This is fucking awesome.

Ichigo thought, proudly, that his life was fucking awesome.

Since the Kurosaki clinic served patients on an emergency-only basis, business was dependent on how unfortunate Karakura townsfolk were for the day. Luckily for its orange-haired chief doctor, today was an exceptionally slow one. After Jushiro left, no one else came by except for a young boy accompanied by his mother in the afternoon who needed to be treated for minor abrasions after he fell off his bike. It should have been a boring, almost ritualistic walk-in for Ichigo to get through.

Unsurprisingly, it was difficult to concentrate with Rukia in a nurse outfit just an arm's length away.

If he really wanted to, he could reach out and pull her into a crushing kiss.

Nah.

Too inappropriate.

He patched up the kid properly, but it was a less than stellar job. Not like the mom seemed to mind though. If anything, the poor lady seemed to know exactly why Ichigo was so distracted. As soon as she herself entered the clinic with her son, her jaw dropped at the sight of Rukia.

The vampire in disguise was really something to gawk at. With pale skin reminiscent of the moon's glow, the blushing pink of the nurse's uniform (that the Kurosakis had in storage just in case they wanted to hire help) suited Rukia to an almost criminal perfection. Long, midnight hair cascaded down her back and every motion of those pitch black waves brought Ichigo's attention to the most stunning pair of jewel-toned seas that gazed with affection. He thought she looked like royalty.

But rather than a crown, a nurse's cap would have to do for now.

On top of her pleasant features, the sexual tension in the air was impossible to ignore. Every time Rukia "accidentally" brushed up against her pseudo-boss, Ichigo would drop the bandages he was trying to wrap around the boy's knees or bite his lip in such a way that it was a wonder how he didn't bust it right open. Plus, Rukia's too-familiar-for-just-an-employee way of addressing her supposed boss was suspicious. Although Ichigo knew that his patient's mother was had a million questions at the back of her head, he didn't care to hide any of the telltale signs of his and his new wife's relationship.

It was difficult to care about anything or anyone else with Rukia around.

When the kid and his mother left, Ichigo let out a drawn-out sigh.

'What's wrong, Ichigo?'

The clinician tilted his head to acknowledge that he had heard Rukia. Their eyes met, and he couldn't help but smile at her. She gave him a small smile back, though the uncertainty in her gaze exposed how nervous she was about what was going on in his head.

'Nothing's wrong.' he answered. 'It's just hard to concentrate when you're around me.'

'Oh...'

'That's a good thing!' he exclaimed. He forgot that she didn't seem to understand implications. He wondered if all vampires were as dense as she was. Not that he minded, though. He thought that it added to her charm. 'It's hard to concentrate with you around because I can only focus on you. You're just...' Beautiful? Why couldn't he get himself to say it even though it couldn't be more true? His heart was beating a mile a minute and he wasn't sure he had enough blood rushing to his brain for it to function properly. 'You're great, Rukia.'

That pleased her. She smiled sweetly, and her cheeks flushed prettily with the most flattering shade of pink.

'A-Anyway...' he whipped his head way from her because his own face burned with boyish delight. 'Thanks for your help. I'm glad that today isn't so busy, though. I don't want you to have a lot of work to do.'

'Darling...' she cooed, and his groin jumped for joy. 'I'm always going to help you from now on. It's my duty to you as your wife.'

As much as he'd love for that to be true, he knows that the idea of her staying with him for all eternity as his actual wife was outrageous. After all, she wasn't even human. Again, not that he minded, but after that crash course on supernatural history that Renji gave earlier on in the day, Ichigo was sure that there were going to be heavy consequences if he continued on with Rukia.

What's more is that Ichigo didn't take marriage lightly. It was humiliating, almost, how he often fantasized about getting married in front of the altar with the love of his life dressed in white.

Even though Rukia was lovely in a white sundress, it wasn't really what he'd envisioned.

He wanted love.

He wanted it to be meaningful.

As fun as this fling was, it was just that; a one-night stand with an attractive woman he'd brought home for brief, mutually agreed-upon adult fun. He certainly didn't expect to get hitched that very same evening to a strange, albeit interesting, woman.

Again.

Not that he minded, but he had a nagging feeling that he should fucking mind.

'Rukia... You know that you can't stay here forever, right?'

Her face fell. 'W-What? Why not?'

