A/N: I really do love you guys! You guys have been giving me great song selections, and believe it or not I have thought about some of those songs. I don't remember who, so I'm sorry if you're reading and aren't getting the credit, but someone PM'ed me and told me to use, "True" by Ryan Cabrera and this was one of the songs I was thinking of before, so I'm using this for chapter deuce! Okay, don't worry. I'm keeping all of your songs in the back of my mind for further chaps, but don't hesitate to add more to the list. This is a long ass chap, so you better be ready to sit down and read. This chapter will explain things that I thought I was clear about, but then went back to see how people could easily overlook it. So, I'm sorry if you're confused about things. Also, you'll see some more characters in this chap and major fluff, which will end with jealousy. Okay, so now that you're hooked, let's get this rollin'. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: Shut up.

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Chapter 2: True

He came strutting in with his hands in his pockets and a pair of sunglasses still on. He was wearing Diesel sneakers, a pair of khaki shorts and a black tee-shirt with white lettering on it that said, "Things Happens." He just went and bought himself some outfits and brought them back to his room that he was staying at in the local hotel.

He was wearing a scowl on his face, which would have been no surprise to those that knew him. Today was Kin's first lesson and he still had about fifteen minutes left until his shift was over. The café was relatively slow. It was a little before noon, so it wasn't lunchtime yet.

Rukia saw him out of the corner of her eye, but decided not to say hello. 'What's wrong with saying 'hi'?' she thought keeping her eyes down at the flower counter that she was wiping down. 'Why do I care so much?' she thought again.

Ichigo sat down at a smaller table and saw a little boy around five year's old with reddish blonde hair sitting at a table next to him. The boy was staring into the distance, wearing a frown. Ichigo looked at the boy and then across the room to see what he was looking at. He saw another boy with a girl sitting at a table and the little girl giggled.

Ichigo huffed. He was pretty sure he knew what was going on, but he was going to ask anyway. Kids were his weakness, he knew that. "Hey bud! You okay over there?"

The little boy turned towards him startled. "Oh- um, yeah. I'm fine," he said looking down at the table top.

Ichigo smirked. "Uh-huh, sure. And my hair is not the color of orange juice. Come here," he said patting his table for him to sit at. "Talk to me."

The boy sighed and walked over, slamming down into the seat across of Ichigo.

"Alright, first off who were you looking at just now?" Ichigo asked nodding his head in the direction of the other children.

The boy sighed, "Nozomi and Taro."

"Okay… Do you not like them or something?" he asked trying to get more information out of the boy.

"No!" the boy shot back. He immediately realized his outburst. "That's not it. I- I just- I give up."

"Give up? At what?" Ichigo pushed, raising an eyebrow.

The boy was looking straight down at the table. "Nozomi," he said without lifting his head.

Ichigo smiled. 'That's what I thought,' he said in his head. "What does this Taro kid have that you don't?"

"Well, he's- he's," he paused. "He's just better!" he said huffing at the end of his statement.

Ichigo let out a small laugh. "That's what I thought. The only way you're going to get the girl is if you fight for her. You sitting over here, while they're both over there, takes you out of the competition."

"Well, I guess you have a point," he said hesitantly.

"No, I do have a point. Trust me. Now get over there and show them what kind of man you really are!" Ichigo said seeing the boy's self-esteem grow right in front of him.

"Right!" the boy yelled, slamming a fist into his palm. He was wearing an evil grin on his face and began to turn away.

"Wait!" Ichigo yelled grabbing the boy's shoulder and pulling him back. "Not that kind of fighting!" he said seeing the boy's surprised face. "I meant fight for her heart," Ichigo said smirking, while shaking his head.

"Oh," the boy said, but then smiled wide. "Okay! I can do that!"

"Good," Ichigo said letting go of the boy's shoulder.

"Oh yeah! I'm Ryo," the boy said holding his hand out to Ichigo.

"Ichigo," he replied grabbing his hand for a shake. "Now get over there and interrupt whatever moment they could be having," Ichigo said smiling devilishly.

Ryo gave a nod and ran over to the table. He sat down in the chair next to the raven haired pigtailed girl, who Ichigo assumed was Nozomi. The girl smiled at Ryo as he sat down.

