Author's note: I just got to see Stephanie Sheh (Orihime's English voice actress) at Otakon! In person she sounds just like Orihime. It wasn't my first time meeting her but the experience was amazing none-the-less!

I also must say that Ichigo and Orihime's son is ADORABLE! So glad Tite Kubo ended it with them together!

Anyways, enough about me! Thank you everyone for reviewing! I'm so glad that everyone is enjoying my story. I always get so worried that I will disappoint my readers. But I'm so glad that everyone is enjoying it so far! :)

Hope you enjoy this one as well!


Graduation was just around the corner now. It was only a week away. I had been emailing back and forth with Ichigo on a daily basis. Things have gotten a lot less formal between us but, I still kept my guard up. We would only ever be friends and it still hurt to think about that. It got easier though. Over the two years that I hadn't talked to him, I just told myself that I needed to be happy for him because that's what friends were for. I was in a good place in my life now. Not that my life was horrible before but, the heartache was unbearable. But I pushed myself far out of my comfort zone to make sure I'd be okay to handle being alone for the rest of my life.

I knew that I had Tatsuki and all of my other friends but when they got into relationships of their own, they would be preoccupied. But I would be okay. My decision to move to America was the best thing for everyone in the end. My friends would know now that they didn't have to worry about me being on my own anymore.

Currently, I was working on my speech. I had already written out everything I wanted to say but, I was practicing in the mirror. It was awkward watching myself talk but I had to be prepared. I was incredibly nervous. I hoped I could keep my hands from shaking. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before trying the speech again.

"Hello and welcome to the celebration of this year's graduates.." 'Am I picking the right words or is everyone going to think I'm stupid?' I continued to practice for a while until I felt myself getting more confident. I decided to take a break to check my email. I found that I was eager to check it all the time. Opening my email, I quickly saw that Ichigo had emailed me back. 'Calm down Orihime. It's not a big deal that he emailed you.'

Hello Inoue,

So we are coming on Wednesday for your graduation on Friday. We're all excited to get to see you. We got two hotel rooms at the hotel that you told us about. We should easily be able to walk back and forth to your dorm right? We are going to stay for a week.

Are you ready for your speech? Try not to be nervous.

How is the weather there? I still haven't packed! It's crazy that we're all going to America! I imagine this is how you felt when you left Japan.

Good luck preparing for your speech!

Ichigo

I smiled to myself. It made me happy that he worried about me giving my speech. I was honestly trying to figure out what to have them do while they were here. Maybe I could see if Mr. Goldman was in town to meet them. I had taken an extreme desserts course during my first year and the winner got to spend the summer interning with Duff Goldman. I had won the competition and it was an amazing experience. Who wouldn't want to work with the master chef from Ace of Cakes? He had gotten to judge the cakes that we had made and I was astonished that he had chosen me. Working with him taught me so many things.

Hello Kurosaki-kun,

A week should be plenty of time for me to show you guys around! I have a few things in mind that can do. I'm sure we will have a great time! Maybe I can make you guys chocolate chip onion cake with red bean paste frosting! It would be delicious!

I'm nervous but I know it'll be okay! Don't worry about me hehe

The weather is surprisingly warm now! I was thinking about taking you guys to the beach. The water may still be a bit too cold but we can always enjoy the nice weather and the boardwalk. They have a nice little amusement park there. It should be fun!

America is great and you guys will have an amazing time!

Looking forward to seeing all of you soon!

Orihime

'Calm down Orihime. It's been two years. You should be over him by now. Don't get too excited!' I found that I was telling myself a lot. You'd think after two years your feelings for someone would fade. But I found myself missing him every day. It was difficult but I knew that I had to be satisfied with our friendship or I'd get nothing at all from him.

