-Time-
Time comes and goes. It affects everyone. It's slow when you're waiting, fast when you have fun. People sometimes have too little time, while others have too much. The future ahead, the time some people can't wait for. It seems like forever until the future will actually hit those who are waiting. The present, the now, the moment when carefree people go with time and whatever it brings. And the past, the time that has gone, the time no longer. Sadly, some people dwell too much in this time. They live in the past, unable to look to the future. There are those who wish to reset time and bring the past back. Might be because the best moments of their lives happened in the past, or maybe even the darkest moments that they just want to forget but can't. Only time will determine everything. Only time will tell. And that is why a few people wait for time with their mind still in the past, or if they have the strength and will… they move on.
Time … it is everything. And for that, there are those who wish time would stop.
June 23, 2007 8:35 p.m.
The time Ichigo read on his watch. The second hand ticking away, one… two… three… four… He looked out the window. The town draped in darkness, a dark sapphire color. The night… it reminded him too much of… of…
Ichigo clenched his fist and unclenched it. He sat at the edge of his bed. Where had the time gone? 8:36 p.m., his watch read. The second hand still ticking, twenty-seven… twenty-eight… twenty-nine… thirty… Stop.
Just stop. If only… if only time would just stop.
He hates waiting. Every single night it was the same damn thing… waiting. Why is he waiting? Why can't it be her? All his life, he was fighting time and he's sick of it.
The time when he lost his mother, the time of grieving, he fought that. He fought the time when he had to get his powers back, so he could rescue her. Her execution date, the time when he was scared he wouldn't be able to make it. He fought the time it would take him to achieve bankai, just for her. And his hollow… that one hour of hatred. And that time he held his breathe when she had her eyes closed while being treated by Inoue. And when they went to rescue Inoue, that time when he felt her reiatsu shrink. That time when he didn't want to fight anyone but only wanted to be next to her, to rush by her side. To make sure she was okay… to see that she was alright… to see that she was alive.
Time… they were always racing. He raced with time. And he was scared… he feared that maybe one day… one day time will beat him… again. It happened once with his mother. He didn't want it to happen again. He feared it. He couldn't win them all. He tried to. He desperately tried to. One day… just one day… he knew. It was all a matter of time.
Time… it controlled everything… it was everything.
And here he was, head in his hands, sitting at the edge of his bed. 8:44 p.m. He was waiting. He was now waiting for time. He was waiting… waiting for her.
The winter war was over. They won. They were glad. The safety of Karakura Town was restored. No threat was left, except for time itself.
8:52 p.m. It started to rain. He sighed, resting his elbows on his knees, covering his mouth with his hands, while looking out the window.
After the war, the group had to celebrate. They went out with the others. Friends and family, everyone went. Special thanks from Soul Society were given to the material world heroes.
She stayed for one whole year with him and his family. Just like it used to be…finish school… hang out with friends… slay Hollows… At that time, he lived in the moment. He didn't worry about the future… didn't dwell in the past. Time left him alone for a whole year.
Then one day… she left. She was gone. No trace of her was left in his world, except the memories he, his family, and his friends, who fought in the war, shared with her through time. He woke up one day, to see his sister, Yuzu, tearing over a small note. His father and Karin silently watched television.
Ichigo went up to Yuzu to see what was bothering her so much. His younger sister handed him the small parchment, sniffling back a cry. He looked at her with some concern then down at the paper.
I am and forever will be thankful to your hospitality. I had fun everyday. Thank you! Thank you so much! I will be forever grateful.
-Kuchiki Rukia
It was just a thank you note, but something built within him. Ichigo crumbled up the note. He looked up to see Yuzu looking at him with watery eyes. She paused crying for a moment, curious to her older brother's reaction. But she wasn't the only one. His father and his other sister looked at him as well.
"She said thank you. I don't know why you guys are sulking for," he said and went to the door, put his jacket on and went outside, silently closing the door behind him. Yuzu went back to crying… it was doubled… probably crying for him as well. He sighed. He placed his hands in his pockets and started walking, to heavens knows where.
She left. She didn't even say good-bye, just some stupid thank you note that was still in his hand. There was no good-bye on the note as well. Why? he wondered. That emotion that he felt immediately after reading the note was still there. And it only increased as he thought of her. He was mad, angry. He was furious and somewhat hurt.
