A/N: Chapter 4. Hope it's good.

Disclaimer: My disclaimer ran away. It would have told you I don't own Bleach though.

Rukia didn't know why she felt as she did. Her feelings were horribly confused. It didn't make any sense. There was only one reason to be jealous of a person, and that was wanting what they have. Did that mean Rukia wanted Orihime?

The notion seemed worthy of immediate dismissal, but as she went over it in her mind Rukia kept returning to it. It was the only thing that made sense. That wasn't all though, Rukia could tell in her heart it was true. She was in love with Orihime Inoue.

This was a strange thing. Rukia admittedly had limited knowledge when it came to relationships, but even she knew It was odd for one girl to fall in love with another. She had never been particularly interested in women before; it was strange to find herself taken with one now.

She supposed a lot of it stemmed from Orihime herself. The girl was so beautiful and sweet. She had a gentle constitution, yet wouldn't hesitate in facing danger if that's what it took to protect of her friends. She had an incredible, brilliant smile that was warm and affecting. She had to wonder: who wouldn't fall in love with someone like Orihime?

Of course, even if she was able to admit that she loved Orihime, that didn't get rid of the complications she had created. Because of her, Orihime and Ichigo were dating each other now. She supposed this was really for the best in a way. Even if she loved Orihime, that love didn't seem very realistic. It would be better to just leave things as they stand. The one she loved would at least be happy like that.

She'd be able to get over these feelings eventually. That's what she told herself. Sitting across from the girl in her home almost a week after that date, that was becoming hard to believe.

"So, Rukia, is everything okay?" Orihime's concerned voice, brought a temporary end to Rukia's stream of thought. The shinigami forced herself to smile.

"Of course it is, Orihime. Why do you ask?" she lied. She didn't want to worry Orihime. What's more, this wasn't something she could exactly talk to her about anyway.

"Oh… well… It's just that every time I've seen you lately, you seemed kind of distracted by something." Orihime's concern didn't fade.

"It's nothing for you to worry about, Orihime," Rukia assured, trying even harder to look content. From Orihime's expression, she could tell it backfired.

"Are you sure? You're an important friend, Rukia. If something's troubling you, I'd like to know about it." Orihime refused to drop it just yet. Rukia wasn't surprised; her love was a caring person.

"Well… I suppose there is something… maybe…" Rukia started, as she considered what lie to tell the girl. She didn't like lying to Orihime, but she didn't see many other options.

"Yeah?"

"Well, it's just about everything that's happening… I can't help but be a little nervous," Rukia gave her answer after some thought. She was relieved to see that orihime seemed to buy it.

"It is scary. it really is. When those arrancar were attacking us, I-I didn't know what would happen… even now, I'm terrified that something horrible might happen to someone I love," Orihime started in a low, somber voice. Rukia looked down, her own eyes becoming more melancholy as the girl continued, "I don't want to lose anyone else."

Rukia was at a loss as to what to say for a moment. Then the right words hit her rather suddenly and she couldn't keep them in. "Everything going to be fine, Orihime. I'll make sure it is. You won't have to see anymore suffering."

Orihime stared back at the other for a moment, a fragile smile forming on her lips. She said, "Thank you... Rukia…"

"Of course." Rukia smiled. Then the smile quickly faded as she added in a half sighed, subdued voice as she remembered the current situation, "but I suppose you have Ichigo to protect you now. I'm sure that's more reassuring than being under my protection."

Orihime stared back at her, her head tilted curiously. "No, that's wrong. You and Ichigo both have to help… and Chad and Uryu, and Renji, and Yoruichi and Rangiku, and Toshiro and everyone else. And of course I can't just sit back and let you protect me either; I have to do my part too. There are lots and lots of people who need to be protected. One person can't do it all by herself," she said with a full smile. Rukia didn't know whether to be taken aback the at the intent of her comment was missed entirely, or be filled with content at hearing that Orihime needed her as much as Ichigo.

