I'm gonna get shot aren't I? x3 I know it's been a very, very long time since I've updated and I don't have a good excuse for it either. I've had this chapter written down on paper for a long time and just never went around to writing it. Why? Erm, cause I'm lazy? Anyhoo, I was on reading different stories and I remembered I had stories of my own. XD

So then I felt really bad, seeing as how this story has gotten more than enough reviews that I asked for and is actually on the Favorites List of a lot of people. So, I realized that people really did like this story. So I couldn't just kill it. Not that I was planning to. I'm jus lazy. o.O So you're all lucky that I, Arisa, have a good heart and typed up this chapter cause I felt bad for not giving it to you earlier. 3

About this chapter? Erm, well, some things were "stolen". x3 Okay, not really "stolen", but whatever. Some ideas for this chapter came from Kokoro (That infamous psychotic TMM role-play thing!). Specifically a certain "fear" of Ryou that was Cherry's idea. x3 (Yeah, I know, Cherrio. You so saw it coming in this chapter. . ) Also, Ichigo's very … erm … "giddy" in this chapter. o.O She reminded my a lot of Kokoro!Ichigo. So if she says things that are stupid or idiotic, don't take it too seriously. I tend to write Ichi that way. ;

Funny. It was raining while I wrote this chapter. XD Heh. Enjoy!

III. JOLT!

You can thank your lucky stars
That everything I wish for will never come true
-'Sending Postcards from a Plane Crash' by Fall Out Boy

It was then that the rain started to drop, that sounds of droplets could be easily heard hitting against the windowpane of Ryou's room. As agreed, Ichigo stayed at the cafe, at least she would stay until the rain stopped and the storm passed.

"So, do you want to talk about that Aoyama guy some more?" was the first question Ryou asked to destroy the silence which had been occurring since the agreement. Ichigo didn't quite understand why he would ask such a question. By the tone of his voice she could easily tell that he didn't really actually want to talk about him. Maybe he was just trying to help her out. Maybe.

However, she really didn't want to talk about him either. Masaya really had done the unexpected that day and she didn't think she'd get anything out of it by just questioning it some more. She shook her head. "I don't really want to think about him for some time. Too upset about that right now."

She stared down at the floor, her fingers playing with the edge of the sheets on the bed. From the corner of her eye, she could see Ryou, arms crossed, against his bedroom door, lost in thought. She noticed he kept opening his mouth slightly as if to say something, but seemed to just end up shaking his head. He seemed to be struggling with what to say. Was he trying to cheer her up? Or maybe he'd just make fun of her. "Well, I guess we could—"

"Let's talk about you!" She suggested with a giggle. What made her so giddy all of a sudden? She crossed her legs on the bed, as she began swinging back and forth. "You're always this big ol' mystery. It's been possibly almost a whole year since we've met, but I don't know a thing about you." She was surprised by her own excited tone, considering what was going on, but she needed this. She wasn't going to turn all "emo" all of a sudden, just because some guy dumped her.

Then again, was Masaya really just some guy?

"Yes, you do," he said simply, disagreeing with her statement. "I already told you about my past, my parents, and my reasons for the Mew Project." Ignoring the fact that she was sitting on it, he jumped on his bed to lie down across it.

"Hey!" She complained, pushing his legs so that she would have enough space to continue sitting. "First of all, I wouldn't have even known about all of that if Keiichiro didn't tell me. In any other case, you would have never told me about it," she said, crossing her arms. "And move over! I'm gonna fall off!"

He hesitated, but moved his legs slightly to give her some space. "Who said you could sit here anyway? It's my bed. And either way, I think that's enough information for you anyway. I don't see the point of you knowing anything else about me."

She pouted her lips and poked his leg. "Don't you have any likes and dislikes? What about any fears or something? Look, I know you're a meanie and all that, but …," she paused, when he chuckled at her "meanie" statement. "But I'm pretty sure you're not some heartless intergalactic weirdo." She shrugged, though the idea seemed to have had its evidence. "Look, I'm just saying, there's a lot we could talk about, you know. And in exchange, I could tell you some little secrets of my own, too."

He rolled his eyes at her. "Who said they were all secrets? I just don't feel like telling you," he admitted, closing his eyes as he rested his head on the pillow. Ichigo wondered if he was trying to fall asleep. She had never had someone fall asleep on her before, and was curious if he could with her bugging him. "And what's the use of hearing your secrets? Does it really look like I care about them either?"

Even though he denied it, she had a feeling he was curious to know. "Oh! I know! You could tell me about a girl you have a crush on!" She smiled, seeing a shade of red slightly form on his face. "Ha! So, there's a girl, isn't there? I knew it! What's her name? Does she know you like her? Does she like you too? Where's she from? Do I know her?"