She just left and that was it? No explanation. When she first ran away, she left a note telling him to hide, hinting that she was in some sort of danger. However, in her thank you note, there was nothing. 'Thank you' that was it.
Ichigo gritted his teeth and punched the wall along the sidewalk. That bitch! He didn't realize that he had fallen for her until she left. He didn't realize he had fallen so hard. Damn her… Damn him self for not realizing sooner.
Days passed, then months. Soon a whole year went by. It's been three years. And he's still waiting.
9:28 p.m. It was still pouring outside. He decided to sleep. He was thinking too much. He shut off the lamp and pulled the covers over himself. He closed his eyes. A moment later, he opened them. Two minutes passed. He couldn't sleep. He lay there, staring at the ceiling. She was always on his mind, even till now.
11:20 p.m. he still didn't get some sleep. He looked out the window. The rain didn't let up. He sat upright. It seemed like another sleepless night. Damn her. She's going to pay. He's going to make her pay.
He got out of bed and went downstairs. Even though it was raining out, he wanted some fresh air. He opened the door to sit on the steps but instead found something or rather someone he didn't expect. A sudden feeling of hurt and anger rose. And it was all directed to the person in front of him.
11:27 p.m. Kuchiki Rukia was in front of Kurosaki Ichigo's house, soaking wet to the bone in the pouring rain.
He stood at his doorway, staring at her with all the hatred and sleepiness she and time brought upon him. What the hell is she doing here? Yes, he was waiting. He waited two plus years for this moment, but he didn't think it would actually happen. Every scenario in his mind about this particular moment, where he would immediately grab her and confess his undying love to her or hugging her and then kiss her no matter where they were at, it all escaped him. Every question that was running through his mind, the feeling of happiness and relief where he would see her again, they were all replaced with hatred. He hated her for everything she put him through for the past three years.
Rukia stood in the rain. Her hands in a jacket that was at least two sizes bigger than her. She wore that jacket over a pair of short jean shorts and a blouse that clung to her every curve because of the rain. She was soaked thoroughly through. Water slid down her slender legs to her sneakers. Her hair was sticking to her face. She stood in front of his house like a sorry puppy, yet she never looked more beautiful in her entire life.
"Hey," she said with a lazy smile. That only made Ichigo glare at her and hate her even more. Rukia could tell what he was feeling. She debated whether coming here or not. But she missed him… a lot.
-- -- --
She stood in front of his house for an hour wondering if she should knock. When the door opened, her heart stopped for only a moment. She held her breath. He stood at the doorway glaring at her in only a pair of sweatpants. He was shirtless and more attractive than ever. She wouldn't be surprised if he had a girlfriend already. She would also hate it if it's true.
It's been years and all she could say was hey. She would hate her guts, too. In fact, she did. "Missed me?" she asked, smiling a sad smile, hoping he would say yes. Instead, she watched him scoff at her. He shook his head and opened the door wider.
"Get in," he said very low. He was mad but she was here and he's going to get some answers from her before she takes off again.
Rukia stared into his house through the doorway. "You're not going to kill me, are you?" she asked taking a step towards the house.
As she walked in, he whispered in her ear, "We'll see." Rukia stopped, she shivered a little. Whether it was from the rain or the killing vibes from Ichigo, she didn't know. She watched as he disappeared upstairs. She wondered if he would bring some sort of torture weapon down. She wouldn't blame him. She would kill herself as well.
As she waited for his return, she scanned the contents of the house. It was simple. There wasn't much. A small television and a couch occupied the living room. The kitchen was right beside it, nothing much to it. Everything important was probably upstairs.
A few minutes passed and Ichigo finally came down with a towel and some clothes she could change in. He still didn't bother putting on a shirt.
"Here," he said, tossing it to her. Rukia caught it, making sure it didn't touch her wet clothes. "Upstairs, down the hall, first door to your right. The bathroom, you can change in there," he pointed. Rukia nodded her head and quietly walked upstairs. Ichigo went into the kitchen and placed a kettle of water on the stove.
Rukia came back down the stairs in his white nightshirt that was a bit too big and a pair of shorts that seemed like pants on her, her hair semi-dry. She found Ichigo leaning on the kitchen counter with one mug of hot tea. "For you," he said pushing the cup towards her.
