A/N: This chapter gets more into the plot! Woohoo. Okay. So this chap is after the song, "The Best Thing," by Relient K. AND this song was suggested by OtakuRukia. Thanks for the suggestion. And give me some more people! For an idea of what song you can suggest, the next chap will have a "touchy" scene, if you know what I mean. Hehe. I was thinking "The Curse of Curves," by Cute Is What We Aim For, but I don't know. You tell me. This chap starts with fluff and then gets into something at the end. Enjoy.
Disclaimer: Why?
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Chapter 4: The Best Thing
"Ah!" a yell was heard, which was followed by a loud slam. Ichigo had just walked in and found the raven haired owner laying her upper body on the flower counter.
He walked straight up to the counter. "Problem?" he asked smirking with his eyebrows raised.
Her head lifted up from being buried into her arms. Her face was strained, eyes slightly red, and a frown helped to finish the look. She groaned and flew her head back down into her arms.
Ichigo chuckled, "Looks like someone has a hangover…"
Her head shot up. "I haven't been drinking Kurosaki!" she yelled in frustration before burying her face again.
He frowned slightly. 'Okay, so something's really wrong,' he thought before approaching her again. "Alright. Tell me what's wrong," he said leaning on the counter.
"Nothing you could possibly help me with, Kurosaki," she said in a monotone that was muffled from her not lifting her head.
"Try me," he said staring deep into the top of her head. He saw her body move from her taking a deep breath and then sighing. She stood straight up with her hands folded on the counter in front of her.
"I was a complete idiot and forgot that I was hired to do the flowers for a wedding! I remembered in the middle of the night after I woke up from a nightmare of dancing white and red roses," she said, while one of her hands rubbed one of her temple.
"Well I could see how that could be frightening," Ichigo said in an amused tone, which earned him a death glare from Rukia.
He laughed at her glare, "What? I was serious! Those things have some sharp thorns! If they're dancing around like that they could poke an eye out or something."
She continued to glare, but she couldn't hold back the smile that was spreading on her lips. "Haha, very funny," she said, followed by a sigh. "I've been up since one in the morning doing all of these flower arrangements," she said motioning her hand behind her.
His mouth dropped. "You did all of this in only a few hours?!" It looked like she could have been doing this for at least two days straight. "When are these supposed to be there by?" he asked looking back at the tired woman.
"At two," she said burying her face into her hands, which were being propped up by her elbows on the counter.
Ichigo's eyes went wide. "Rukia, its quarter after one…"
"I know," she said in such a sad voice, while her face was still buried in her hands. "My career is over…"
Ichigo then got a determined look. "But it looks like you have more than enough."
She sighed, "I'm done. It's just that I have to take all of these and bring them to the park, where the wedding is. And then I have to set it all up! Shina and Kin are at class right now and Orihime is managing this café by herself right now. I can't get this done on time all by myself!" She looked over Ichigo's shoulder at the whole building she owned. "Maybe everybody was right. I have taken on more than I can handle."
Ichigo stared at her sad violet eyes. Something inside him snapped when he saw how upset she was. It was like he had to do something to make it all better. He needed to. He then was determined. He walked behind the counter and began to pick up as many flowers as he could hold.
She turned around and looked at him bewildered. "W-what are you doing?" she asked in shock.
"That van in the front is for delivering these, right?" he asked looking her in the eyes.
"Uh, yeah. But what are you doing?" she asked again.
He smiled genuinely. "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm rescuing the damsel in distress."
"But- but you don't know a thing about flowers!" she exclaimed, while watching him walk around the counter towards the front doors.
He turned around, "I know that that's the least of your worries. You should focus more on how much time you have rather than what my IQ is," he said with a smirk and continuing to go to the door.
Her mouth was ajar, but it curved into a smile. She shook her head and then began to follow suit and bring the flowers to the van.
"Okay, we have ten minutes to get these all set up before they arrive," she said, handing Ichigo a few flowers.
"So, what exactly do I do?" he asked looking at the flowers she shoved into his hands. Wow, he really was clueless.
