Summary: Rukia and Renji camp out in the forest.
Dinner
Rukia steals a glance over at Renji, who is sitting on the log across the fire. The flames crackle, gently shattering the silence, a night time companion. His hair seems to glow, taking on a darker shade of red, and Rukia soon finds herself transfixed by the sight.
He looks up, catches her staring at him. A blush creeps its way up her cheeks, and she ducks her head when he flashes her a carefree smile. She nibbles on the half-eaten apple in her hands, hunched shoulders making her look more like a child than a certified shinigami.
It's been a few days since they left the Seireitei, having gone on a trip throughout the Rukon to battle hollows. It's more like a training session, really. Rukia's been wanting to improve her swordsmanship, and Renji, being the ever helpful one, had offered to assist her.
And so, that's how they find themselves here, deep in the forest, eating nothing but food cooked from game that had foolishly stepped into their traps.
Rukia had been the one to hunt for food. She had insisted; Renji, on the other hand, had tried to help her, but she was unbending, proclaiming that his only job was to train her and nothing more. So Renji had stayed on the sidelines, watching in disbelief and suppressing his laughter behind a hand whenever she burst out with a curse.
Rukia remembers being better than Renji at hunting, but now, given how long she has been with the Kuchiki family, her skills seem to be rather rusty. She still curses herself for it, for allowing her childhood talents to be worn away by luxuries of the Noble Family.
She gives a start when Renji comes to sit beside her. In the glow of the fire, his tattoos seem to take on a fiercer look, his ponytail spikier than usual. She feels her breath catch in her throat, and she focuses on the apple to distract her attention from him.
And then his breath is right beside her ear, his lips pressed ever so gently to her cheek, his whisper the only thing that she can hear: "Thanks for dinner."
She feels the heat threatening to burst through her cheeks and, taking a big bite of the apple, brushes him off. "You're welcome, Renji."
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