Ichigo looked over at the flower counter and saw Rukia dealing with flower arrangements. He smiled unconsciously. She had her hair up in a bun, but there were a select few of strands that dangled around her face. She wore a white tee-shirt with jean shorts.

He got up and pulled his sunglasses up so that they were held on the top of his head by his bright hair. He began to walk towards the counter.

Rukia saw him coming and didn't know why, but her heart started racing. 'What the hell is wrong with you? Breathe, Rukia!' she thought, yelling at herself. She took a deep breath, but was interrupted by his voice.

"Hey, how's it going?" he asked seeing her pause in the middle of her work.

She looked up at him and slowly exhaled from the deep breath she just took. "Uh, good. How's your hand?" she asked trying to regain her calm; the calm that she couldn't believe she didn't have in the first place.

"It's not bad. Still stings, but I'll live. But hey, I was wondering if I could have a dozen of those purple flowers right there," he said pointing to a selection behind her with his bandaged hand.

She looked at him, "The tulips?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said nodding with his scowl coming back.

She raised an eyebrow with a smirk. "For a girl?"

He thought for second and smiled, "I guess you could say that."

She didn't know why but she felt a tinge of jealously at hearing that. 'Something is definitely wrong with you, Kuchiki,' she thought.

He paused, but then began to talk again while she started to get together what he asked for. "It's pretty slow today. Yesterday was a hell of a lot busier," he said making conversation.

"Well, it's usually slow around this time." She paused for a second, "And it's usually that busy at the time you were here yesterday."

"Damn. Are you serious? How do you deal with that?" he asked leaning forward on the counter.

She couldn't help but smirk at his movement towards the counter. "Well, that's exactly it. I just deal with it. It can be stressful, but I love this job," she said looking at the flower arrangement she was trying to finish.

He smirked at her. "Amazing."

She looked up at him, surprised by his compliment. His amber eyes were looking deep into hers and she felt the need to swallow, but couldn't.

"Thank you, Taro!"

Rukia and Ichigo both turned in the direction of the three children. Rukia smiled at Nozomi, but was surprised at Ichigo's reaction.

"Shit," he said frowning. He saw the little girl holding what looked to be a candy bar to her chest. He saw Ryo's mouth wide open, and then it closed, revealing a frown.

Rukia looked at Ichigo, who was still looking at the children. She was confused. "What's wrong?"

He stood there thinking for a moment, and then turned to Rukia. "Do you think you could give me one of those flowers by itself too?" he asked with seriousness.

"Uh, yeah. Sure," she said pulling one out of the selection and trimming down its stem. She handed it to him, "Here ya go."

He took it with a sincere smile. "Thanks," he said before turning around. "Ryo!" he yelled, causing the boy to look up. Ichigo waved his hand for him to come over to him. The boy quickly got up and ran over.

"I'm losing, Ichigo," the boy said sadly.

"Yeah, I saw. That was a low blow. Don't worry though. It's just chocolate. Chocolate's a one time use kinda thing."

"Yeah, but still. He gave her something. I've got nothing! I could give her my gum, but it's got no taste left…" the boy said pointing to his mouth.

Ichigo had a disgusted face. "Ah, no, I think you should keep that." He then held up the flower. "Give her this," he said confidently.

"Wow. That's pretty," Ryo said taking the flower in his hands. "I can't take this. This is yours," Ryo said trying to hand it back to him.

"Nah. It's not mine. I found it. You keep it," Ichigo said smiling, putting his hands in his pocket.

Ryo smiled and ran back over to Nozomi. Ichigo saw him hand the flower out to her and her eyes grew wide. She took the flower in her hands, smelt it, and then nearly knocked Ryo over when she jumped on him to give him a hug. Ichigo smiled in success.

"I can't believe you just did that," she said, causing him to turn back to the woman who was in shock.

"What? I was talking to him earlier. He just needed a little push that's all," he said looking back at the boy who was blushing like crazy. He turned back to Rukia.

She let out a slight laugh. She knew how much Ryo liked her daughter. He was always too shy to actually do anything though. She honestly didn't know what to think. This man she met yesterday just helped a boy flirt with her daughter. Part of her felt awkward, but another part of her thought that was sweet.

"Well, here you go," she said handing the bouquet of tulips to him.