Calmly, he took one of the two pillows from under his head and threw it in her direction, making a perfect hit. "There's no girl. And even if there was, what makes you think I'd tell you? Either way, I have no time for liking girls. I have more important things to take care of," he said, in an honest tone, but Ichigo wasn't convinced.

"No time for girls, eh?" She thought about this. "Oh, I see. So, you're gay?"

His eyes went wide on that. "Wha--? No! Where the heck do you get that from?" He grumbled, looking around the bed, probably for another pillow to throw at her. "Look, if you're just gonna keep yapping to me in your annoying screechy voice, you might as well just walk out now."

Ichigo ignored him, and kept on, smiling. "Are you sure you don't have even the teeniest crush on someone? I promise I won't say a thing to anyone if you tell me!" She was curious now. Seeing Ryou blush (something he never did) had to be some sign that there was someone he was interested in.

Ryou remained quiet for some time, leaving Ichigo to wonder if he was giving her the silent treatment, maybe so she'd go away. She was about to comment, when he opened his mouth to speak. "My favorite color's red. Favorite food is anything with noodles. And my favorite subject in school was always science. Happy?"

"Really?" Ichigo didn't even realize that Ryou had been successful in changing the subject. "Noodles, eh? You don't seem like the noodles type of guy," she commented with a giggle. "Well, I love strawberries!"

"Big surprise there," he said, sarcastically, rolling his eyes. He sat up so he could look right at her. "What's wrong with noodles?"

"I don't know. You seem more likely to like … fish or raw meat or something. Or maybe pasta!"

He looked at her in silence for a moment. "Noodles is pasta, you idiot," he told her, half-expecting a slap in the face. Instead, she laughed, before giving him a smile, which made him grin at her.

She blinked. She was surprised to see something other than the signature smirk. However, she shrugged it off. "Okay, I have a question, and you have to answer it. And you have to be completely honest about it. Okay?" She pointed a finger at him accusingly, knowing he would try to make an excuse to get out of answering.

She could tell he really didn't want to answer any of her questions, and expected for him to ignore her or throw another pillow or an even harder object this time, but was surprised to see him nod. "Alright, Ichigo, what do you want to know?"

"What's your type of girl?"

His eyes went wide. "Excuse me?" Ichigo figured he wouldn't have expected a question like that, but it was part of her plan. "You're so immature. What's with all the girl questions?"

She pouted yet again, putting her hands on her hips. "I'm just curious! I always wondered what girls you might've been interested in. I always figured you might've liked boring, serious, scientific girls or something." Trying to get him to admit to liking someone was going to be a "toughie", and she probably wouldn't succeed in doing so, much less trying to get him to say exactly who he liked.

"Serious scientific girls? Not really. Now, may I ask why you're oh-so-curious about my love life? Secretly in love with me or something, Momomiya?" He gave that smirk of his, before leaning forward to flick her nose.

"Ouchies!" She rubbed her nose, before slapping his hand lightly. "Eww! No way!"

Ichigo twitched. Just thinking about being in love with Ryou almost made her want to gag. She really couldn't even find how it would be possibly for anyone to be in love with him. She really felt sorry for the poor innocent girl that would one day get married with him. Then again, that girl must be a total idiot, seeing as how she'd do something like that.

Her nose really didn't hurt, but she exaggerated the situation by covering it with her hands and sending a glare in his direction. "I just want to know! What is it? Blondes? Or brunettes?" She then giggled, winking at him. An odd act, considering Ichigo did not wink. Period. "Or maybe you like redheads?"

Ryou bit his lip, trying to keep from laughing. A winking Ichigo was truly a funny sight. "Um … I like quiet girls. Mostly blondes, I guess. As for girls I don't like, I'd have to say spunky, little redheads that can't keep their nose in their own business."

Ichigo giggled, scratching the back of her neck. "Heh, I guess I try much too hard. You know you enjoy my spunkiness!" She stuck out her tongue at him, still giggling.

He raised an eyebrow and shook his head in disagreement. "Not really. I find it awfully annoying. You're the exact type of girl I'd never have any sort of interest in. It's quite the opposite, in fact, considering that you constantly make me want to rip my hair out, which isn't exactly a good thing, you know."

Before she could comment, rain fell down harder outside, as it could be easily heard from the beating on the roof. Lightning flashed in through the windows and thunder could be heard from far distances, which caused Ryou to shiver.

"Ryou?" She blinked, noticing his shaking and wondered what had been the cause of it. Leaning closer to him, she wanted to see what the matter was. "What's wro--?"

"AHH!" He shouted, as a large thunderbolt struck above them, sending a jolt through him. The screamed cause Ichigo to jump, which caused her to fall on Ryou, who, in shock, fell off the bed with a loud …

THUD!

