Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or its characters, Tite Kubo does. I am simply writing this for my own amusement.

Chapter 4

The Sun It Burns!

Byakuya heard the sharp intake of breath and he quickly dropped his shirt that he was in the process of folding and snatched up his waiting pajamas top. Pulling it up over his bare shoulders he quickly did the buttons up, thankful that at least she had not come out when he was changing his pants.

He glanced back over his shoulder to see that Rukia had retreated to her side of the bed, and was quickly crawling under the covers. Byakuya inwardly sighed.

As Rukia settled in and pulled the covers over herself, she couldn't help but replay the image of Byakuya momentarily shirtless. It had only been for a moment but the image of his smooth flawless skin stretched over lean toned muscles was firmly etched into her mind. She remembered the startled look in his eyes when he had turned and the way his long silky hair slid over those strong bare shoulders when he turned away.

'Stop it Rukia! He is your nii-sama and you should not be thinking about him that way!'

She squeezed her eyes closed and forced herself to forget his silky skin and toned body….

"Gah!" she cried sitting up and smacking herself.

Startled again, Byakuya whirled around and stared at her.

"Are you aright?" he asked concerned.

"Yes," she mumbled and to take her mind off things, grabbed her book which sat on the bedside table. Propping herself up on the pillows she pulled the sheets over her legs and opened her book, resting it on her knees.

She had just finished a single page when she suddenly felt the mattress shift. Looking over she found Byakuya sitting, his back to her, staring out the window, in his dark pajamas.

"Are you going to read anything?" she asked trying to ease the sudden tension in the room.

"No," he simply replied and Rukia watched as he turned and slid his body under the covers. Rolling over, so that he was facing towards her, he started up at her with dark eyes.

"Are you going to be reading long, as its been a rather long day"

Rukia felt her face warm a bit at seeing him laying so close with his head resting on a soft pillow so close to her own.

"No its alright, I can stop now," and she closed her book and reached over to turn out the lamp. Byakuya did the same to his and the room was suddenly bathed in darkness.

Her eyes adjusted quickly and she was soon able to see the stars and moon which were visible though the large window. They were high enough that the lights and noises from the streets below didn't affect anything. She watched as the curtains shifted with the incoming breeze. Closing her eyes happily and sinking into the soft covers she suddenly felt the mattress move again, apparently he had rolled over.

"Good night, Rukia," came his deep voice from the other side of the pillow barrier.

"Good night, Nii-Sama," she replied quietly then smiled for some reason. Perhaps, just perhaps this vacation would be enjoyable after all.


The next morning Rukia woke to find the bed empty. Yawning, she sat up and stretched. Quickly making up the bed she went to the closet and picked out a new yellow halter top dress. She wasn't really used to showing that much skin, as her shoulders, arms, and most of her back was bare, but for some odd reason she felt like changing things up a bit. They were staying at a tropical resort after all and she figured there would most likely be woman walking around with a lot less on then she was. Her mind instinctively remembered the small bathing suit she had found in her bag yesterday.

Making a mental reminder to buy a different one here, she moved to the bathroom to freshen up.

---

Emerging from the bed room, she walked into the kitchen to find Byakuya sitting, absentmindedly eating a bowl of cereal, and reading the local newspaper.

"Anything interesting in the news?" she asked moving to the cupboard to reach for a bowl.

Byakuya glanced up and immediately his eyes widened at seeing her bare shoulders and back.

"What are you wearing?" he asked rather coldly when she approached the table and reached for the cereal box.

"Its just a summer dress," she said pouring milk on her cereal.

"I don't approve of you showing that much skin," he said.

Rukia glanced up. Byakuya had set the paper aside and was eyeing her over the top of his glass of orange juice.

She glanced away and shrugged a bare shoulder. "This is a hot climate," she said looking out the window. "I expect most are wearing a lot less then me."

She turned back to him to find his eyes still on her. Feeling her cheeks warm a fraction, she self consciously sat down and proceeded to fill her glass.

Much to her relief, Byakuya went back to his paper a moment later. The topic momentarily dropped.