He took them with a smile. "I think this is how much I owe ya," he said placing some money on the counter.

"Yep," she said taking the money. "Are you waiting for Kin? 'Cause his shift just ended,' she asked.

"Yeah, thanks," he said beginning to walk away. He stopped after he got about five feet. "Oh!" he said holding the flowers out to her.

"Did I forget something?" she asked taking the flowers back. She began to count the flowers to make sure she wasn't a flower short.

He smiled, but rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Uh, no. That's my way of apologizing for yesterday."

She looked up at him with wide eyes. "What?"

He sighed and tried to avoid her gaze. "There your's."

She looked back down at the tulips. "I- I can't take this. I forgave you yesterday. You paid for this. It's yours," she said, holding it out to him.

He smiled, "Nah, it's not mine. I found it. You keep it," he said seeing her face light up from his repeated statement.

She held the bouquet closer to her face so she could smell them. She had to admit, she loved tulips. "What made you choose purple?" she asked curiously.

He began to walk backwards, "You're eyes," he said smirking. They continued to stare at each other. He was smiling, while she had lost her breath.

"Ichigo! Over here!" Kin yelled, causing Ichigo to turn and nod. He turned back to Rukia and smiled. "I'll see ya later?" he said in more of a question.

"Uh, most likely. I'm always here," she said regaining her regular state.

He just smiled and turned to walk away towards Kin.


A woman with brown hair down to her elbows walked up to Kin.

"Hey," Ichigo said walking up to the two.

"Ah, Ichigo, this is Shina," he said motioning with his hand towards the woman next to him. "Shina this is my friend, Ichigo," he said not taking his eyes off Shina.

"Nice to meet you, Ichigo. Sorry I can't chat. I see customers are starting to come in. But Kin do think you'd have time to go over that book we were supposed to finish for English Lit.? I had a hard time understanding certain parts of it," she asked hopefully.

"Uh, yeah. I'd like that- I mean I had a hard time understanding it too, so I'd like to get together and talk about it. But not like I didn't understand any of it. I did, it's just-" Kin stuttered out.

Ichigo interrupted his rant with a bunch of 'out of control coughs.'

"Are you okay?" Shina asked with her eyebrows furrowed.

"Oh yeah, fine," Ichigo said smiling.

"So, how about after my shift is done we work on it?" Shina said turning back to Kin.

"Okay. Ichigo and I should be done by then," he said smiling.

"Okay," she said smiling back. "I have to go now otherwise I'm going to hear a lot of complaints from that lady who is glaring at me right now."

"Alright. I'll see ya later," Kin said, not noticing a smile across his face.

She turned back around to look at him, "Yep, it's a date!" she said walking back over to the waiting customers.

"A date," Kin repeated with a goofy smile, until it sunk in. "A date?!"

"Good going there, bud," Ichigo said clapping for him. "You got yourself a date."

"No. That's not good! I can't even talk to her without ranting on and on, like just now. If you didn't cut me off I'd probably still be going!"

Ichigo gave him a few pats on the back, "Well I'm here for ya. Remember that," he said sitting back down in the chair. "Come on. We'll worry about that later. It's time for you to start to learn how to play this thing so you can sweep her off her feet," he said picking up the black acoustic guitar on the floor. "Damn this is one fine guitar."

"It's not mine. I borrowed it from my friend who owns that store I met you in. This guitar means a lot to him for some reason so don't break it," Kin informed.

"Okay, okay. I'll be careful. I'm just trying to figure out one thing though," Ichigo said handing the guitar to Kin.

"Yeah?"

"How in the hell did I end up becoming a matchmaker?!"


Rukia just finished putting the tulips in a vase, and smiled down at them.

"Who are those from?" a perky voice asked, breaking the raven haired woman's thoughts.

"Huh? Oh, just a guy," she said looking up at her assistant, but most importantly, best friend.

"A guy? How come you never told me about him!? Wait, is it from Ren?" the excited woman asked.

"No, Orihime. It's just from a guy," she said rolling her eyes, but with a smile placed along her face.

"Alright. But you know I'll find out if you're lying to me!" she said giggling. "But by the way, how are you and Ren doing?"

Rukia raised an eyebrow. "How many times do I have to say it to you Ishidas! We aren't like that! We're just really good friends."

