A/N: Well, this is a tad bit shorter than the last one, but who cares, right? (Ahahahaha...*crickets*) The liquorice I mentioned here is something I had at last year's Oz Comic Con.
*mini story time* I was walking around and suddenly (*spots a certain candy stand right near the place where they sell cheap DVDs*) "Wow, that looks awesome." (*sees friend eating it, and immediately wants to throw up at the thought of liquorice entering my system, but asks anyway*) "Is it nice?" (*doesn't wait for friend to answer and take a bite off of hers*) "OH MY GOD THIS IS AMAZING" (*buys three of them instantly*). *end of story*
And that is how I came across such a wonderful piece of candy. I usually hate liquorice, but I bought long ones! And they were worth the small toothache after! They're like AUD$10 for three, but TOTALLY WORTH IT, OKAY. So, for this tiny chapter, I converted 10 bucks into yen and voila. It's actually kind-of expensive, now that I think about it... (this is the one I was referring to: www. sweetandsour. com. )
Also: the reference about Rukia loving sweet things is on the Bleach short story, "Honey Dish Rhapsody". And the reference about Momo liking watermelons? Need I explain? Anywho, enjoy.
A shout-out to "D": I LOVE YOU. Thank you so much for reviewing and favourite-ing and doing all the things that make me happy that just makes me want to marry you but I can't because that would be creepy. BUT I STILL LOVE YOU.
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Point 2: Setting the stones
"Holy fuck Jesus," Rukia mutters in one breath upon arrival at her room. Her mystery roommate remained that – a mystery – but right now, she can't bring herself to care.
After the night she met Soi Fon, she found out that her new friend and Momo had most of their classes together. While this shouldn't have bothered Rukia all that much, she knew Momo's tendency to strike up conversation between their mutual friend with an embarrassing memory of Rukia's. It was why, just after class, she found Soi Fon and Momo walking next to each other, laughing at her. It hadn't been just her imagination, either – they were looking at her and laughing so loudly about something that Rukia didn't care to know. She doesn't want to know, either. Traitors. They're probably conspiring to prank her or do something very, very annoying, and Rukia wouldn't know.
Not only that, but the day had been absolutely gruelling, with upcoming exams and quizzes and that goddamn surprise test in Psychology 101. She was glad, of course, that she at least re-read some of the material from the last lecture, and thank fuck she did that. However, that meant kicking Momo out despite her promise of ice cream and falling asleep before her roommate could return from her part-time job (or, at least Rukia thought it was a part-time job…she hopes it is, anyway). Momo had taken great offence and brutally reminded her that her month-long grace period was almost up.
"Fuck," she curses again, throwing her bag on her bed and slamming her books on the desk, glad to arrive home earlier than usual. Such an action would have gained the notice of her brother back at home, but here…
She ruefully smiles as she heads towards the small fridge, her stomach growling for much-needed sugar. She pops a long, fruity liquorice – mmm, strawberries – into her mouth and lets it hang between her teeth as she lazily chews on it. She grabs a hair clip and ties her hair up while checking the clock, thereby knowing that Momo is still out on classes. That meant that Rukia can't break into her room, seeing as Momo confiscated the key the night before in another act of retaliation at Rukia turning down an offer of food, because God only knows what kind of wrath that would incur on anybody else –
The lock clicks and the door opens, grabbing Rukia's attention. Immediately, she breaks the liquorice away with a sharp tug – self-image before safety – even though she doesn't know who would possibly visit her at this time of the day.
A very tired-looking girl with chestnut brown hair stands in the doorway, staring back at her. Rukia notices, with slight distaste and a hint of envy, the way the girl's chest strains against an otherwise loose hoodie, as well as the way her body curved in a manner that would have turned so many heads. Rukia frowns – this must be the roommate – and, not wanting to seem unfriendly, tries to smile despite her initial judgment of the girl. "Hi. You're the roommate…right?"
The girl seems to snap out of her stupor and blinks before smiling brightly at Rukia. She doesn't know if it's as fake as hers, or if the girl is just really friendly. "Hi!" The girl rushes forward to shake her hand so vigorously that Rukia muses if her shoulder can dislocate from such force. Friendly it is, she decides. "I'm Orihime Inoue! I'm glad I finally get to meet you. I don't think our schedules really match up, what with my job and the classes!"
"It's really nice to meet you," Rukia tells her, half-pretending to be at the very least cordial. She's nothing if not polite. Besides, the girl doesn't seem half-bad, either, if Rukia ignored the whole overly-eager attitude. "I gotta say, you've been quite the mystery for a while, Inoue-san, ahahaha…"
"Oh my, I'm sorry if I made you suspicious of me!" Orihime exclaims, proceeding to hug her.
Hug. Her.
No.