"I see. I guess we'll all have to work together. That way, everyone will be safe," Rukia said with a firm nod. Orihime continued to smile.

"I hope I can get stronger. I want to do more to help," Orihime softly said.

"You already are irreplaceable to us, Orihime," Rukia said, wishing she could make the statement a personal one.

"I'm not so special," Orihime sighed.

"Yes you are. You can do things no one else can," Rukia said at once.

"But even so… against the arrancar my powers weren't any good. Now I can't even fight anymore," Orihime said in a very meek voice.

"The power you lost… You'll get it back, I'm sure of it…" Rukia said in a crisp, even tone. She smiled at the other girl, "Once you do, we'll work together become stronger. Okay?"

"You really mean that, Rukia?" Orihime stared up at the girl, looking quite fragile.

"Yeah. I do," Rukia said almost romantically.

"Thank you." The human girl's tearful smile was impossibly beautiful. Rukia couldn't hep but stare at Orihime for a while, captured by her beauty.

Of course, such long pauses were not normal in conversation. Additionally, she felt bad for starting a conversation that had made Orihime sad. She decided she'd instead start one that made herself sad, "Anyway, that's enough about that stuff. Tell me, how's everything going with Ichigo?"

"Oh, it's all fine," Orihime smiled. "Tatsuki and everyone else at school was so surprised when I told them, but everyone say they think we'll work out perfectly together."

Rukia held back a frown at this thought. She prayed somehow things wouldn't work out. "I see, well that's great."

"Yeah, I'm really happy," Orihime gave a bright, beautiful smile. She then informed, "Ichigo and I are actually going on another date tonight."

This all made Rukia's heart sink further. She wanted to just be happy for Orihime. It was just too hard though. She continued to force a smile, and put some false energy behind her voice. "Oh? So where's he taking you?"

"I decided we were going to have a picnic!" Orihime declared brightly.

"But you said the date was at night, right?" Rukia couldn't help but find this strange.

"Yeah, what's wrong with that?" Orihime tilted her head cluelessly.

"A picnic is when you go and eat food together outside, right?" Rukia asked, wondering if perhaps she was mistaken.

"Yup." Orihime nodded.

"Don't most people do that in the afternoon… and not at night…?" Rukia questioned, eyebrow raised.

"Really?" Orihime asked, as if this was the first time she had heard this.

"Yeah. Did Ichigo agree to this date?" the shinigami asked scrupulously.

"He sure did, he said whatever I wanted was fine," Orihime said with several enthusiastic nod.

"Uh.. okay," Rukia was unsure what to say exactly.

"It's not like it'll be too late anyway Ichigo and I are going to start when the sun's still up," Orihime clarified. Rukia's eyes widened.

So that was it then? Ichigo and Orihime were meeting for an evening picnic on a secluded grassy hill where they would hold hands and watch the sunset. Then they'd be all alone together, nothing but darkness and an aura of romance around them. Who knows where that could lead. The thought of it frightened Rukia. It made her heart race. She wanted somehow to stop this insane date and protect her beloved's purity.

"Um, Rukia… is everything okay… your face looks pale…" Orihime started, concern creeping into her voice once more.

"It's nothing; just some stupid daydream," Rukia guarded herself, a blush forming on her face.

"Oh? Was it about space ninjas or talking popsicles or Dinosaur Man?" Orihime asked in a slow, somehow serious voice, reminding the other what "stupid daydreams" were to her. Rukia couldn't help but wonder who "Dinosaur Man" was though.

"No, it was nothing like that. Just some random thoughts," she dismissively assured. Orihime stared at her piercingly.

"Are you sure your okay Rukia?" she asked.

"Yeah, of course," Rukia smiled her fake smile once more.

"You're really okay with me and Ichigo being together, then?" Orihime asked, surprisingly perceptively. Rukia felt like crying out. Instead she laughed the question off and kept her fake smile in place. It was difficult, but for Orihime to be happy she had to be strong.