"Rukia," she said in a tone that made her sound like an oblivious little girl. "When we first moved here, he was drawn to you. Everyone could see it," Rukia was rolling her eyes at this point.

The reddish blonde continued even after seeing Rukia's reaction, "He's been trying to win you over for five years. Almost six. You had a baby for god's sake and he stuck by you! God, if you weren't so stubborn I think you guys would be married by now."

Rukia's eyes went wide from her last statement, but then she huffed. She leaned back against the counter, "I just don't need that kind of commitment, Orihime. I have Nozomi. That's all I need. Ren can be close to Nozomi, he has a right to be. But we're just friends. That's it."

"But you've got to be lonely…" she said softly.

Rukia's eyes grew wide and then softened. "I'm," she paused, "fine."

Orihime leaned her back on the counter next to Rukia, "Okay, okay. Fine."

Orihime heard the sound of a guitar. She looked up and searched the room. Her eyes locked on Kin who was strumming, but somehow it did not sound like notes. She squinted from the sound, but then a man came and pulled a chair up in front of him. Her eyes went wide. Her mouth dropped.

"Orihime? You okay?" she asked waving a hand in front of her face. She looked over to where her eyes were locked.

"D-do you kn-know who that is?" Orihime asked pointing a finger to the bright orange haired man.

"Um, yeah. He's the guy who gave me these flowers; Ichigo," Rukia said nonchalantly.

Orihime's head snapped over to Rukia's face. Then, Orihime understood. Rukia didn't know a thing about him. Why would she? That was the point of her leaving Karakura Town five years ago.

-Flashback-

After the funeral, Orihime ran off looking for her. She knew that everyone else was told not to, but she needed to know she was going to be okay. Rukia was in a terrible state, and she shouldn't just be left like that without knowing what she'd do. So Orihime searched for her using reiatsu.

She found her after searching for quite some time. She was sitting down against a streetlight. That streetlight was the very one she leaned against when it all started; when she gave Ichigo his powers. Her face was buried into her knees that were pulled into her body. The rain was pounding onto her body, but she didn't even react to it.

Orihime approached slowly. She knelt down and placed a hand on Rukia's shoulder. The raven haired woman didn't even flinch. "Rukia," Orihime said softly.

The shinigami didn't lift her head. "I'm done, Orihime. I'm done crying. I'm done not being able to feel anything anymore," she said with a shaky voice.

"Don't be too hard on yourself, Rukia. It's okay to feel like this," Orihime replied trying to help her friend.

"No. It's not," she said lifting her head and looking into her friend's eyes.

Orihime saw the pain in her eyes. Her violet pools were overflowing.

"I want to be happy again. I want to feel alive again," she added before Orihime could respond.

"You will," she replied softly. "It's just going to take some time-"

"No. You're wrong," Rukia said sternly cutting into Orihime's statement. "I won't. Not without him," she said with her jaw trembling.

"Ruk-" Orihime started.

"That's why I made my decision," Rukia interrupted.

"What decision?" she asked curiously.

Rukia pulled something out of her purse and placed it on the ground next to her.

Orihime's eyes widened. "You can't be serious?"

"I don't want to hurt anymore, Orihime," she said without being strong anymore. Her voice was trembling and her face had collapsed from its emotionless state.

Orihime quickly moved in and held onto her friend tightly as she sobbed. The rain wasn't letting up and they were both drenched. Orihime leaned back slightly to talk to her again. "But you don't want to forget him. I know you don't," she said trying to convince her not to go through with this.

Rukia looked down at the memory modifier. She kept her gaze on it for some time and then looked back up at her friend. "It's either I live without him and continue to feel like this," she said taking a deep breath to stop a sob from taking over, "or I live without him and forget. I- won't feel pain anymore after that," she added looking towards the ground. She looked back up into Orihime's eyes. "Either way… I live without him. So does it really matter?"

Orihime felt her heart drop from Rukia's statement. How could she deny her friend a chance to be happy? She knew Ichigo would do anything to make her content again. So Orihime swallowed. "Alright Rukia. If this is what you truly want."

"Thank you, Orihime."

-End Flashback-

"Orihime? Are you alright? You're spacing out more than usual today," Rukia said shaking her gently.