It's been a year
Filled with problems
But now you're here
Almost as if to solve them
And I can't live in a world without you now
She grabbed a bucket of flowers and held it to her chest with her right hand. She then turned and grabbed Ichigo's arm, "Come on. I'll show you."
All my life
I've been searching for you
How did I survive
In this world before you
Cause I don't wanna live another day without you now
She dragged him to where all the tables were already set up along the lawn. It really was a beautiful place to have a wedding. It was near a little lake where you could see ducks and swans swimming in the distance.
This is the best thing
The best thing that could be happening
And I think you would agree
The best thing is that it's
Happening to you and me
She got lost in the scenery for a moment and stumbled slightly, causing a good amount of water to spill out of the bucket she was holding to her chest. "Shit," she said, but didn't stop and kept moving towards a table.
All I'm gonna have
Is all that you can give me
And I'll give right back
Everything I have in me
Cause nothing ever felt as right
As this does right now
"Okay. Each table has a vase. In each vase put six red roses and six white roses. Try to make it look appetizing. Like this," she said moving the roses around in certain angles and then leaning back to admire her work.
He smiled. It didn't seem that hard to do at all, but the way she made it look made it seem like anything but simple. Now that's art. "Alright, sounds good," he said jogging off to another table.
I'll go back to before we met
Try and erase the past
Try harder to forget 'cause
Nothing will ever be as good as here and now
They had moved faster than you could have believed. There were only two tables left. Ichigo left the table he just finished to get the last bundle of flowers in the van.
Rukia was making her way back to one of the last tables and she looked down at her watch, while juggling the flowers in her hands. "Two minutes, Ichigo!" she yelled, not looking to where he was.
Suddenly she stepped forward, causing her to fall backwards and the flowers to go up into the air. She closed her eyes waiting to collide with the ground, but she didn't. She felt an arm wrapped around her waist. She opened her eyes and found she was staring back into amber ones.
'Cause when I looked into your eyes
And you dared to stare right back
You should've said "Nice to meet you, I'm your other half"
He smiled down at her finally after her shock was gone and he could tell she was alright. She saw in his other hand he was holding the bouquet of flowers she flung into the air. He chuckled, "I guess this means I'm getting married next," he said looking back at the bouquet he caught.
And this is the best thing
The best thing that could be happening
And I think you would agree
The best thing is that it's happening
This is the best thing
The best thing that could be happening
And I think you would agree
The best thing is that it's
Happening to you and me
"T-thanks," she said in surprise. He quickly helped her to her feet and she ran to put the last of the flowers on the last table. She looked at her watch and saw it was thirty seconds past two. She sighed and wiped her sweaty forehead with her forearm. "Alright let's get out of here before they show up," she said walking past Ichigo to the van.
He turned around after her, "Don't you want to see the look on their faces when they see it?" he asked in disbelief. He thought she would want to take pride in their achievement.
"No, it's okay. I like to make it look like no one ever came," she said getting into the van. He got into the passenger seat and then she continued as she turned the key. "I mean there are things in the universe that help out in ways people would never understand or know for that matter," she said before looking over at Ichigo. "They help out because it's their duty. They don't get praised for it," she then nodded towards the window where you could see their work neatly done. "That was my duty. I don't need to get praised for it," she said with a look in her eyes that made him speechless.
Always knew
I'd find someone
I never dreamt
It'd be like this
You've surpassed
All that I've hoped for (and ever wished)
And I'm tryin'
So hard
With all my heart and mind
To make your life
As good as you've made mine
As they drove back to the café, Ichigo was growing fonder of the woman next to him by the second. 'She is more right than she really knows,' Ichigo thought, while still processing her explanation. Their ride was silent but comfortable.
They got out of the van and were about to walk into the café, when Rukia stopped and turned around to Ichigo. She looked deep into his eyes and it made her entire body feel warm. "I just want to say," she paused, "Thanks for doing this. You barely even know me and yet you had my back. I really appreciate it," she said with sincerity.
He smirked. "It really wasn't a problem. It was fun. And I saved the princess."
This is the best thing The best thing is that it's happening to you and me
The best thing that could be happening
And I think you would agree
The best thing is that it's happening to you and me
The best thing is that it's happening to you and me
Then, something was triggered by his words. They both heard voices, but in their own heads.