"Can we go down to the market today ?" Rukia suddenly asked.

"If you want," he replied in his usual quiet tone.

"Great!" she exclaimed. "We can have lunch down there too! I've always wanted to try foreign food."

---

Rukia watched slightly fascinated as Byakuya locked up the door to their suite and placed the key in his pocket. Today he was simply dressed in a light powder blue button up shirt (which was only half way buttoned up) and his black jeans. Rukia, who was not yet completely used to seeing him this casual, couldn't help but stare at him every chance she got.

Stepping outside of the large hotel lobby they walked along the front street for a block then turned off and headed down a cobbled walking path. Fellow vacationers nodded in greeting and Rukia was quick to give a smile in return. Byakuya simply ignored everyone which was plainly why he didn't outwardly notice all the stares he got from the female population. Even in such regular clothing he was drop dead gorgeous.

"Wow, look at this place!"

Byakuya glanced over to his side where Rukia walked by him. She stared wide eyed at all the little shops as they walked down the street. Fellow vacationers milled about exploring the shops as well.

Rukia sighed happily and suddenly dashed over to a nearby stand to examine its contents. Byakuya stood for a moment watching her before walking over to join her.

"Ah, I see your interested in that lovely charm bracelet," came the voice of the woman running the stand. Rukia looked up into her smiling face. She had been staring at a rather pretty charm bracelet complete with a few bunny charms.

"How much is it?" she asked fingering it. Rukia wasn't a big jewelry fan but for some reason this one just caught and held her attention.

"Oh this ones not directly for sale."

"But you just said-"

"You buy the empty bracelet," the woman pointed to a box of plain silver chain bracelets. "Then you buy the charms you want and simply clip them to the bracelet. That way each is unique and special to you."

Rukia's eyes widened when the woman pointed to a large rotating display holding countless numbers of different charms. Right away her eyes spotted the desired bunny one she had seen on the display bracelet.

"I would recommend seven to ten charms per bracelet. To many more makes it to heavy."

Seeing the prices and knowing she had enough with her, Rukia began eyeing the charms. Byakuya stood calmly behind her, watching silently.

The woman handed her a small box and right away Rukia reached for the bunny one placing it inside. The rabbit one was followed by a silver snowflake, a red strawberry (Byakuya shifted uneasily when she had picked that one), and a tiny samurai sword.

"Oh, I just don't know which ones to get," Rukia complained looking at them all. She had picked out four already, as they had just jumped out at her.

"What about this one?" Byakuya suddenly asked moving up beside her and pointing to a pink charm that on closer appearance turned out to be a cherry petal.

She stared at it for a moment before beaming and adding it to her little box.

"Hmm, a few more…" she tapped her chin with a finger as she examined the stand.

"You can always come back later. I will have some new ones in a few days and, as far as I remember, there will be a new bunny one with that order."

Rukia looked up, her eyes excited. "Alright, I come back then again."

As the woman carefully clipped the five chosen charms to a bracelet Rukia quickly added the price up in her head.

She was reaching in her purse, which she had brought along, when Byakuya suddenly placed his hand on her shoulder. Looking up she stared in surprise as he pulled out his wallet and handed over the exact amount.

"Oh, what a generous boyfriend you have!" exclaimed the woman. She smiled happily and handed over the bracelet. Byakuya said nothing as he took the bracelet and, turning back around, gently held it out to her.

Rukia who had a light dusting of pink across her cheek bones took it gently in her hands before slipping it on her slender wrist.

"Thank you, nii-sama."

Byakuya stared thoughtfully at her for a moment, before turning and continuing on his way. Rukia gave her thanks to the woman then hurrying after him.

---

They stopped for lunch at noon. Eating at a small but comfortable open air restaurant.

"This is so lovely!" she exclaimed leaning back in her chair and staring up at the blue sunny sky.

"So, your happy we came?" he asked quietly.