His expression was unreadable as he spoke. 'Well, the whole situation's just weird. I'm just a human being, and I didn't even know that I was proposing to you when I bit you... I just thought it was a sexy thing to do. I guess you could say that I was caught up in the moment. But believe me, I really didn't mean to get us into this mess. Besides, remember what Renji was saying? Your vampire friends aren't gonna be happy if you stay with me.'

'Ichigo...' she tried to feign composure, but it was impossible when her chest felt like something was trying to claw its way out of it. 'What are you saying?'

'Come on. You know what I'm saying.'

'Is what you're saying what you want?' she whispered sadly. 'Do you want me to leave you? I will, if you want me to.'

He tried taking her hand in his, but she moved away from his touch. That stung way more than it should have. His scowl deepened, and there was no way for him to disguise the visible pain in his eyes of being rejected by this woman. For some unknown reason, he had already built an emotional connection with her. However small it was, it was still there. The more he fought to suppress it, the harder it hit him right back. 'I don't want you to leave, Rukia. I'm just saying that maybe you should.'

'Says who?'

'Says Renji. Says your vampire people. Says apparent centuries of distaste between your people and mine.'

'But what do we say?'

'That doesn't matter.' he rubbed the back of his neck because this conversation was turning out to be more difficult than he anticipated it would be.

'Of course it matters! We're the ones who have to live with what we decide to do!'

'Just think about our situation for a second... Does any of this makes sense?'

'It does to me.' she jutted her chin out proudly. He chuckled at her endearing defiance, and her heart fluttered seeing as she had pleased him. When she spoke again, her voice was lower and more serious. 'I feel a lot of things for you, Ichigo, and I know I'll regret it forever if I don't act on them.'

'It's not that I don't feel things for you...' he reached for her hand again, and this time, she allowed him to take it. Emotional blues flew up to meet his passionately half-lidded gaze, and he thought for sure that he'd pass out from the deafening pounding of his heart. He thought it was going to punch out of his chest at any second now. He might as well just rip it out and hand it over to this woman on a platter.

'So what's the problem?'

'We just met last night, Rukia. This doesn't make sense. No matter how much I like you, it still doesn't make sense.'

'I want to be by your side because you make me feel something that no man has ever made me feel.' she gave his fingers a squeeze before bringing his palm up to just above her heart. He could feel the surprising warmth of her skin and the steady drumming of a heart he was relieved to find beating. 'I know this whole situation is weird, but I don't regret a moment of it because every moment is spent with you.'

Overcome with something akin to connection, he brought his other hand up to her face so that he was now cupping both her cheeks. He studied her for any sign of insincerity, but there was none to be found. He understood her logic. Just because what they did was impulsive, irresponsible, and totally stupid, their feelings for each other still stood strong. Despite what other people may say, they were happy with each other at this moment - and that could mean that they could be happy together in the long run, no matter what they ended up becoming.

She had a good point.

Sold!

He didn't say anything, so she took that as a sign that he wasn't buying her shit. With sad eyes, she began in a soft voice. 'I don't want to leave you. But if you want me to, I can. Thank you for the wonderful day, Ichigo. I'm sorry that I couldn't make you feel the same way you made me-'

Before she could finish her sentence, he pulled her into a firm embrace. Her face was pressed up just below his chest, and warm, muscular arms wrapped around her shoulders tightly. Paralyzed from shock, she could do nothing but experience the overwhelming surge of emotions that ricocheted through her in random intervals of relief, happiness, and sadness that this might be the last time he holds her in his arms.

When she finally gathers herself, her hands slide up his back. She inhales his clean, masculine scent deeply and it's surprising how much she enjoys the minty spice of his cologne. Her fingers dig into his back, like she wants to root herself to him. Tears prickle her eyes. She mentally curses the inconvenient human heart she inherited from her mother. How could she be so attached to this man?

His hands move from behind her to her face, cupping it again so that he can tilt her to look at him. Without further ado, he bends down to give her the softest kiss they've shared thus far. So soft, in fact, that the neediness of her humanity hums, wanting more of this miraculously therapeutic touch that he gives her.

The scars of rejection and loneliness she's suffered all throughout her existence; how can he so easily kiss them to calmness?

'Thank you...' she whispers against his lips. 'For these memories. I'll cherish them.'

'Sure.' he kisses her forehead and once more wraps his arms around her. 'Let's make some more. Memories, I mean.'