"And saved the princess,"a male voice said easily.
There was a pause until a female's voice was heard whispering,"That makes you my knight."A name was said after her sentence, but it sounded too muffled to make out.
"I'll rescue you anytime,"the male said, ending his sentence with a name as well, but was too muffled to hear.
They both blinked and came back to reality. They shook their heads slightly. "So thanks again," Rukia said before leaning up and kissing his cheek. She then leaned back to see a smiling Ichigo. 'That is the second time in two days I kissed him,' she thought, while smiling back.
The best thing that could be happening
I think you would agree
The best thing is that it's happening to you and me
Little did they know, Ren was watching their little scene through the front window of the café.
The two walked into the café and Rukia was assaulted by a more than excited Nozomi. She sprinted straight towards her, and Rukia quickly bent down to scoop her up when she got close. "Hey there cutie," she said to her daughter who was now in her arms with her legs wrapped around Rukia's waist.
"Mommy! I told Ren about the concert Ichigo did last night! He said he'd like to hear him play," the girl said excitedly.
Rukia looked over at Ren who was watching their interaction. "Well, that's not up to me, Zomi. That's up to Ichigo," she said looking over at the orange headed man. He smiled because the mother and daughter both turned their heads at the same time to look at him. Nozomi's face showed her obvious anticipation.
"Yeah, sure. I'd love to," he said casually.
Ren had a feeling in his body that was screaming out for him to watch out for this 'Ichigo.' Rukia barely ever kissed anyone and he had just seen her kiss this guy she's only known for two days. Sure it was only on the cheek, but still.
Ren walked closer and held out his hand to Ichigo. "Hey, I'm Ren," he said confidently.
Ichigo grabbed his hand firmly, "Ichigo," he said receiving a firm grip back. They looked each other in the eyes. They were both thinking the same thing: Competition.
Rukia raised her eyebrows at the heavy atmosphere that suddenly took over. She walked closer to the two who were still gripping hands. She chuckled to loosen the tension. "Settle down boys. No need to go and see who has the stronger grip," she said putting Nozomi down on the floor. She reached over and pulled apart their grip with her hands. Each one of her hands held one of theirs.
"Everything okay here?" she asked looking back and forth between them.
"Yeah, everything's peachy," Ichigo said with a fake smile at his competitor.
Nozomi laughed, "Peachy! Like strawberry, Ichi!" she said giggling.
Rukia chuckled at her daughter's remark, but was still holding each of their hands. Ren saw this. He then pulled her towards him firmly, making her hand slip from Ichigo's.
"Ren?" she asked with her hands now against his chest.
"I haven't said, 'Hi,' to you yet," he said smiling. He then leaned down quickly and claimed her lips. She was more than startled. He leaned back, "Hi," he said smiling.
Ichigo raised an eyebrow at his obvious possessive actions. He was fuming.
Rukia was glaring up at Ren. "Hi," she said in a sarcastic tone. She pushed away from him, grabbed her daughter's hand and walked deeper into the café.
Ichigo smirked, seeing on how Rukia was pissed about Ren's actions. "Nice move, Renny," Ichigo said walking past him.
Ren glared at the back of his orange head and then walked out of the café.
Ichigo was laughing at a table with Ishida, Kin and Shina. Rukia took a deep breathe and then exhaled. 'What was Ren thinking earlier?' she thought.
"Something on your mind?" Orihime asked from the side.
Rukia jumped slightly. "Um, well, not really."
"Liar," Orihime said easily.
Rukia huffed. "Earlier when Ichigo met Ren, there was a lot of tension in the air. Ren even pulled me in for a deep kiss right in front of him! It was like he was staking his claim on me!" Rukia said getting more frustrated as she talked.
Orihime's eyes went wide. "Wow. That's well… awkward," Orihime said chuckling at the end.
"It's annoying, that's what it is," Rukia said irritated.
Orihime raised an eyebrow. "It would only be annoying if you didn't want him to do it," she said suggestively.
"What are you getting at, Orihime?" Rukia asked with an annoyed tone.