"Um…" Rukia mutters, feeling decidedly uncomfortable, stiffening in her grip. She's also acutely aware of the way her face is pressing against Orihime's breasts, which makes it increasingly hard to breathe. "Inoue-san…"
"Oh, right, sorry!" Orihime promptly releases her with a flustered grin. "Sorry, sorry, I was just really excited to meet you!"
You don't say. "Ahaha, well. So what's your part-time job about that it keeps you up so late?"
"I sing at a local bar," she replies with a smile as she places her clutch on her own bed. Rukia chews on her liquorice passively, keeping her attention on the girl. "I mean, I don't think I'm really good, but…"
Music, huh? Rukia smiles and sits on her bed, facing Orihime. "I'd be glad to hear it one day. And what course are you taking?"
"Nursing," Orihime tells her, earning a slightly surprised look on Rukia's face. This girl? Really? Rukia's glad that Orihime has her back turned, or she would have been really offended at the shock in Rukia's eyes that she quickly tries to settle. "I mean, not many people expect it, especially from me. I mean, I don't look it, do I?"
"Uh…"
"But I've always wanted to be a nurse, ever since my brother…" Orihime turns, and for some odd reason that Rukia can't place, she knows that this one is totally fake, as well as the accompanying laugh that follows. "Sorry, I'm boring you right now, aren't I?"
"Not at all," Rukia quickly concedes. "Are you going out?"
"Nope," Orihime answers, dropping down on the bed with a small 'oof'. "The bar is closed tonight, so I have no work. Which is just as well, since I'm really tired…"
"Well," Rukia tells her, feeling particularly friendly as she stands up. "I'm sure that a little sugar can fix that." Orihime laughs again as she watches Rukia take out another long piece of liquorice and offer it to her. She accepts it with a polite 'thank you', and her eyes widen to the size of dinner plates at her first bite. Rukia smiles – truly, this time – at the recollection of her own first taste of this wonderful piece of candy. "Great, right?"
"It's amazing!" Orihime gushes, jubilantly chewing on the sugar-coated candy. "And it's really long, too!"
"Well, I pay ¥ 1050 for three of them, so they should be worth it," she says with a wry grin. "I have a whole stash of them in the fridge, if you haven't noticed…"
Just like that, Rukia finds herself…talking, and not just talking to be polite. No, she's actually making friends without insulting anything or finding anything in common with this strangely cheerful girl.
During the whole exchange, Rukia can't help thinking every so often – I haven't talked this much before. She isn't a naturally warm or friendly person, which is why she's been dubbed "Ice Princess" ever since high school began. Making small talk doesn't exactly come naturally to her, and all the overflowing joy was swept away by her Kuchiki upbringing. She doesn't…make friends with a mere offer of liquorice and a few questions, but somehow, she's holding a conversation with a stranger that's actually lasting for more than a few minutes.
Granted, this stranger is destined to live and breathe in the same space as she is for the next few years, but still.
Aside from that, this Orihime girl looks to be Rukia's exact opposite, and not only in looks (although that is a major factor). While Rukia has realistic views, for example, Orihime seems to keep going off on a tangent about rainbow unicorns and Transformers, all in one breath. Rukia's dark, comfortable sheets are in direct contrast with Orihime's yellow one with its six-pointed flower smack-dab in the middle, with its bright, light-blue shade amongst all that…that…yellow.
So, when Momo bursts in with another tub of ice cream (Rukia swears that Momo should be as chubby as a piece of Jell-o by now, but that doesn't seem to be happening anytime soon), she's quite surprised at the sight of Rukia smiling and talking and laughing with an otherwise total stranger over two liquorice sticks and the space of a few metres between their beds.
"Oh?" Momo says, raising an eyebrow at Rukia's peculiar behaviour. Rukia only sticks her tongue out at Momo, having finished her candy, and tries to ignore the wiggling eyebrows of her best friend. "Roommate?"
"Oh my gosh!" Orihime exclaims, seeming torn over taking Momo's hand to shake or simply settling to finish off the last inches of her liquorice. "Hi! Are you Kuchiki-san's friend?"
"Yeah, you could say that," Momo replies with a grin, just as Rukia says: "More like a pain in the ass."
"Hey," Momo berates, holding out a spoon to her. Rukia narrows her eyes at Momo, but quickly relents after a second's-worth of a glaring competition. "This pain in the ass gives you ice cream. Be happy."
"Have you guys tried ice cream with bean paste?" Before either of them can politely decline, however, Orihime's already rushing to the small pantry and shuffling through the containers.
Rukia mouths 'I told you so' to Momo with a smug grin, referring to their argument a few nights back on who owned bean paste and wasabi, because neither of them are inclined to eat anything that's not sweet (well, that only applies to Rukia; Momo has a weird fetish for watermelons). Before Momo can give a sharp retort, Rukia has already stuck a spoonful of vanilla ice cream into her mouth and Orihime is practically bouncing in excitement.
And, despite how odd the circumstances are, Rukia and Momo have somehow managed to include another person into their little circle of friends.
Things are, indeed, looking up.