She joined him at the counter. She picked up the tea and blew on it. "Thanks," she said before she took a sip.
There was silence. Ichigo stared at Rukia the whole while and she avoided his gaze. Feeling uncomfortable under his gaze and the awkward silence, she decided to say something. "Nice place you have here," she complimented, still avoiding his eyes.
He didn't want small talk. He wanted answers and it didn't seem like she would be explaining herself unless he asks the questions that has been unasked for three years. So, first off, "Why did you leave without saying good-bye?"
Rukia turned to look at him. Even though it was three years, he still looked the same. He was still muscular of when she trained and fought with him. And he still wore his trademark scowl. But what he was showing was much more than scowling. He was confused, angry, hurt… all the emotions one would feel when someone left them without an explanation or without so much of a good-bye. And she did just that. He had bags under his eyes. It was faint, but she could see it. And she knew that she was the cause of it.
"I left a note," she simply stated and she tore away from his gaze again.
Ichigo shook his head. He slammed his hand onto the counter and in the process made Rukia jump. She looked at the cause of the sound and saw, as his hand moved away, the only note she wrote three years ago. "Where?! Even in your goddamn thank you note, there was no good-bye."
Rukia looked up at him then down to the note. He kept it? It was crumbled, torn, wrinkled through time but anyone can see her writing and her name on it.
"Anyone who read it could tell there was a good-bye behind it," she said, her tone getting firm.
Ichigo ran a hand down his face. "Really?" he asked. "Then tell me why I didn't see it?"
She looked up at him. "Because you're an idiot," she answered. "You always have been and you still are."
He glared at her. "Yuzu was crying! The friends you have made here didn't even know you left until I told them! Are they all idiots? Why didn't you say good-bye?!" he asked, raising his voice by the second. Why didn't you say good-bye to me? He thought, but couldn't bring himself to ask the question. "You didn't give any hint that you were leaving," he continued. "You just disappeared one day!"
Rukia looked up at him, and then looked away. Had she really hurt everyone? She felt guilt; she was sorry, but… but… She turned back to face him. No emotion displayed on her face. She raised a brow at him. "Jeez! You make it sound like friends don't get up and leave," she said getting up from the stool. "I shouldn't have come back. Here's a good-bye, Ichigo, since you so want it," she said waving over her shoulder while walking upstairs to change back to her wet clothes.
Ichigo stared at her. He let out a small laugh. "You're still the same, aren't you, Rukia?" he said before she went up, his voice level normal. Rukia paused in her steps. It's been forever since she heard him say her name. She missed that, too. Her shoulders rose as she sucked in air.
"I don't know, Ichigo. You tell me," she said glancing at him over her right shoulder. She watched as he took a step towards her.
"You are such a bitch, you know that?" he asked her as he came up behind her. She turned around to face him, one stair almost leveling the height difference.
She raised a brow at him. "It seems I've been told." They were close, but not too close. Just close enough that they could grab each other.
"Why did you leave in the first place?" he questioned.
"Business," she answered rather flatly. She knew that wouldn't be enough.
He furrowed his brows and scowled more. "Business?" he repeated. She nodded, looking just like a Kuchiki, expressionless. "Don't give me that crap!" he snapped. She laughed inside. She knew it! She knew him.
"Then what do you want me to give you?" she asked back. "Didn't you notice that after I left you had nothing to do with Soul Society ever again?" He thought about what she just said. It was true. Even Uruhara was no longer at his shop. He found that out when he went there to ask why the person now in front of him had left without saying anything, only to find a note that said closed forever.
"Your point is?" he asked, trying to save his brain from analyzing the answer. It would be easier to make her answer him than himself.
"It's exactly that. Soul Society thought that the least they could do for you would be to lessen your problems and deal with hollows and souls themselves, leaving you and your friends a more normal life," she explained. "It was business."
"What?" he looked at her to see any sign that she was lying. She didn't. He knew Rukia would never lie to him, unless it involved something personal in her life that she didn't want anyone to know. "If that's true, that doesn't explain why you didn't say good-bye," he said. He still wanted to know the answer.
Rukia looked at him in the eyes. Ichigo noticed her expression softened a bit before it reverted back. She turned around and started upstairs. "Just to let you know I'll be leaving. Sorry to drop back in. I'll say good-bye before I walk out the door, if it makes you feel better."