"That you didn't want him to do it. And it's possible you didn't want him to do it in front of Ichigo."
"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Rukia asked with a surprised look.
"You're falling for Ichigo," Orihime said smiling.
"I've known him for two days!" Rukia yelled throwing her hands in the air.
'You are so wrong,' Orihime thought. "Two days is enough."
"Please Orihime. Enough with your wrong assumptions."
"Fine. Don't listen to me. But if you're getting that feeling in the pit of your stomach and not to mention finding yourself kissing him when you have only known him for two days, don't expect me to not say, 'I told you so.'"
"Wait, you saw me kiss him?" Rukia asked in surprise.
"I think the whole building did. And maybe people across the street at the hardware store," she said laughing.
Rukia blushed slightly.
Ichigo was laughing. "Are you serious? You fainted when Orihime told you she was pregnant with Ryo?" Kin and Shina chuckled too.
"Hey, I wasn't expecting it, Kurosaki! She was trying to make me eat a tuna peanut-butter sandwich at the time! If you had a bite of that in your mouth and then you were told something big, you'd faint too!" Ishida said in defense.
"Uh-huh, sure-" Ichigo began until his cell phone started beeping. He suddenly went serious, as did Ishida.
"I should take this," Ichigo said standing up urgently. The Quincy gave him a nod. He made it to the door until he heard Rukia's voice from the back.
"Where's Nozomi?!" she shouted running to Ishida's table.
"Haven't seen her. Did you check upstairs?" Shina asked.
"Yeah. She's not there," Rukia replied quickly.
"Do you think she could have left the café?" Kin asked.
Ichigo listened to their conversation and then locked eyes with Ishida. They seemed to be thinking the exact same thing. Ichigo looked down at his cell phone and then back up at his friend.
Ishida mouthed the words, "Go get her." Ichigo nodded and stormed out of the building.
"Please be okay, Nozomi," Ichigo said to himself as he shunpoed down the street. This was the first ounce of spiritual energy he felt in this town. It seemed pretty powerful too; almost as if it was bigger than a hollow…
Then, Ichigo saw her. She was lying on the ledge of the large fountain in the middle of the park; unconscious.
Ichigo held Zangetsu tightly and looked around urgently for the culprit. He couldn't spot anything so he ran for the petite girl, who was oblivious to the world at that moment. He was about ten feet away until his path was interfered.
"I, myself was surprised to hear you were still living in some form or another," a monotone voice said.
"Who the hell are you?" Ichigo growled as he held Zangetsu out towards his current threat.
"You don't remember me? Pity," he said without showing any emotion. "I'm Ulquiorra."
"That's great. Now get the fuck out of the way if you want to live," he said with fire burning in his amber eyes.
"I'm afraid I lured you out here for a reason, Ichigo Kurosaki. I won't be leaving so easily."
"Fine. Then I'll just make you leave!" He dove forward, but his attack was easily side stepped. He turned around and saw that Ulquiorra was now holding a zanpaktou in his hands. This zanpaktou looked different though. Its blade glowed red and black.
"Oh, so you're ready to fight now, huh?" Ichigo said with a smirk.
"Not exactly," he responded and shunpoed behind him. Ichigo tried to turn around but found it impossible. He felt a sharp pain down his spine and the air was knocked out of him. His mouth went ajar as he dropped to his knees on the asphalt.
All matter of noise around him ceased. The sun in the sky was now beginning to hide behind its evening curtain. As he tried to breathe in the air round him he found that this 'Ulquiorra' was now standing in front of him.
He leaned forward and whispered in Ichigo's ear. "Say 'hello' to the child's mother for me. I'll be seeing you soon, Kurosaki," he said, but by the time he finished speaking, Ichigo's eyes rolled up to the back of his head as he felt his entire body go into shock, until everything went black.
He felt light rain drops glide down his cheek and dripping off his nose to the ground. His eyes fluttered open and he found he was staring at wet asphalt. The sun was almost completely set now. He immediately remembered what happened. He was stabbed in the back with a strange zanpaktou, but the weird part was, he wasn't feeling any pain at the moment.
"Are you going to lie there forever, Kurosaki?" a sarcastic voice said from the side.
