Orihime moaned and opened her eyes. She was lying on a white leather couch in an unfamiliar room. She lifted her head. She appeared to be alone in the large, luxuriously appointed living room. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked a panoramic view of the city lights far below. It looked as if she was somewhere around the fiftieth floor of a very tall building. She groaned and let her head fall back. What had happened?
"Are you feeling better, Orihime?" a deep voice asked from behind her. She gasped and turned her head, causing the room to spin around her once more.
Sousuke Aizen walked across a large expanse of Persian carpet toward her, holding two teacups which he placed on the glass-topped coffee table. There was a look of concern on his face, the curl of brown hair hanging loosely between his eyes. He sat down on the couch beside her.
"I'm afraid you had a bit too much wine at dinner." His voice was amused. "I agree, it was an exceptionally fine vintage. Now, why don't we have some tea. I think it'll make you feel better."
"Sousuke," Orihime accused, "why did you bring me here and not to my home as I asked?" She tried to sit up with no success.
"What, no protestations of gratitude for my rescue of you from public humiliation?"
She finally pushed herself upright, still shaky, and frowned at him. He appeared to be trying not to smile. "I can't believe you practically kidnapped me and brought me to your apartment."
"Orihime, why must you always believe me to be a villain? The fact of the matter is, I don't know where you live. You were not in any condition to inform me of your address, and I don't believe it would have been beneficial for your career for me to return you to your place of employment in an unconscious state."
"Oh." Orihime was taken aback. Her feeling of righteous indignation vanished. "I'm sorry."
"Why don't you drink your tea, and then I'll take you wherever you wish."
She brought the delicate teacup to her lips and sipped. The hot, sweet liquid soothed her throat. She could feel it warming her from the inside out, and she sighed and drank some more. Gradually, the whirling of the room slowed down.
Aizen watched her carefully. "There. Doesn't that feel better?"
She nodded.
"I firmly believe there is nothing finer than a steaming cup of tea in times of stress. Good for what ails you, as my aunt used to say." His voice sounded playful.
"Your aunt? I don't think you've ever talked to me about your family before." She knew he had not lived with his parents in high school, but he had always been close-mouthed about his living situation, and had never invited her to his home.
Aizen gave her an open and sincere smile rather than the seductive one he usually used on her. "There's a first time for everything, I suppose."
She was surprised. He seemed to be letting down his guard in front of her in a way he never had before. Perhaps she had misjudged him after all. Belatedly, she felt embarrassed. "I'm sorry. I apologize for causing a scene at the restaurant. I guess I'm not used to drinking much. I didn't think I had all that much wine."
His gaze traveled up and down her body and she blushed. "Well, your body weight must be quite low. I'm not surprised a couple of glasses could affect you."
"I usually don't drink much these days."
"Undoubtedly one of your many virtues," he said. Then he turned serious. "But Orihime, there is something else I wanted to tell you." His eyes fell, and it seemed as if a mask had fallen away. "I have a confession to make."
She eyed him suspiciously.
"I've actually been thinking about you for a long while. You see - I've realized that I made a terrible mistake in letting you go so many years ago. I -" he stopped and ran a hand through his hair, looking almost nervous. The curl of hair fell back down over his forehead. "I still have feelings for you, Orihime."
She choked, unable to hide her disbelief.
"I just wanted to tell you the truth. But I don't expect you to do anything about it. I know you've moved on, and I apologize for coming on to you earlier." He chuckled ruefully. "It seems to be a bad habit of mine, and I hope you'll forgive me." He suddenly appeared lost and vulnerable, and Orihime felt a surge of compassion, even though part of her was certain it was just an act. Impulsively, she reached out to take his hand. As she did, a wave of confusion swept through her again. She felt unaccountably sad, as though she were about to cry.
"It's all right, Sousuke, I forgive you," she mumbled, aware that her speech had become slurred. But how? A moment ago she had thought she was feeling better.
Aizen took her hand in both of his, and stroked it gently. At his touch, electricity coursed through her, and heat rose in her cheeks.
It was always difficult to tell what was truth and what was illusion when it came to Aizen. When she first met him, she had thought he was a gentle, quiet, somewhat nerdly student. He got straight A's, spoke respectfully to the teachers, and was a member of the chess club. His expression was mild behind rectangular glasses. When he asked her out, he was polite and soft-spoken. They did homework together. His messy brown hair fell over his eyes as they worked side by side, and she glanced sidelong at him and thought he was cute and sweet.
It was only later that she gradually began to realize all was not as it seemed. Often, at school, he would be surrounded by a number of tough-looking friends. Two in particular, Gin and Kaname, were constantly by his side. They never spoke much to her, except in response to Aizen's requests. As she spent more time with Aizen, she noticed something strange about the people around him. They didn't behave the way friends normally did, but appeared to be hanging around until he sent them on various errands. Much later, she realized that many of them were gang members. Even later, she saw that they all appeared to be terrified of him, hastening to obey his polite requests as though they were commands. She remembered wondering what this apparently gentle boy had done to inspire such fear.
And then, there was the incident his junior year… There had been a party where about a dozen students, including several of Aizen's crowd, had to be taken to the hospital with drug overdoses. Several of them nearly died, and almost all of them ended up with brain damage.
There had been a big scandal. Shinji Hirako, the senior class president, and Tessai Tsukabishi, a popular chemistry teacher, had been accused and convicted of brewing drugs in the school chemistry lab. They had been sent to jail. Several other teachers had lost their jobs over the incident.
And Aizen? He had been present at the party, but the police had questioned him and had determined that he was an innocent bystander. He had merely happened upon the injured students and was attempting to help them. He was cleared of all suspicions, and even ended up becoming senior class president the following year.
"Sousuke," she had asked once, "what really happened that night?"
He looked distressed. "Orihime, I'd really rather not talk about it. I wasn't able to help some very good friends, and I still feel bad about it. Please don't ask me again." He had had a look of such agony on his face that she had felt the urgent need to comfort him. She had ended up taking him in her arms and whispering to him that everything would be all right. But still…she had never been really sure of the truth of his story, and had gone on wondering about it afterwards.
He had always been a very good liar, and she had never been very skilled at detecting the truth behind his façade. She had fallen for his gentleness, and had a hard time believing that it was all a mask. She had witnessed enough of his actions around his gang to know that he could be selfish and ruthless when it suited his purposes, but then he would make a kind gesture that would melt her heart again and she would question her own perceptions. She had gone back and forth in her opinion more times than she could count.
Now, she wondered if it was all happening again. Her convictions about his inner nature were being shaken. He gazed at her with an intense expression in his eyes, full of melancholy and loneliness, overlaid with a hint of hope that tore at her heart. Their faces were only inches apart. She was suddenly extremely aware of his proximity. Her body felt boneless, tingling. Her mind felt hazy and confused. He reached up to brush a strand of hair out of her face and she shivered, but couldn't tear her gaze from his.
He threaded his fingers through her hair and brought his lips gently down on hers. The kiss began slowly, then deepened. Orihime shuddered and tried to push him away. He held her firmly until she relaxed, and she began to sink helplessly into his kiss. It was even more amazing than she remembered from a decade and a half ago. Slowly, almost unwillingly, she wound her arms around his body.
"No," she thought to herself. "I shouldn't be doing this. I'm engaged to Ichigo. I love Ichigo."
But she made no move to pull away from the man holding her tightly in his arms. He brushed his lips past her ear. "Orihime," he breathed, as though asking a question.
"Sousuke," she sighed in answer, and closed her eyes.