"Uh- um, yeah." She moved her eyes away from her orange haired friend that she thought she would never see again. 'I just don't understand how this is possible,' she thought even though she looked like her attention was on Rukia.

"You've talked to him?" Orihime asked, curiously wanting to know how she met him.

"Well, yeah. If a guy gave you flowers without ever saying a word to you, that would be a little stalker like, don't ya think?" Rukia replied sarcastically.

"Why'd he give you flowers then?! Spill!" Orihime said grabbing Rukia's arm and shaking it roughly.

"Okay, Okay! Relax!" Rukia said laughing slightly at her friend's excitement. "He ran into me yesterday and I ended up dropping my tray. All the dishes fell and broke, and it was just a big mess. I had to clean up the food. Do you know how hard it is to clean spaghetti off this floor?"

"Rukia! Enough about the food! Tell me about Ichigo!" she said, not having any patience.

"How do you know his name?" Rukia asked with an eyebrow cocked.

Orihime thought for a second. 'Did she tell me his name? I don't remember! Wait, I think she did! When she said that he was the guy who gave her the flowers!' "You told me before!" she ended up yelling louder than she intended.

Rukia jumped from Orihime's yelling. "Okay? No need to yell about it now…"

"Sorry! I'm just excited."

"Why?"

"Because you met a new guy and since nothing is going on with Ren, then something can happen here!" Orihime cheered.

"Hah, no. He was just being nice. He was apologizing for yesterday by giving me flowers. I don't understand why though because I thought I made it perfectly clear while I was bandaging his hand that it was an accident," she said looking at the said man pointing out spots on a guitar to Kin.

"Wait, what happened with his hand?"

"He cut it on the broken dishes that he tried helping me clean up," she said not taking her eyes off him.

"And you nursed him back to health again!" Orihime said with a high pitch voice and her hands covering her heart.

"All I did was wrap it up in a bandage. You make it sound like he was dying…" Rukia said rolling her eyes at her friend's reaction. "Although I wish I still had my powers so I could have healed him slightly. It looked pretty painful," she said feeling regret.

"Aw! You were that concerned?! I haven't heard you talk about being a shinigami in at least three years! I figured you totally blocked that part of your life out."

"You can't block something like that out, Orihime. It's not like I used a memory modifier or anything," Rukia said slightly irritated.

There was a slight pause. That pause left Orihime slightly uncomfortable. She quickly changed the subject. "I say you should definitely go after him!" Orihime cheered on.

Rukia leaned off the counter and gave her a look that said, 'Are you kidding me?' "What have we just been talking about, Orihime?"

"How this is a love story starting all over again!" she said with dreamy eyes.

"Love story? No, that's not what we've been- and what do you mean all over again? Are you on drugs?" Rukia yelled out in disbelief.

"No, that's ridiculous! You can't be on drugs when you're pregnant!" Orihime responded.

"Well then what in the hell are you talk- Wait. You're pregnant?!" Rukia yelled throwing her hands on each of her shoulders.

"Hah, whoops," Orihime said innocently.

"Oh my god!" Rukia yelled, throwing her arms around her friend's neck and hugging her. "Why didn't you tell me earlier!? When did you find out? What did Uryuu say?"

"I found out two days ago. I haven't told Uryuu. And I didn't tell you because I haven't told anyone- until now," she said as if checking off a list as she answered the questions.

"Wait, wait, wait. You have known for two days, and you haven't even told the father yet?!" Rukia yelled in disbelief.

"He's been busy! I haven't seen him in two days! He's been working! I wanted to tell him in person!" Orihime said trying to defend her actions.

"You have to tell him!"

"I will! I'm just waiting for him to take a break that's all," Orihime said bowing her head down.

"Well now that I'm done yelling at you for not telling the father of your next child, 'Congratulations.'"

"Thanks, Rukia," she said getting another hug. They parted and Orihime began to talk again. "But back to our other topic. He obviously likes you Rukia, and you were way too interested in those flowers to even notice I came up to you before. So why don't you give it a try?"

"I'm not interested, Orihime. And neither is he. He gave me flowers to apologize for yesterday. That's it," she said with confidence.

"I doubt that," Orihime said innocently.