"Why are you asking that? I helped bring you two together, right?" Rukia asked with an uneasy laugh. "I already told you I have no interest in Ichigo." The rest may have been lies, but this last bit was at least true now.

"You know that situation you told me about the other day… the one with the three people..." Orihime said, her voice serious. Rukia's eyes widened a bit.

"That situation has nothing to do with us… They're just some people I know," Rukia assured.

"I see… a-alright, Rukia" Orihime said. Rukia could tell she still had doubts.

---

It was quickly approaching evening. Rukia felt despicable, but fear had taken her prisoner, and she couldn't ignore it. She had to do something. She couldn't leave Orihime alone with Ichigo out there in the darkness. She had to watch over the girl and make sure the date didn't turn too serious. Orihime wasn't ready for some things just yet, and Rukia was determined to make sure Ichigo didn't get ahead of himself.

That was her thought process before tailing a safe distance behind Orihime as she made her way to the site of her date along with Ichigo. Once they arrived on location, a quiet grassy spot underneath a tree in the corner of a small local park, Rukia found a safe hiding spot behind a line of tall bushes.

Orihime laid out a cloth and set her picnic basket at the center of it before her and Ichigo sat down at either side of it. Orihime was beaming while Ichigo just wore a sort of content expression.

"Aren't you excited Ichigo? it's our first date with just us," Orihime said cheerfully as she opened the basket and started pulling food out. Two dishes, each containing a small stack of mini-sandwiches, were placed on the cloth.

Ichigo didn't answer the question. Instead he grabbed one of the sandwiches Orihime had laid out. He stared at it intently, then asked, "You made sure to make food that people could eat, right Orihime?"

"Of course I did, Ichigo! I only used my all time favorite recipes today!" Orihime said with enthusiastic confidence. The young man did not seem reassured by this.

"I see…" he stared at the sandwich some more, trying to see if he could determine the mystery fillings. "I guess I'll just have to try it then…"

With hesitance Ichigo took a bite. Orihime watched in anticipation. Almost immediately Ichigo's hand went to cover his mouth. He swallowed it down hard, and then began to breathe a little heavy.

"What is this supposed to be?!" Ichigo started loudly. Orihime gave a cute laugh.

"Diced tuna with mustard, jalapenos and lots of honey," Orihime informed with a smile.

"R-ight…" Ichigo said with an obvious grimace. He looked at the other stack of sandwiches Orihime had prepared, "So what do these have in them? Please tell me they are more normal…"

"Those contain bacon and apple slices, served with diced onions in a combination of mayonnaise and fish sauce," Orihime nodded softly. Ichigo looked at her in disbelief.

"Come to think of it, I'm really not that hungry right now, but you should go ahead and eat, Orihime," he said in a rushed voice. Rukia glared at him from her hiding place. She'd gladly eat all Orihime's bizarre and disgusting food, if she was in his place.

"Umm, okay…" Orihime responded politely, and began to eat some of the sandwiches with a cute smile on her face.

Ichigo leaned back and looked up at the setting sun. In a deliberate voice, he began, "Orihime, about that date the other day…"

"Yeah?" Orihime looked up and over at him, attentively, putting her sandwich down.

"Renji and Rukia aren't really going out are they?" the young man asked in a long voice. Rukia was surprised to hear this question come out.

Orihime looked at him for a while. She stared down at the picnic cloth for a moment, then back up. In a low voice she admitted, "no, they're not. Rukia just brought Renji with her because she said you wouldn't have gone if it was just me."

"She's was trying to set us up, wasn't she?" Ichigo said in a completely even tone. Orihime looked down some more.

"She wanted to help me. I-I wasn't confident enough to approach you on my own," she said in a shy voice.

Ichigo gave a long sigh. "I understand... Rukia's a great person, isn't she?"

"Oh yes, she' like one of the best friends I could ever have!" Orihime said with enthusiasm. Rukia felt a little ashamed of herself, listening to all this while spying on them. Mostly she just thought it strange that she was their topic of discussion in the first place.