"Yes, so far anyway. I admit I was nervous about the whole thing, but now I'm quite enjoying the change of pace. No more hollows, annoying stuffed animals, or uptight captains." Her eyes suddenly went wide. "Oh my goodness, I'm sorry Nii-Sama, I didn't mean-"

"That's quite alright," Byakuya said resting the urge to smile.

"So what are the plans for the coming weeks?"

"Nothing to particular," he replied quietly. "Although, there is a two day planned helicopter ride to tour other parts of the island that also involves staying over night at a traditional local heritage site."

"Oh, that sounds like fun!" she exclaimed, excited.

Byakuya frowned slightly. "When I say 'heritage site, I mean an old fashioned tropical open air hut and tourist site. I highly doubt that it will be very comfortable."

Rukia's smile faded a bit but only for a moment.

"It's only for one night though… and it can't be that bad if people regularly go there."

Byakuya remained silent.

"Um… Nii-sama? What's a helicopter?"

Byakuya sighed… again.


"Oh, can we stop here? I need to pickup a few things."

"A grocery store?" Byakuya asked looking up the large store sign.

"Yes, there are a few things that are missing that I need for cooking," she replied fishing around in her purse. "See I even made a list."

Byakuya stared down at the small piece of paper she had dug out from her purse.

"Alright," he replied. "do you want me to come with you?"

"Its alright, Nii-Sama. You'd probably find it quite boring. I won't be long either, its just a of couple things."

"Aright, I'll wait out here."

"Great," she exclaimed and hurried into the store.

Byakuya sat with a sigh on a bench at the entrance to the grocery store. Rukia had left her other bags with him, which sat beside him on the bench. Enjoying the cool breeze, he closed his eyes and simply enjoyed the calm warm breeze.

"Where's you little friend?" suddenly came the sound of a familiar woman's voice.

Byakuya's calm suddenly broke and he opened his eyes and openly allowed an annoyed expression on his face.

"Can I help you?" he asked his voice cold.

"I just asked where your friend was," said the same tall attractive woman that had approached them about the seating arrangements on the plane.

"That is none of your concern," he said.

She pouted then grinned, and much to his annoyance, sat down on the bench beside him.

"Why so serious? This is a place for fun, relaxation, and… meeting new and more exiting people." she winked at him.

Byakuya looked away, disgusted.

She smiled again. "Well if you change your mind, just give me a call. The names Mena." She offered a slip of paper to him, which Byakuya ignored, so she simply shrugged and slipped it into one of his bags. Smiling again she stood and turned, walking away with a swagger, her long blond hair swirling around her.

Closing his eyes and forcing the irritating woman from his thoughts, Byakuya forced himself to return to that happy calm place in his mind.

---

Rukia stepped out of the store about five minutes later. Byakuya simply couldn't help but raze an eyebrow at her numerous and heavy looking bags.

"I though you only had to get a few things?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I saw some very interesting things in there, and after finding a local cuisine cookbook, had to try out a few of them."

Byakuya sighed and motioned for her to give him the bags.

"Its alright," she said. "I can manage."

"Nonsense," he said reaching for them.

"Please, nii-sama, I can manage," Rukia chirped pulling them away from his reaching fingers.

He stared at her slightly surprised, as she moved off down the street. The bags were obviously hampering her and yet she had refused any help. He was not used to such stubbornness from her directly. She was always so meek around him, the complete opposite as she usually was, and seeing her behave more like her usual self now left him feeling more… at ease.

Blinking a few times, Byakuya pondered the slight change in their relationship… perhaps, he thought with the ghost of a smile, this trip wasn't all that bad.

"Are you coming, nii-sama?"

Byakuya blinked again coming out of his pondering with a jolt. Looking up he found her already some distance away. Sighing slightly, he lifted his own bags and hurried after her.

---

They had almost made it back to the hotel when the heavy load Rukia was carrying finally caught up with her.

She squealed when her foot suddenly slipped. Dropping her bags she fell back and closed her eyes preparing herself for the hard and painful landing. It never came.

Instead she found herself resting in a pair of strong arms. Tilting her head up she found herself staring up into the calm features of Byakuya Kuchiki.