Rukia sighed, "Even if he was interested, I bet you that he would freak once he found out that I'm a mother."

"You're on!" Orihime yelled jumping in front of her with her hand out to make a deal.

"What?! I wasn't serious!"

"I am! If he does freak out about Nozomi then I'll tell Uryuu right away about me being pregnant," Orihime said seriously with her hand still held out. "And if he doesn't you have to go on a date."

"You've got to be kidding me. This is so childish! We're twenty-six years old, Orihime! You need to tell your husband and it shouldn't be by you losing a bet!"

"Call it what you want, but this bet will take place," Orihime said perkily.

Rukia grimaced, but grabbed Orihime's hand and shook.

"Good," Orihime said. "Now's our chance to find out! Nozomi and Ryo are over their interrupting whatever they we're doing. Let's go!" she said grabbing Rukia's wrist and pulling her towards the direction of Ichigo and Kin.


"Kin, you're not very good," Ryo said leaning on the little stage that the café always had but was never used. It was only about three feet off the ground.

"It's okay, Kin! You can get better!" Nozomi yelled while clapping her hands.

"Thanks, Nozomi," Kin said sadly. "This is going to take forever for me to even sound like I'm playing music."

"Well, this is your first day. Give yourself a break. You're doing fine," Ichigo coached on.

"Why are you trying to play, Kin?" Ryo asked innocently with his chin resting on the stage.

"Well, I uh-" Kin began trying to explain it.

Ichigo cut in, "He's trying to woo a lady, Ryo."

"'Woo?' Ryo asked turning to Nozomi, who shrugged her shoulders. They both turned their attention back to the stage.

"Hi!" the little girl said with a big smile leaning on the stage next to Ryo. Ichigo noticed the tulip tucked behind her ear.

He smiled at how energetic she was. "Hi," he replied chuckling.

"I'm Nozomi. What's your name?"

"Ichigo. Nice to meet you, Nozomi," he said smiling. She was adorable.

"I like your hair!" she said smiling even bigger.

"Thanks. I like your hair too," he said, not knowing how to respond to that.

"Are you new here?" she asked immediately.

"Yes I am."

"Do you like my flower?" she asked innocently without pausing after his response.

"Um, yes. It's very pretty," he said chuckling from her random questions.

"Do you like bunnies?" she asked holding up a piece of paper with a blue bunny that he presumed she had drawn. He had no idea where that drawing came from once he thought about it.

"Yeah, bunnies are nice," he said chuckling still, while he heard Kin holding back from laughing with his hand over his mouth. Ryo was smiling, but anticipated his answers just as much as Nozomi did.

"I like you, Ichigo," she said straight out with a smile across her face.

"I like you too, Nozomi," he said not being able to hide a smile.

"Nozomi, are you bothering Ichigo and Kin?" Rukia said standing about three feet behind Nozomi, with her arms crossed over her chest and a smirk on her face.

"No, it's fine. We were just talking," Ichigo said smiling, looking at Rukia.

"See mommy? It's fine. You can go now," Nozomi said innocently.

"Oh I can go, huh? I can go, huh?" Rukia said after bending down to Nozomi and beginning to tickle her.

"You can stay! You can stay!" Nozomi yelled, giggling.

Rukia looked back up at the orange haired man on the stage. 'He had to of heard her call me 'mommy.' How come he didn't react to it? Maybe he didn't hear it…' she thought as Ichigo smiled down at them.

"Hi, I'm Orihime. I'm a friend of Rukia's," she said reaching her hand up to him.

He grabbed it, "Ichigo."

"You're also the assistant manager of this place," Rukia laughed out. "How do you manage to always forget that? That's always a good thing to say when you're in the place you work at," Rukia added laughing.

"Oops," Orihime giggled, kissing Ryo on the top of his head.

"You should talk," Ichigo interrupted. "You never told me you were the manager, not to mention the owner."

"I was busy cleaning your hand if I recall," she challenged raising an eyebrow with a smirk still on her face.

"Which I believe you rubbed way too hard in order to clean," he said smirking with a glare.

"I thought you could handle a simple thing like rubbing alcohol, seeing as how you are a grown man, but I guess I misjudged…" she said still glaring back at him with a smirk.