Before Ichigo could blush from embarrassment, she blinked at Ryou for a moment, before she tried holding back a giggle. Before long, she let out a loud laugh. "You're … you're scared of thunderstorms?" She was now complete with a burst of giggles. "I sooo cannot believe it! I totally did not see this coming!"

He glared up at her, though he had a blush spread across his face. He hadn't exactly see this coming either nor had he wanted it to. "Yeah, go ahead and laugh all you want. Just get off of me, will you?"

But Ichigo didn't move from where she was, still giggling in disbelief of her previous discovery. "So all this time, you've been scared of storms? Well, Mr. Tough-Guy Ryou, I just discovered your all-time big secret!" She giggled insanely, covering her mouth to try quieting down, though it didn't do much. She made a note to self that this would make such excellent blackmail material in the future.

Her giggles somehow just made his face turn even redder than before, and he didn't look too comfortable with the situation. Ichigo was going to make yet another comment, but was stopped when Ryou did the one thing he had done twice before to get her to stop doing something.

He kissed her.

"You really are heavier than you look, so can you please get off now? You're pushing into my ribs."

Not complaining, she stood up and sat on the bed again, quietly. She had completely forgotten about their so-called "bet" and was again let her guard down. She made another note to self about making sure Ryou didn't kiss her anymore. After all, this was already the third time, and it was still morning. At this rate, he could be successful, and she would not live with that. No, no.

However, she thought about her new-found blackmail and giggled once again. "Wow, the o' so great Ryou is scared of thunderstorms."

"Shut up, you," he replied, standing up from the floor. He grunted. His "behind area" really hurt from the fall, and having had Ichigo on top of him really hadn't helped matters much. "You've learned enough about me today. Don't expect to get any other information about me for a very long time."

She tilted her head. "Why not?" She sighed, crossing her arms. "I still don't understand why you have to be so secretive all of the time. You should really talk to people more often, and let them get to know you. You'll have much more friends that way, you know."

He kept his back to her, not denying her words. "It really isn't that easy for me. You, on the other hand, have some sort of vibe where you attract people, so it's always real easy for you to get friends," he spoke, suddenly wanting to kick himself when he discovered what he said.

Ichigo blinked, remaining silent. Then, a slight blush appeared on her face. She hadn't expected hearing words like that ever from Ryou. It was extremely unlikely when he said such … erm, "nice" things about her. Still, the serious silence was bugging her and she knew she had to break it. "Wow, Ryou! Are you saying that you find me attractive?" She began giggling insanely, hearing herself.

Ryou turned to her, now covered in a dark shade of red. "What? Are you stupid or something? That's not what I meant at all!"

She was surprised about his strong reaction. She really had not expected him to get this upset. She stopped her giggling, but kept a tiny smile on her face. She had not noticed the color of Ryou's face. "Ooooh Ryou likes me! Hehehe!" He sent a glare in her direction. "Or not."

He gave a yawn, not having gotten enough sleep the night before and already tired of all of this Ichigo-nonsense. "Instead of sitting around remaining practically useless, why don't you … go away and do something to fascinate yourself, why don't you? Go … chase a mouse or something."

She gave a pout, sending a whine in his direction. "Go fascinate myself? Look, we're stuck together in this little old café, so you're just going to have to accept that you're stuck with me and I'm not going anywhere."

He raised an eyebrow. "I'm stuck with you?" He walked over to her, quite surprised. "I told you to go home before it started raining! You had time to leave! But instead you decided to stay here in the café! Don't go around saying that you never had a choice to begin with!"

"I did no such thing," she said, crossing her arms.

"Ichigo!"

"Hey! I was in a state of depression, okay?" She complained, in her own defense. "You can't expect a girl to just go home all alone when she has just been recently dumped by her long-time boyfriend. That's just cruel, you know!"

He rolled his eyes, annoyed by her attempt to use the "I'm just a poor innocent girl!" card on him. "You seem to be doing just fine now, aren't you? I mean, considering you're all giddy and full of fun," he stated, waving his hands in the air. "You must be over the whole Aoyama thing."

She stood up at the edge of the bed, attempting to make herself taller than he was. "I'm trying my best to not think about it, that's all. It doesn't mean I'm all cold-hearted and that I don't care. Most girls do this when they face depression. They try to remain as happy and hopeful as possible, when they don't want to remain at home stuffing their faces in cookie-dough ice cream, while watching classic love movies like Gone With The Wind."

"What about you, Ichigo?"

She blinked, confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, you seem to be quite an expert at what is done when depressed. So, my question is: are you one of those girls that have sat in their rooms alone eating ice cream or whatever?"

Ichigo fell silent for a moment. "Well, that's really none of your business, now, is it? What I do outside of this café really doesn't have absolutely anything to do with you."

Ryou snickered. "Translation would be that you are indeed one of those girls. Wow, it's Emo-Ichigo."