Ichigo gave a short nod. Orihime slowly moved to the other side of the cloth and sat next to him. She looked up at the beautiful sunset. She then looked over at him, almost expectantly.

"Yeah, Rukia really is something… It's hard to think where I'd be if I had never met her," Ichigo said in a deliberate fashion after a pause.

"You'd probably have a lot fewer troubles than you do now," Orihime said with a soft laugh.

"Yeah probably," Ichigo gave his own short chuckle, "But I'd also be oblivious to everything going on... and I wouldn't be able fight." He gave a long pause before saying, "It may sound crazy, but I'm actually thankful Rukia appeared and pulled me into her world."

"I just hope you don't get hurt Ichigo. Things are really dangerous. Even Rukia told me she was nervous about it today," the girl said in a tone of concern.

"Really? Rukia's strong. I can't imagine her being nervous, even when she should be," Ichigo said somewhat surprised.

"I just hope everyone's okay," Orihime muttered weakly.

"All we can do is try our best to protect them, Orihime," Ichigo said in a sober voice.

"Yeah!" Orihime replied with energy. Ichigo gave a small laugh.

The two continued to talk for a while longer before the date ended. In watching it all, Rukia was surprised. Nothing happened like she thought it would. They never kissed or embraced or even held hands. They stayed a safe distance away from each other the whole way though. Their conversation went to cover a number of topics, school, friends, Soul Society, and such, but never did any of it seem romantic. Sure, when Orihime spoke it was either with too much energy or with a blush on her face and a stutter in her voice, but Ichigo never once had romance in his words. Rukia came away from it all feeling confused.

"Well that was fun! We should do something else, next week Ichigo, okay?" Orihime said bouncingly as she collected the picnic stuff and stowed it away.

"Sure, whatever you want," Ichigo said in a far more casual tone.

"So I guess we have to split up here; we live in opposite directions…" Orihime said with an air of disappointment.

"Right… I guess I'll be heading back then, Orihime," Ichigo said with a shrug.

"See you soon, Ichigo!" Orihime called happily as she began to step off in the direction of her home.

"See you," Ichigo replied quietly, taking a slow step forward as well.

What happened next was horribly shocking for Rukia. Both parties moved gradually out of her sight. She decided then that it was time to head back herself. She turned around. Ichigo Kurosaki was standing there right in front of her. The shocke forced her to back into the bushes she had been hiding behind.

"I-Ichigo… what are you…?" Rukia started nervously.

"Why are you spying on us, Rukia?" Ichigo asked directly. Rukia blushed and fell further into the bush.

"Uh... I just wanted to make sure Orihime was okay," Rukia said with a nod. "How'd you know I was there?"

"You weren't that well hidden," Ichigo said shaking his head.

"I'm sorry… I was just a little concerned about Orihime…" Rukia said with a nod. Ichigo continued to glare at her.

"What do you think I'm going to do to the girl? Do you not trust me at all, Rukia?!" he exclaimed in disbelief.

"I-I just wanted to make sure, you know?" the shinigami girl, said with a nervous grin.

"Honestly, it can really be difficult to understand you sometimes, Rukia," Ichigo sighed.

"So… umm… I'm curious…" Rukia started, preparing the question she was desperate to have answered. "Why didn't you try to move things ahead with Orihime…? She gave you the opportunity."

Ichigo sighed yet again. "I don't know… I guess I'm really just not sure about this yet."

"Not sure? What do you mean? You're the one who agreed to date Orihime." Rukia started in protest.

"I know… but that doesn't mean I like her like that, you know?" Ichigo said in a dry, honest voice.

"Ichigo… please don't hurt her," Rukia said sternly.

"I don't want to, but it's hard to force things..." the young man said somberly, looking down.

"Then why'd you agree to date her in the first place?" Rukia said, a cold glare in her eyes.

"I didn't want to disappoint her… or you…" Ichigo admitted in a low voice.