Ichigo pushed against the asphalt with his palms, lifting him up so that he could pull his knees up and lean on them. He looked up with his palms still against the ground. Standing about five feet away was his co-vice captain with his arms crossed over his chest and a smile planted across his face.
"Got a little too much to handle?" he asked teasingly.
"Shut up, Abarai," Ichigo said beginning to stand up, but found he was a little dizzy. Renji moved in quickly and caught him before he crashed down to the ground. He helped him over to the fountain where Nozomi was still unconscious.
"Tell me what happened, Ichigo," Renji said simply resting his friend down to sit next to the little girl.
"I- I got a reading and I went to go take care of it, but this guy named, 'Ulquiorra,' was there instead of what I expected to be a hollow. He- He stabbed me with this freaky looking zanpaktou. All I remember is falling to my knees and feeling pain all throughout my body and then blacking out."
"Shit. Soul Society's wanted this guy for awhile. He's an arrancar, Ichigo. You're lucky you survived, since this is your first time in the real world," Renji stated.
Ichigo wanted so badly to shove it in his face that he knew of his past. He wanted so badly to ask him why the hell he would hide it from him. He figured they were pretty good friends even though they bust each other's chops all the time. But he promised he wouldn't. He couldn't trade in his friends for his own self satisfaction. He promised.
Ichigo looked over his shoulder trying to look at his wound. "I healed it. Just in case you were wondering why you weren't in pain," Renji said casually.
"Oh. Thanks," Ichigo said exhaling a large amount of air.
"So who's the girl?" Renji asked looking down at the little girl, whose breathing was even.
"Nozomi. She's the daughter of a woman I met," Ichigo said softly.
"Oh, does this mother have a husband?" Renji asked with an eyebrow.
"No, but what the hell does that have to do with anything?" Ichigo asked incredulously.
"I figured that's why you were out here trying to protect this little girl. You've got the hots for her ma," he said smirking wildly.
"You think that's the only reason I would try to save this little girl?! That's messed up, Renji. Seriously. This little girl is adorable," Ichigo said pushing her bangs out of her eyes.
"Yeah, you're right. She is a cute kid. But what's her name?" Renji said smiling down at the girl.
"I already told you, Nozomi," Ichigo said still smiling down at the sleeping girl.
"Not her. The mother," Renji asked looking back at his orange headed friend.
"Renji!" Ichigo yelled irritated.
"Fine, fine. Don't tell me her name! But you have to admit… she's gorgeous right?" he asked with interest.
Ichigo glared, but then smirked. "Yeah," he looked down to the little girl, "She's beautiful."
"Well that's always a plus. But I'm gonna get going. Keep up the good work," he said shunpoing out of there.
Ichigo began to see the little girl awake and he realized he needed to get back into his body fast. It was only about fifteen feet away so he began to get up and walked five feet.
"Ichi?" a little voice asked shyly from behind.
His eyes went wide as he turned around and saw the little girl sitting up and rubbing her eyes. 'How can she see me?'
"Can you take me back to mommy?" she asked while still rubbing her eyes.
He quickly changed his shocked face into a smile. "Yeah. Just give me a second, kay?" he asked.
She nodded and lied back down on the ledge of the fountain. Ichigo quickly jogged over to his body and got back in. He fixed his clothes as he stood up and jogged back over to Nozomi.
She sat up and looked at him suspiciously. "What happened to your black robey thingy?" she asked curiously.
"I, uh- I just changed. I can't be seen walking around in my pajamas, can I?" he asked jokingly, but secretly wiping his brow.
"Oh, okay!" she said jumping down to the ground and walking towards him.
He exhaled in relief. "Let's bring you back to your mom," he said holding his hand down to her.
She smiled widely and gladly took his hand in hers as they began to make their way back towards the café.
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Yeah, that was interesting, don't you agree? So basically we've got the problem of our main characters not remembering and the fact that we've got some bad cats coming back. Plus we've got the prob of Ren vs. Ichigo. So there's a lot going on in this story. Hopefully it's keeping you on your toes. Thanks for your reviews and I hope you give me some more. Love ya! Later