We had finished all of our classes so I was getting ready to go to work for the day. Lately Ender was getting more friendly. I was just glad to have a friend to talk to. Working with him was always fun. We always joked around with each other. It was kind of… nice. I worried that he would get the wrong idea though. I could never see him as more than a friend. We had started texting each other and he had introduced me to the world of memes. They always made me laugh.

Bzz bzz. My phone went off. It must be Ender. He sent me a meme every morning when I was getting ready.

"Having thick thighs means you can hold more puppies so who's the real winner here?" I laughed at that. Puppies were pretty cute.

"Maybe I should try to gain weight so I can hold more puppies!" I added a bunch of puppy emoticons to my text message. I quick got myself ready so that I had time to grab a quick breakfast at Dunkin Donuts on my way to work. I loved their donuts and coffee had become a part of my daily routine.

'I wonder if Zeke will be at work today..' I hadn't thought to ask him. I got my breakfast and coffee and made it to work with plenty of time to spare.

"Orihime! Hey!" Americans didn't call people by their last names but it still felt weird to have him call me by my first name. After everything I had went through with Ichigo, he still had never called me by my first name. I felt the familiar ache in my chest just thinking about him. I looked over my shoulder as I unlocked the door and smiled, trying to mask the pain that I felt.

"Hey! How's it going Zeke?" Thank goodness Zeke was around to make the day go quickly. I just wanted the next week to go by so that I could graduate and see my friends. I didn't want to admit it, but I was excited to get to see Ichigo to show him how independent I could be.

"Good! Just tired as always. You know how it goes." He laughed and rubbed the back of his head.

"No. I don't need sleep," I said as I gave him a serious expression which was returned by him looking at me confused and concerned, "I'm just kidding! Ahaha of course I understand." I laughed at his expression and he laughed too. I just wanted to see how he would react. We made our way into the bakery.

The morning went by quickly just as I thought it would. I decided to call Charm City Cakes on my lunch break to see if I could talk to Mr. Goldman. I punched in the number that I knew by heart and put the phone to my ear.

"Hello, Charm City Cakes this is Tia. What kind of cake can I whip up for you?" I smiled to myself, remembering the summer that I had had to use that line on more than one occasion.

"Hey Tia! It's Orihime." There was a sigh on the other side signaling how stressed Tia was. The cake shop got so busy in a daily basis.

"Oh Orihime! What's up girl? I haven't heard from you in a while." Tia still sounded enthusiastic but it was genuine. Not that sickly sweet tone that you would use with a client.

"Hey! Uhm.. I was just wondering if it's not too much trouble.. Is Mr. Goldman there?" I felt nervous asking because he was a celebrity and I knew he had better things to do than to waste his time talking to me.

"Yes actually he is! Want me to see if he can spare the time to talk to you?" She was so nice.

"If you don't mind but I don't want to put you out of your way!" I really didn't want to waste anyone's time.

"Orihime," she stated my name with a stern tone, "You are not a bother to me or Mr. Goldman. He would love to hear from you."

"Okay, great! Heh heh thanks!" I said sheepishly. I had gotten more confident but I didn't want to bother him if he was busy. Mr. Goldman had told me that I needed to be more confident.

"Duff, are you too busy to take a call right now? It's Orihime!" I heard her yell through the kitchen. I didn't hear a reply. I just heard static on the other line for a brief moment.

"Hey Orihime! How are things going? You're graduating now right?" He sounded enthusiastic and definitely didn't seem annoyed that I had called.

"Hello Mr. Goldman! My graduation is actually in a week. Uhm I was just.. Well I have so friends coming from Japan and I was just wondering.." I paused, unsure how to ask him to give up some of his time to meet my friends.

"Orihime, please call me Duff first of all. And if you're going to ask me to come meet your friends, I'd love to. I think that would actually be better though if they came to the bakery. We could give them a much better experience don't you think? Then I could still be here to oversee my work and they get to see us in action. What do you think about that?" I gasped at his offer and felt flabbergasted in a good way.