She pouted. "Hey! I am not emo! And I do not depress myself like that. How does not saying to you what I do in my own time say I depress myself. And do you even know what emo is?" She grew frustrated when Ryou ignored her. "And I am not depressed!" Nothing was worse than Ryou trying to make her believe he knew whatever there was to know about her. Ryou Shirogane did not have any understanding of Ichigo Momomiya. And that was that.

"Oh, really?" He cleared his throat, putting on a higher-pitched voice for a moment. "'Hey! I was in a state of depression, okay?'" He reminded her, attempting to mimic her earlier comment.

Ichigo snickered, bursting into laughter, before jumping off the bed. "That sounds nothing like me!"

He rolled his eyes, returning to his own "more comfortable" voice. "You didn't exactly deny that you weren't that type of girl. You just didn't want to say it, which says that you are without having to actually say in words that you are."

She tilted her head, not exactly catching all of those words. "Erm, are you attempting to use some bizarro scientific technique to try to confuse people or something?" She shook her head. "Because I didn't even say anything about myself being one of those girls!" Every moment only caused Ichigo to grow more frustrated with Ryou. She hated it when he used his big words and odd-phrasing to try and confuse her. Just because she wasn't some big-time rocket scientist did not mean he could try to make her look stupid.

He sighed. "It's called reading between the lines. It's actually kind of obvious," he said, before giving a smirk. "But then again, you don't quite have the right brain capacity to understand these types of things, do you?"

She gasped, in shock, even though it shouldn't have been much of a surprise. With her mouth wide open, she argued, "Why do you always come to the conclusion that I'm dumb? For some reason, you seem to have some miscalculated imagery of me not being intelligent enough. I may not be a scientist dude like you, but I am not an idiot!"

Ryou was impressed, giving a smirk. "Wow, that's a lot of big words you've used there, Ichi."

She growled, angry. "Ugh! I so cannot believe you! Just because you have this big four-digit IQ, you seem to believe that that gives you the power to just go ahead and make fun of—," she paused, rewinding the words he just said. Did she hear him correctly? "Whoa, did you just call me Ichi?"

He shrugged, acting dumb. "Maybe not, maybe so. But what would be the difference whether I did or not?"

Ichigo rolled her eyes again, but this time she smiled. "You're … a really strange and complicated guy, you know that, Ryou?"

He shrugged yet again. "That's nothing new." He pointed out of the window. "It stopped raining. Which means you can go home now. So, leave and let me get some sleep." He pushed her aside so he could walk over to his bed to lay down.

She chuckled. She was not letting him off the hook yet. She smiled, as an idea formed in her mind. Ryou always got away with picking on Ichigo and ignoring her attempts at a comeback. He may have won the battle, but he would definitely not win the war. Or … something in that text. "Actually … since I'm not working today, I have some free time on my hands. We can bond today!"

He twitched, looking at her strangely. Had he heard her correctly? "I'm sorry, did you just say 'bonding'? We don't bond, Ichigo. It makes absolutely no sense."

"Well, we can change that, can't we?" She gasped, putting her hands together in excitement. "That's it! Today will be a day for us to bond. We can call it … 'Ryou and Ichi's Day of Fun!'!

Ryou froze in place, his eyes growing wide. "Oh, heavens, no."

-End, Part III.

Any Kokoro readers should have noticed another reference, such as when Ichigo's thinking about Ryou's "future wife" who seems to be a total idiot. Gee, who does that remind you of? XD I actually intended for this chapter to be a lot longer than it really is, but somehow that didn't happen. I guess it works the way it is, but I want longer chapters. .

I guess you can say the good thing about this chapter was the fact that Ryou and Ichigo had the change to actually talk, which let's face it, they don't really do that. Hopefully, they'll do a lot more of this chit-chat talking in later chapters.

You also may notice that time seems to be going pretty slow, considering it's still morning. Remember that I'm attempting to make 30 chapters out of one full day, so time will be going slow. Each chapter will probably just be one whole scene, and so on. I'll probably even it all out. Ten chapters will be morning, another ten will be the afternoon, and the last ten will be nighttime. All packed with thirty kisses! Wh00t wh00t! XD

Oh! Oh! Time for the voice! YAY! THE VOICE! WHY the heck is Ichigo GIGGLING so much? WHO has kidnapped the real Ichigo and morphed her into an energizer kitty? WHY is Ichigo so determined for her and Ryou to bond? WILL Ryou be able to survive the so-called "day of fun"? WHAT the heck is this "Day of Fun" all about? And darn it, WHERE the heck is Carmen Sandiego? HOW come I always bring up that woman's name at the end of every chapter? FIND OUT next in the next chapter of Thirty Kisses, which will (not) be coming very soon! D