"I told you to cut your hand so you could see what it felt like to have someone rubbing a deep cut with something that's not supposed to be mixing with your blood," he said beginning to grit his teeth, but still smirking.

"And I told you-" Rukia began with clenched teeth until she felt something pulling on her skirt. She looked down.

"Mommy, are you two done yet?" Nozomi asked oblivious to what was happening. Rukia and Ichigo looked around at everyone present only to see shocked faces from the little 'conversation' they just had. Orihime was holding back a laugh, which caused Rukia to raise an eyebrow at her odd reaction.

"Yes, we're done honey," she said, moving her hand over her little girl's hair.

Rukia looked back up at Ichigo and Kin, "By the way, what are you two doing?"

"I'm trying to learn how to play the guitar, Rukia. I thought that was pretty obvious," Kin said holding the guitar up a little from his lap to show her.

She glared, "I can see that," she said.

"And we can hear it too," Orihime added laughing, causing Rukia to chuckle.

"But why are you doing it?" Rukia asked curiously.

"He's trying to woo a lady!" Ryo piped up with his mother's hands on his shoulders.

The two mothers looked at each other and then back at Kin, "Who are you trying to woo, Kin?" Orihime asked smiling at how embarrassed he seemed to be getting.

"No one! I'm just learning how to play the guitar. What's wrong with that?"

Rukia turned to Orihime, "I bet you its Shina," she said receiving an understanding nod from Orihime.

Kin groaned loudly, causing the group to look at him. Ichigo began to laugh and gave him a pat on the back, "It's okay, man. Soon you'll be able to sing and play to her causing her to fall deeply in love with ya," he said in a voice that wasn't very excited.

"Do you really expect her to fall in love with you just by playing her a simple song?" Rukia questioned.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. She immediately added to her question once she saw this. "I mean there are a lot of other ways to do it that are better."

He smirked. "So you don't think a song can knock a girl off her feet?" Ichigo asked thinking this would turn into a challenge.

She shrugged, "There are better ways to do it."

Ichigo then looked down to the little girl looking up at him. "Nozomi, what would you think if I sang your mom a song to prove her wrong?"

Rukia's eyes went wide. 'So he did catch that part. He didn't freak out. Damn it, I lost!' Rukia thought turning to look at Orihime who was smiling from ear to ear because she knew she won. 'It still doesn't mean he's interested in me,' Rukia thought to herself.

"I think you should do it!" the little girl yelled drawing Rukia's attention back to the man on stage.

"Good! Then it's settled!" he said standing up.

"Wait, what's settled?" Rukia asked confused of what just happened.

"Kin, guitar me," Ichigo demanded holding out his hand. Kin nodded and placed it in his hands. "Why don't you go ahead and sit in that chair at that table right next to you?" Ichigo said more in a demand than a question.

"Are you serious?" she asked looking into his eyes.

He smirked, "You know it. I'm proving you wrong."

She glared up at him, but he saw a hint of amusement in her eyes. "Fine," she said walking off and sitting in the chair with her arms crossed over her chest.

Nozomi ran over and leaned up against the wall next to Ryo. Kin stayed on the stage in his chair, while Orihime stayed next to the stage leaning back on it slightly to watch Rukia's reaction to this.

Ichigo then jumped off the stage and walked over to Rukia. He then got up and sat on the table right in front of Rukia.

"What are you doing?" she asked uncomfortable of how close they were.

"This kind of thing works better when you're up close and personal with the one your singing to," he said with complete seriousness.

For some reason she felt her heart begin to pound at a ridiculous rate.

"You ready?" he asked smiling.

She leaned back in her chair with her arms still crossed. "Yep," she said confidently.

Orihime smiled at Rukia's refusal to give in. She knew this was going to be interesting.

"Orihime," she heard her name being called from right next to her. She turned to see her husband looking straight at their orange haired friend that shouldn't be sitting there on that table.

"Uryuu," she said surprised.

"What's going on- How is he- Why-?" he said stuttering with eyes wide open.

She lifted her hand and placed it on his shoulder. "I don't know. But right now it feels like old times again. Let's just enjoy it for the time being and get answers later," she said sincerely.

His mouth was open, ready to object to her statement, but the need in her eyes told him not to. He closed his mouth and nodded, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her closer to him. He smiled at the sight and then whispered into her ear.