"Yes! Oh my I think they'd love that! I really don't want to be an inconvenience though.. I just thought it would be so cool for them to meet you!" I felt so relieved that he had offered such an amazing opportunity for my friends but I also didn't want to ask that much of him.

"Well Orihime I was actually thinking.. If I do this for you, would you consider working for me when you graduate? I have some ideas in mind about things we could go over as far as business opportunities. I've seen your talent and I think you'd be perfect for this." I felt so overwhelmed by his offer but I was also confused by what he was asking.

"Of course I'll consider it if you'll really take me on Mr. Goldman! I'd love to work in your bakery!" I'm not sure what he meant by business opportunities but getting more time to work with him would be an amazing career opportunity.

"Please call me Duff. I actually had some big plans in mind. I was thinking.. well I'd actually like to discuss my proposition in person. Are you free tonight for a meeting? We could meet at Italian Delight up the street from the cake shop." Again, I was confused but eager to take this opportunity.

"Of course! I get off work at 6. We can meet at 6:30 if that works for you to discuss it! I appreciate this so much Mr. Goldman!" I knew he wanted me to call him Duff, but the amount of respect I held for him just prevented me from doing that. I felt so overwhelmingly happy to get to work with one of my idols.

"Yeah that works for me! See you then!" He seemed pleased.

"Thank you so much, I'll see you later!" I smiled a huge smile and finished my lunch before returning to work.

Wednesday

I was nervous to say the least. It had been such a long time since I'd seen Ichigo in person. I got up early because I wanted to make sure I looked perfect and that everything was ready and clean. I wanted all of my friends so see me in a new light. I really had changed after all.

I was also excited to tell my friends the news about what I would be doing after graduation. Mr. Gol- Duff had offered me a unique opportunity. He was opening a cake shop in Japan and wanted me to be a part of it. He wanted me to be one of the lead pastry chefs as well as the manager. He said with my skills and my knowledge of the culture, I would be a perfect fit for the job. He also wanted me to stay in America and work under him for a while again. He wanted to make sure that I knew all the odds and ends of management and business.

Because we would be business partners once this process started, he requested that I call him Duff. I wanted to decline but I knew that to be taken seriously in the business world, I probably should comply.

I smiled to myself as I jumped into the shower. What would my friends think of me now? Would they be proud of the person that I've become? I put shampoo on my hands and worked it through my hair as I thought about the day ahead of me. I would see Tatsuki and Uryu and Chad and… 'Ichigo…'

Closing my eyes and breathing in the steam from the shower as I rinsed the shampoo from my hair, I let my mind wander. What would my life be like if I had ended up with Ichigo? Would I simply end up as a housewife or would I be able to go to school like I had?

An image of Ichigo with Rukia in the shower flashed through my mind and I squeezed my eyes tightly closed, trying to make it go away. I hated when I thought about them getting intimate. When I thought about him touching her and pleasing her it just hurt so much. It was so inappropriate to think that way but I had.. I had always wanted to be with him like that. To be with him the way that she got to. To kiss him, to hug him, to touch him. I imagined his lips on mine and his hands slowly moving across my body. I felt my face heating up and I frantically shook my head.

'No! I absolutely will not think like this!' I quickly finished my shower and pushed all thoughts about being intimate with Ichigo out of my head. He was my friend and so was Rukia. I could never have him now. 'Or let him have me…' I still felt so bitter.

I made my way back to my room after blow drying my hair and focused my thoughts on what I should wear. I wanted to look good of course. I decided on a white button up shirt, a black pencil skirt and black flats. I really wanted my friends to see the new person I've become. I decided to let my hair flow and even applied a small amount of makeup. I looked at the clock and noticed it was 10:30. Their flight was scheduled to come in at 12 but I had to take a cab to get a rental car. With all of their suitcases, I figured we'd need a car with a bigger trunk so I reserved an SUV.