With her face beet red she quickly pulled herself together and slipped from his arms.

"Are you alright?" he asked calmly as if nothing had happened.

"Yes, thank you nii-sama," she said gathering up her fallen bags and purposely not looking at him, her face still red.

Byakuya stared at her carefully before turning and looking towards the hotel.

"We should be getting back soon," he said.

"Alright," she smiled.

They continued on their way, but no matter how hard she tried, Rukia could not get the feeling of being so close to him out of her mind. It had been only for a moment, but even in that short amount of time she had distinctly become aware of how wonderful he smelled and how comforting it was to be in those arms.

Shaking her head she focused her attention on her surroundings and tried to momentarily forget about the man that was walking silently beside her.


It was only when they returned to their quarters did Byakuya began to notice the odd shade of her exposed skin. Moving over to her he suddenly placed his cool hand on her shoulder. He winced (and she jumped) at the hot feeling of her skin.

"You've got quite the sun burn already," Byakuya muttered staring at her red shoulders.

"Crap!" Rukia exclaimed, then clamped a hand over her mouth before muttering an apology to a slight surprised Byakuya. She then turned, moaning slightly when she saw her red skin.

"I told you that wouldn't be the best thing to wear," Byakuya said.

She glared at his retreating back. Wincing, she gently eased herself into a chair and sighed, knowing she was in for a world of pain.

"Here, this should help," Byakuya said, returning to a kitchen and carrying something in his hands.

"What is it?"

"A cream, that will ease your discomfort."

"Oh, thanks." She reached for it but he held it back.

"Allow me," he said.

Rukia blushed scarlet as he squeezed some of the cream onto his hands and gently touched it to her shoulder. Hearing a sharp intake of breath from Rukia, Byakuya winced slightly in sympathy but continued, gently but firmly rubbing it across her shoulders and down her red arms.

"Lift your hair," he instructed. Rukia nervously did so, and he continued rubbing the cooling cream across her neck and down her bare back. It had hurt bad, when he had first began but the lotion was quickly cooling her hot skin. She was extremely tense at first as well but as Byakuya worked the cream into her skin she relaxed and closed her eyes, simply enjoying the feeling of his hands on her flesh. They were soft and gentle (despite his firm kneading) and for some odd reason caused her to relax almost immediately. A happy sigh even left her lips before she could stop it.

So relaxed she was, that she didn't notice his startled look at hearing her happy sigh. Byakuya finished quickly, as he was slowly starting to grow uncomfortable, and replaced the cap on the lotion.

"Next time you go out your putting sunscreen on," he said stiffly.

"Alright." she said meekly glancing back at his frowning face. "Thank you nii-sama."

"Just don't let it happen again."

"I won't" she said watching as he left the room.

Byakuya returned a few moments later carrying her grocery bags. Seeing them, she immediately jumped up and took them, digging around in them as she walked to the counter.

"What all did you buy?" he asked, slightly curious.

"Oh, just some of this and some of that," she muttered removing stuff from the bags and putting it mostly in the fridge.

"That wasn't the best answer," he replied, moving to look into one of the bags. Immediately his eyebrows shot up.

"Rukia, what is the meaning of this?!" he asked, more then a little disgruntled.


Teehee, oh what could Rukia have bought that could have raised Byakuya's hackles so much. ^^ Well you'll all just have to wait for the next chapter to find out again.

For those of you who are fans of my art this fanfict has also inspired me to do some more Byakuya drawings. One has been posted in my DA gallery (a link can be found on my profile page) and features a modernly dressed Byakuya sitting in, what could possibility be, the hotel room featured in this story. I just thought I'd mention it here as well, encase some of my readers haven't seen it yet….

Anyway, A big thanks to: Electra Red, blue. Ocjian, black armors, LilyGirl101, Scarlettsky, sairypetshotgun, 1SuperKawaii, MeoSua, Frozenhowl, ByaRukifan, Yuniee, Kuchiki Rukia-taichou, Dayanara, and Elanor1187 who took the time again to review my previous chapter. Big hugs to you guys!

Until next time.