipping the last four steps, landing with a thud on his feet. This alerted Yuzu and Karin, who were sitting in the living room watching a movie. Both girls ran over, watching as he flung open the door and stood there, staring out.
"Ichi-nii!"
"Ichi-nii, what're you doing? You're letting in the cold-"
"Rukia."
His eyes were wide, his voice a bare whisper. Both girls were taken back, blinking in surprise at the name he hadn't mentioned in the past 2 years suddenly coming up. Yuzu took a step forward. "Ichi-"
Ichigo darted out the door, not even bothering to close it as he did so. Yuzu ran to the door, calling out, "Ichi-nii, where are you going?"
Karin touched her back, "Yuzu... let it be."
"What? But he-"
"I know..." Karin stared out, watching her brother run, before closing her eyes, feeling the familiar reiatsu she hadn't felt in a very long time. "Don't worry..."
Both girls fell silent, watching at the doorstep.
Meanwhile, Ichigo was soaking wet as he silently approached the figure. His heart was racing, the back of his neck burning even in all the cold, as he stopped a few feet away. The person's back was to him, and obviously she hadn't noticed his presence. She donned a shihakusho, her hair and self completely soaked as she stared up at the sky, motionless. She held her sword loosely, the the tip of the unmistakable pure white blade that he had seen from his bedroom window touching the floor- like she would let it go any minute now.
It was almost like an illusion, and Ichigo was scared that if he moved, or even blinked, she would be gone.
Placing his fears on the blade of the sword, his voice was a mere whisper.
"Rukia."
Softly, quiet but firm. Her head turned slightly to look over her shoulder in mild surprise of someone trying to get her attention, eyes half lidden in uninterest, but when she saw the familiar face and the bright hair, even in all this rain, her eyes widened, and the rest of her body turning automatically to face him.
They stood silently like that for a few moments, the rain pouring relentlessly on them both. His eyes bore into her's, wide and shocked, her mouth gaping slightly.
A sudden noise slightly made Ichigo jump a bit- the clatter of the white blade falling to the ground as Rukia moved slightly, one arm crossing over her chest, the other hand that had been gripping her blade now reaching up to touch her lips in shock. Ichigo couldn't move, nor speak, as her eyes filled with tears, and her familiar, endearing voice spoke in a soft whisper, "It can't be..."
Ichigo's mind registered blank. All he could do was take in the situation- Rukia, appearing here, after so long, in the dark of the night, with the rain, and the fact that she was now staring at him in total shock and looked so close to tears. He didn't know what to do- or what to say. He just stared at her, at her shocked face and tear filled eyes and vulnerable look.
His mind registered blank, and he had never been good with words anyways, so he took one large step to close the space between them and grabbed her, arms crushing her, hugging her tightly against him, head bent over from the height difference.
"It's you." his voice is soft and laced with hurt and affection as his eyes close and his face buries in the side of her neck as he now listens to her sobs, her hot tears a good contrast the the cold rain against their bodies. His grip on her petite waist doesn't falter as her own hands weave around his neck, the other seemingly desperate to grasp the wet locks of his hair as she cries, loud, angry sounding sobs that make his heart ache in a good and bad way.
"Ichigo...!"
Her sobs are hardly soothed by his broken voice. "You're home."
It's raining relentlessly, but all Rukia feels is sunlight.
Ichigo doesn't feel the rain at all.