"Honestly, i know you like to be the nice guy, Ichigo, but you can't just lead people on like that," the female shinigami scolded.

"I thought maybe I would be able to develop feelings for her with time…but now I'm not so sure…"

"And why can't you? She's a wonderful girl. Fa;;ing in love with her should be easy. It's not like you already have someone you're interested in," Rukia said with an easy nod.

"Actually… I'm not so sure I don't any more…" Ichigo started in a very earnest fashion.

"W-what do you mean?!" Rukia stuttered.

"Trying to force myself through all this… I kind of realized that there was someone… I maybe kind of liked…" Ichigo's voice seemed very tired and suppressed.

"And who's that?" Rukia asked uneasily.

Ichigo closed his eyes. He said in a low voice, "it's you, Rukia."

Rukia gasped. She couldn't believe herself. Had Ichigo just confessed to her? This was crazy. But it was wrong. "That's foolish. I'm not going to let you hurt that girl for something so stupid."

"Won't she get hurt anyway if I keep leading her on like this?" Ichigo asked, his voice returning to a normal level.

"But even so…" Rukia started, but trailed off, unsure of how to retort.

"You really don't return the feelings at all?" Ichigo seemed to find this hard to ask.

"I'm sorry... I just don't anymore," Rukia said shaking her head.

"'Anymore'? Does that mean you id at a time?" Ichigo was taken aback slightly. Rukia cursed herself for letting that slip.

"I guess I did at a time…" Rukia admitted shyly.

Ichigo looked at her curiously. "Why'd you stop?"

"I fell in love with someone else," the shinigami told the other, her voice becoming softer.

"What?! With who?!" Ichigo didn't seem to believe her.

Rukia averted her eyes to the ground. She spoke with hesitance. "I can't say. It'd sound too strange to you. It's not something that should ever come into place anyway."

"I see. So he's the one you chose then…? That's not so surprising I guess. It does seem complicated. You'll probably be nothing but disappointed in the end," ichigo cautioned. Rukia was confused. She had no clue who Ichigo was talking about.

"I think you got something wrong… Who are you assuming it is?" Rukia started, unsteadily.

"Huh? It's Byakuya, right?" Ichigo asked, surprised at the other's question.

Rukia expressed her confusion and disgust, "What in the world gives you that idea?! We may not be blood related, but he is my brother. That would just be too weird!"

"Alright, alright. Fine, so who is it then? Don't think there are any others who you loving could be seen as something that should never happen?" Ichigo sighed and shook his head

"You'd think it's weird," Rukia gulped, not wanting to admit the truth. Something like this shouldn't be said aloud.

"I still want to know. I don't quite believe you right now," Ichigo said coolly.

Rukia gave another gulp. Trembling, her lips opened to speak. "I-it's-… t-the one I like-…" Looking down at her feet she finally let the name slip. "Orihime."

Ichgio's eyes widened. "Something like that… You can't be serious…"

"I am. It's a stupid, foolish thing, but I do love her. That's why even if I realize I won't find happiness, I want to make sure she does," Rukia said, finding it easier to speak about it now.

"I see… I think I understand now…" Ichigo said in a low voice.

Silence fell briefly. When it broke it was by neither Ichigo or Rukia.

"Rukia…" a soft, quivering voice said. Rukia and Ichigo turned to find a very shocked and confused Orihime emerge from the nearby shadows.

A/N: End chapter 4. Normally this would be a cliffhanger, but really I don't think there's any doubt to what Orihime decides in this story. I hope it was an interesting chapter. I decided to go with a bit of a circular triangle here, made for an interesting touch I hope. Next chapter will be the final. Considering I have to put the resolution the final scene from this one, some actual romance between the two, and of course the sex it should be busy. I don't think Ill go to 6 chapters though.

As this is the chapter before last, I have put up the next pairing poll. Please vote in that. I will discuss the result of the sexiest Code Geass girl poll in chapter two of my current Geass fic.