I turned my face back to my reflection and looked myself over. I looked put together and confident. That's just what I wanted them to think. I grabbed my purse and made my way out of the building. My heart was racing and my nerves were through the roof. I tried to focus on seeing Tatuki. Oh how I'd missed her.

I called a cab company and told them my location to send a car. They were right up the straight so they said they would be at the building in less than 5 minutes. I stepped out of the building and took a deep breathe of fresh air.

'Calm down Orihime. It's just.. It's just Ichigo. It's just your friend.' I tried to make myself remain calm. What would he be like now? Had he changed at all? The cab arrived and honked to signal for me. I got into the car and told him my location.

Getting to the rental car place and getting the rental car didn't take long. My roommate had helped me learn how to drive not long after I moved to America. She said it was a necessary skill in America even if you didn't own a car. She said you never knew when you would need to it. I was grateful to her for helping me learn since I never had anyone else to teach me.

Driving a big SUV definitely wasn't as easy as the little car she had taught me to drive in so I just made sure I drove slowly. By the time I made it to the airport, it was 11:45. I made my way to the area that Ichigo had told me that they'd be arriving in. It was almost 12 by the time I reached my destination. I had wanted to arrive right on time so I wouldn't have time to be nervous. The flight was scheduled to arrive on time.

After a few minutes of waiting and watching for my friends, people started coming through the doorway from the plane. I watched as people made their way through, one-by-one. I felt my heart beating fast but at this point I knew I wouldn't be able to make it stop.

The first person I saw was Chad. With how big he was, his head poked out above everyone else. His eyes slowly scanned the area and found me quickly. I waved to him and smiled. I had missed everyone so much. As soon as the crowd in front of him started to push through the doorway, I saw Tatsuki and Uryu in front of him. The instant Tatsuki saw me her face lit up.

"Orihime!" she practically pushed the people in front of her out of the way and ran over to hug me.

"Tatsuki!" I hugged so tightly, "You've gotten taller!" I pulled back from her and smiled. I could feel tears in the corners of my eyes but refused to let them fall.

"And you haven't grown an inch! Orihime I missed you so much!" She looked me over before pulling me back into her embrace for a second hug. I squeezed her tightly before letting go.

"I've missed you too Tatsuki but being in America has been amazing!" I looked from her to Uryu who was standing next to her. I smiled at him before moving to hug him as well.

"Hello Uryu! It's been such a long time!" I hugged him briefly.

"Hello Orihime, I am glad to see that you are well." He was always so polite. I nodded happily before turning to Chad and hugging him as well.

"Orihime, hello!" he hugged me back loosely. I could tell he felt slightly uncomfortable so I pulled back.

"Hi Chad! It's so good to see you!" I smiled brightly up at him and rubbed the back of my head while I laughed a little awkwardly. I thought about the one person I had left to greet.

'Ichigo…' I looked around before I saw him standing slightly behind Chad, watching with a small smile on his face. The scowl was ever present and those eyes. The intensity in them still made my knees weak. His chocolate brown eyes, his handsome face and the messy orange hair that made him look sexy. My breath got hitched in my throat for a moment. Had he gotten even more handsome? I slowly made my way over to him and tried to smile to hide the hurt and ache he had put me through.

"Kurosaki-kun…" I breathed his name in a whisper, "Hello." I reached out and hugged him just as I had everyone else. Except this wasn't the same. The moment I embraced him, my heart stopped and his smell started to invade my senses. His smells was something so unique and intoxicating. He wrapped his arms around me and I felt… I felt… 'NO!' I forced myself to pull away and smile at him. His eyes stared into mine for a minute and made me feel like I was falling under a spell. The intensity almost made me faint.

"Hey Inoue. Long time no see." My heart melted at the sound of his voice. After two years of trying to get over him, how can he still turn me into a shy mess? The feelings may even be more intense now.

This was going to be a long two weeks.


A/N: Well? Comments? Thoughts? Please review! :)