"The funny part is… that's his guitar." Orihime smiled, but did not reply.

Ichigo let his fingers move along the strings. He felt like this guitar was way too comfortable on his lap, but he quickly dismissed the thought. Then, he began to strum chords. Once he began singing he didn't look down at the guitar, but continued to look at Rukia.

I wont talk
I wont breathe
I wont move till you finally see
That you belong with me

He smirked at her reaction. Her eyes went wide and it seemed like her entire body froze.

You might think I don't look
But deep inside
In the corner of my mind
I'm attached to you

'Okay, breathe Rukia. Why are you acting like an idiot? It's not like he's meaning what he's saying. He's just trying to prove a point,' she thought regaining her stern look and crossing her arms tighter in front of her.

I'm weak
Its true
'Cause I'm afraid to know the answer
Do you want me too?
'Cause my heart keeps falling faster

He looked down at her, but wasn't smirking anymore. He had a completely serious face on. He didn't know what was happening, but he looked down at his guitar to interrupt the gaze. 'Why am I breathing so damn heavy? I'm just proving a point… right? Oh damn, I feel like if I look back up I'm going to forget the words or something. But I have to look back up if I plan on winning. Ah, shit,' he thought looking back up into her violet eyes.

I've waited all my life
To cross this line
To the only thing that's true
So I will not hide
Its time to try
Anything to be with you
All my life I've waited
This is true

He looked down at his guitar to play a few chords before starting up the next verse. By now her arms had dropped to her lap and her mouth was slightly open. 'Since when do you act like this over a guy, Rukia Kuchiki?'

You don't know what you do
Every time you walk into the room
I'm afraid to move

I'm weak
Its true
I'm just scared to know the ending
Do you see me too?
Do you even know you met me?

It was weird how this song kept saying exactly what he was thinking. In a way he liked how he was able to get it out and hide it in a song, but in another way he was afraid that he actually had feelings for this woman sitting in front of him. That kind of thing wasn't allowed…

I've waited all my life to cross this line
To the only thing that's true
So I will not hide
Its time to try anything to be with you
All my life I've waited

This is true

He put more passion into the song as he made his way into the bridge. She was blown away at how into it he was.

I know when I go ill be on my way to you
The way that's true

He held the last word of the bridge out and then slammed his hand down on the strings to go into the chorus for one last time. His eyes were glued to hers.

I've waited all my life to cross this line
To the only thing that's true
So I will not hide
Its time to try anything to be with you
All my life I've waited

This is true.

He ended the song with a simple strum as he let a smile dance across his face. She was blown away. Even if she didn't admit it, everyone could easily see it.

Ichigo then leaned over and lifted his hand up to close her mouth, which was hanging open. "So, I believe I won. I mean from that kind of expression on your face…" he said smirking wildly.

She took a deep breath, ready to reply, but she couldn't find the right words to say. So she smiled up at him, "Touché, Ichigo. Touché."

"Rukia!" a man with short dark brown hair called from where Uryuu and Orihime were standing. He had a goatee, blue eyes and was wearing black dress pants, with a button-down white dress shirt with his sleeves rolled up. And a black tie to finish the dressy look.

She looked over and then back up at Ichigo. She smiled at the man sitting in front of her who was staring softly at her, and then stood up and walked over to the man. She hugged him and he leaned down and kissed her on the cheek.

"I didn't expect you to be back so early, Ren," Rukia said stepping away from his embrace.

"I know. They said that they didn't need me anymore so I came home early!" he said happily as he turned to see Nozomi standing in front of him. "And how's my little Nozomi?" he said picking her up into the air and looking up at her.

"Good!" she yelled happily.

Ichigo couldn't help but feel a sharp pain in his chest. 'I just fell hard for a woman that's already taken,' he thought as he found that the world suddenly grew a lot colder than before.


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So this turned out to be one hell of a chapter. It came out so much longer than I thought it would. Wow. I'm beat. Okay, now that I pleased you guys with a long chap, you guys can please me with plenty of reviews! Cause I'm really tired now. Haha. Okay. So, tell me what you're thinking. And sorry if there are any minor mistakes, as I told you before. I'm tired. Okay. So was I right about major fluff and then jealousy? I think so. Okay. Until next time, Later