That just irked him even further. She was throwing everything he had said right back in his face with sarcasm. He went after her. Before she could close the bathroom door, he stopped it with his hand. Rukia stopped and looked at him. "What?" she asked, furrowing her brows at him. "I need to change so you can have your clothes back," she stated.
"It's still raining," he said, pointing out the window. "Where are you going to go?"
"Why?" she asked back, walking away from the door. Ichigo let himself in. "Do you want to know?" she looked out the window.
Ichigo was getting more annoyed at the moment. He grabbed hold of her arm and turned her around to face him. "You owe me, Rukia, you know that?"
Rukia glared at him. "Owe you?" she repeated. She could feel the pain from his grip. She tried to break free, but he wouldn't let her. "I don't owe you anything." She scoffed, "You make it sound like we were a couple before I left." Ichigo tightened his grip causing Rukia to wince slightly. She was toying with his feelings and he hated that. He glared down at her and she stared back. "Let go," she said, her voice low. "It was a mistake for me to come back."
Ichigo ignored her command. "Then why did you come back, Rukia? If what you said about Soul Society leaving us alone is true, then why are you here now?" he asked. Rukia looked at him in the eyes for a few seconds before she turned her head.
Ichigo had it with her turning her face away every time he asked her a question. So he took his other hand and held her chin in place so that she was now facing him, again. And, of course, she was glaring at him. "Answer me, Kuchiki," he said. "You owe me an explanation."
Rukia continued to glare at him. "I don't owe you anything, Kurosaki," she repeated and she swatted his hand away and tugged her arm out his grasp. She walked pass him and towards the door. She held the door open, "If you will excuse me. I would like to change, so I could leav—" she was cut off.
"Bullshit! You don't owe me anything?" he turned around to face her. "You owe me a lot," he said walking over to her again. "You left without saying anything! You see these?" he asked pointing to the bags under his eyes. "They're all from one person! I never slept well after you disappeared! You," he pointed at her, "are the cause of my stress, Rukia, for three damn years!" He towered over her, cornering her to a wall.
Angry at the way she let herself be cornered, she said, "I didn't tell you to dwell in the past, Ichigo. You should've moved on when I left. I bet you wouldn't be saying that if you had accepted Inoue's confession three months after," realizing what she just said, she turned her head away, again. Ichigo stared at her confused.
"How did you know that Inoue confessed to me?" he asked, cupping her chin again.
Rukia stared back at his face, "Yamamoto-taicho ordered whoever that had a mission here to conceal their reiatsu so you and everybody else wouldn't be able to detect it," she explained. She then moved his hand away. "I just so happened to be here when she confessed. You're stupid, Ichigo. Why didn't you accept?" she asked.
"I don't need to tell you," he answered her, his scowl never fazing. They stared at each other, anger coming from the both of them.
"Fine," Rukia said after awhile. "Since I can't change in here," she grabbed her wet clothes, "I'll go change in another room," and she left the bathroom and walked to the next closest room.
It had a bed, a desk, a shelf full of books, and next to the bed, a night stand. Pictures were displayed on it next to a lamp. She scanned the photos. One picture frame had the whole Kurosaki family when they were young, still with their mother. Another picture frame had him and all his high school friends. Then there was a picture frame faced down. Rukia picked it up and as she looked at the photo, her heart sank. It was a candid picture of her. Ichigo and company were at a park and the sun was just setting. Rukia was watching the view when Orihime called her from behind and took the shot.
She stared at picture. She was sure she got rid of everything. "That was the only picture of you left," Rukia turned around to see Ichigo leaning in the doorway. "After I rejected Inoue, she gave me that picture. Seems to me like she knew something," he got up from the doorframe and made his way towards her. "Why didn't you say good-bye?" he asked, taking the frame from her hands and setting it on the stand.
Rukia watched as he set it up and not back down. "Don't you think it would have been harder if I had bid everyone farewell?" she asked back, looking up at him.
He looked back at her. "Then why did you come back?" he asked again.
She stared at him, softness within her gaze. He's going to make it hard for her to leave this time. She only wanted to visit him and she was going against Yamamoto-taicho's orders by talking to him right now. She forced herself to show an expressionless face again. "I already said it was a mistake. I answered your questions, so you should be happy now. You know, with you keep following I won't be able to change, unless you don't mind watching me change," she said with sarcasm, but still held her expression.