Her face lights up. She tries not to sound too excited. 'What do you mean?'

'You're right. I like you, Rukia. You're fun. You're weird as hell and I fucking love it. If I let you slip through my fingers... I'll regret that.'

She jumps up, snakes her arms around his neck, and pulls him into an eager kiss. He bends to lift her up by the thighs and plops her onto the reclining chair where patients usually sit. She lays down and he curls over her, not once breaking their kiss. She's gasping for air which he won't let her have. His tongue is relentlessly pushing against hers as though he wants to dig into her, and his lips are so bruisingly pressed against hers that their teeth click here and there. The kiss is sloppy and unchoreographed, but he loves every minute of their unpredictable wildness.

'I-Ichigo...!' she forcibly turns her head to the side to take in a big gulp of oxygen. 'My chest... My heart is beating so fast, I think it's going to explode...!'

'Well, baby girl...' he calls her by the first nickname he bestows upon her and she feels a tightness in her abdomen at her newfound title. 'I think you should see the doctor about that.'

She bites her lip at his suggestion. 'You're right. I think I do need to see you, doctor.'

'Yeah baby, I bet you do.' he breathed hotly into her ear. He presses his body on her, his full weight against her like he wants to burn every inch of himself onto her. She feels the weight of his impressive bulge against her stomach, and she involuntarily gasps at the promise of an encore from last night.

'Ah, Ichigo-'

'Ichi-nii!' Karin Kurosaki can't contain herself when she and her twin, Yuzu, walk into the clinic to find Ichigo with a strange new woman. 'What the hell are you doing?!'


'I've heard so many things about your sister.' Ulquiorra Cifer mused in his perpetual monotony as he strolled through the dead forest of the castle with the Captain of the vampires. The vegetation consisted of ashy barks and branches, not a single leaf in sight - which was understandable, considering that an enchantment over the lair ensured that no sunlight could penetrate the palace grounds.

'Good things, I hope.' Byakuya Kuchiki snipped. 'I do apologize that she is nowhere to be found today. As I am sure you know, Rukia has a terrible habit of running off.'

'She does have a reputation for being a mischievous one.'

The nobleman winced at that. 'Believe me, though my word contradicts our current situation - Rukia is not a bad child. I believe that her misbehaviour boils down to a desire to find that which she feels she lacks in her current existence.'

'And what is it that you think she so insistently seeks?'

'That is...'

'A husband?'

Byakuya remained stoic, but there was a noticeable shift in her energy. His normally icy demeanour thawed darkly to reveal a glimmer of murderous fire. Offence had been taken from Ulquiorra's very forward suggestion that Rukia craved a lover, and Byakuya was not going to let anyone insult his daughter's womanhood like that. As the older man took in a breath for what was going to be the start of an enraged tirade, Ulquiorra quickly (and smartly) interjected.

'Do not misunderstand me, Kuchiki-sama. I wasn't trying to insult her, or you. It is a common emptiness that most sentient beings feel when they reach the peak of their adolescence; the need to be loved. You yourself found happiness in that with your late wife. You can't blame Rukia for wanting the same.'

'Rukia is not as weak as I was to give in to love.' Byakuya spat the last word out like it physically hurt him to say. 'She is a disciplined Kuchiki representative. I made sure to teach her from the very beginning that love is just another abstract concept developed by humans to rationalize their dysfunctional relationships.'

'She might still want it.'

'No.' Byakuya was adamant. 'She could never.'

'Therefore, am I to assume that my arranged marriage to her will be purely out of convenience?' Ulquiorra almost sounded offended by the implication in Byakuya's argument against indulgence in love. 'Would it not make you happy for me to make Rukia happy? Does love not make one happy?'

'Please.' Byakuya stopped in his tracks and so did his companion. The head of the Kuchiki clan gazed upon the younger man with wisdom that thinly concealed an uncertainty beneath deadly greys orbs that reflected melancholy from the perpetual moonlight of the vampiric sky. 'There are so many comforts of life that bring us happiness that have nothing to do with love. I am not saying that Rukia does not have the capacity to have a meaningful relationship with you as man and woman. I am just not counting on it. That is all.'

Ulquiorra scoffed. 'Well, I'm going to prove you wrong. Now that I've gotten your blessing to court her, I will make sure that not a day goes by where I don't plant a smile on her face.'