She walked pass him and was about to walk out the room until Ichigo caught her arm, turning her to face him again, his grip tight. "You're not answering this question," he stated. "Why did you come back?"
Angry at him for always forcing her to look at him, she answered, "Because you're an idiot! I wanted to see if you were still alive! That's why! Happy?!" she snapped. "I wanted to see if you're idiocy hasn't killed you off yet!" Her sarcastic attitude only irritated him more and more. "It seems like I won't be able to change," she pulled her arm out of his grasp and stormed downstairs. "You'll get your clothes back later, unless you prefer money!" she called to him from the bottom of the stairs.
She was as stubborn as ever. Getting angry wasn't helping him at all. He punched the wall, time for a change of tactics. He went after her. "Rukia!" he called.
She ignored him. As soon as she put her wet sneakers on, she stood up to open the door only to have it slammed closed by the person now behind her. "Move, Kurosaki," she ordered.
"First tell me why you came back. You must have a reason. Kuchiki Rukia does not do anything without a reason," he stated, not moving his hand from the door. His shadow fell over her completely. He could smell the rain in her damp hair.
She turned to face him. "I thought I already told you my answer? And if you don't believe that, maybe it's because I'm the idiot. Why can't you get it through your head that me being here is a mistake?" she asked, coldness in her eyes.
He leaned in closer to her, their face just centimeters apart. "Because like you, Rukia, I'm stubborn as hell. And until I find the right answer, you're not leaving. In fact," he lifted his other arm to lock the door and placed it on the other side of her head, "I'm not letting you go this time." Rukia took a step back, her head hitting the door, telling her that she was cornered again. One muscular leg was against one of her slender ones.
"You're too close," she stated, her voice catching in her throat. She looked at him straight in the eyes.
He quirked a brow at her, "Really?" he asked.
Rukia furrowed her brows. "Yes, really," she breathe. He could feel her breath against his lips when she talked. "And I'm not leaving until you hear the right answer, huh?" she repeated his words. "Then tell me, Ichigo," she whispered. "What is the right answer? Why did I come back?" she asked back. He didn't want to take any of her responses, so let him respond himself.
Ichigo smirked inside. He liked being this close to her. "I think that the reason why you came back was because you missed me. You wanted to see me so badly, that even disobeying Soul Society didn't matter. Why else would you be here right now?"
Rukia raised her brows at him. "Oh, please! I never knew the great Kurosaki Ichigo was conceited!" she mocked. "That's an answer you want to hear," she told him.
"Really?" he asked. She nodded slightly, anymore, and she would've bump heads with him. Ichigo leaned in closer to her ear, "And you would know what I want?" he whispered.
Rukia gulped. She would have to admit to herself that that was seductive. His breath tickled her ear. But there was no way she would ever admit that to him.
Ichigo smirked at her reaction, when he noticed her tense up. "Do you know what I want?" he asked. He inhaled her scent of fresh rain.
Rukia tried to steady her heart beat. She would be dead if he found out that he could make her react so. Rukia knew he was toying with her, or at least she thought. So, she decided to play along and answer, while whispering in his ear, giving a taste of his own medicine as they say, she whispered, "Me," and a part of her hoped to God that the answer, she had just said, be true.
Ichigo closed his eyes when she whispered. He couldn't take it anymore. He was practically on top of her, and with her whispering to him that he wanted her, it was true. Goddammit! It was all true. He pressed his lips to hers. Out of surprise, Rukia began pushing him, but Ichigo quickly grabbed hold of her hands and held it above her head.
A few seconds passed and Rukia soon gave in. When Ichigo noticed that she stopped struggling, he took a chance and ran his tongue along her bottom lip. And Rukia sighed in response. Ichigo smirked and delved his tongue in her mouth, wanting more of her. He didn't realize he wanted to taste her for three damn years. What the hell kind of power did she hold over him?
Rukia was the first to break the kiss. They were both breathing heavily. "Soul Society is going to kill me for disobeying them," she said through deep breaths.
"Then I'll break through Soul Society again and drag you back here with me. I fought them once for you and I can do it again," he spoke, kissing her slightly.
Rukia smiled and kissed him back. "Make damn sure."
Ichigo smirked in response, "Aa," and he claimed her mouth for another passionate kiss.