'You are quite taken with her, I see.'

'She's beautiful.'

'That, she is!' a third voice joined the conversation, and both Byakuya and Ulquiorra turned on their heels to come face-to-face with none other than Jushiro Ukitake; one of the few vampires who have decided to no longer feed on humans based on compassionate reasons, resulting in their group developing a relatively bad case of anemia. These non-feeding vampires gained a great level of respect from the vampire community due to their self-control. Though he would never openly admit it, even Byakuya was impressed that Jushiro was self-sacrificing enough to endure perpetual fatigue for the sake of human comfort.

'While I am pleased that a respectable man like yourself has praise for my sister, I wonder how are you able to make that assumption. If I recall correctly, Ukitake, you have not seen Rukia since she was an infant.'

'If you let her out of the castle once in a while, maybe I would!' Jushiro laughed heartily. 'You used to lock her up in there! At least now she's able to sneak away once in a while...'

Byakuya narrowed his eyes. 'What do you mean, Ukitake?'

'I just saw her, in the human territory. She was with her husband! Great guy, by the way!'


'We leave for a few days, and you get married?!' Karin was livid. She was overprotective of her brother and didn't take it lightly when he made stupid decisions like this. Although she didn't get a bad feeling from Rukia, the whole situation was just odd.

Was Rukia pregnant?

Or rich?

Hmm.

'W-Well...' Yuzu was trying to keep her cool. She knew that Karin could be a bit overwhelming, so she was trying really hard not to show how panicked she was inside. The last thing anyone needed right now was for Rukia to feel unwelcome or antagonized, especially if she really was Ichigo's new wife. 'Are you all settled in, Rukia-chan? You weren't here when we were around a few days ago, so I guess you're still in the process of moving in?'

'Oh, do I get to stay here? In this house?' Rukia wondered aloud, and Ichigo sank lower in his seat.

'Unless you guys also have a place we don't know about.' Karin muttered under her breath.

Rukia quirked a brow.

'Look.' Ichigo interjected, aware of how nervous both his sisters were at the presence of an essential stranger in their household. 'We all get off on the wrong foot here. Rukia and I married just last night. I didn't mean to hide it from you guys, I just didn't have time to warn you.'

'Didn't have time?' Karin fumed. 'When did you start dating anyway?!'

'Last night.' he stated blankly and he almost roared with laughter at how absurd it all sounded aloud.

'Oh, so you think this is funny, huh?' Karin nearly punched her brother, but Yuzu did her best to quell her sister's rage.

'No, this isn't funny.' Rukia said solemnly. All eyes flew to her. The young (?) vampire felt a little nervous to have all the attention on her, but she forced herself to say all that she had to. This situation was getting out of hand. She understood the position of the Kurosaki sisters and she wanted to apologize for how hard this was on everyone. 'I'm sorry. This happened all of a sudden and I never got to properly meet you both before Ichigo and I married each other. That was wrong and I'm so, so sorry. But I've fallen in love with Ichigo and want to spend the rest of my life with him. I hope that you can understand that.'

Moved by Rukia's declaration of love, Yuzu was on the verge of tears. Though Karin was certainly more composed than her sister, she couldn't deny that she, too, felt a tug at her heart strings. After a moment's silence, she let out a loud sigh and continued. 'Sorry, Rukia-chan. I was just shocked, that's all. Ichi-nii's been hurt before and I never want to see him go through that again. I just hope that whatever's going on between you two will make you both happy.'

Rukia smiled, though she wondered when it was that Ichigo was supposedly hurt by someone in the past. Before she could inquire, Yuzu broke into the conversation.

'So, Rukia-chan!' Yuzu beamed. 'Are you hungry? To celebrate, I'll make you anything you want! Just tell me what you fancy!'

'No need to cook!' Rukia happily declared before she turned to her husband, wrapped an arm around his neck, and dug into its pulsating vein with pointed, glistening fangs.

The Kurosaki twins screamed.

Ichigo didn't even care anymore.

'Chill.' he told his sisters, but that didn't seem to help much.


A/N: Thank you to everyone supporting this story!

Thank you to Amethyst hazel, RukiYuki, Kidzin, anon, Kevvy Talks, kleinegirl87, FlynnChan, IchiRuki 4vr, jobananasan, Zangetsu50, Notsae, and the Guest reviewers!

Kidzin, oh I'm sorry! I misunderstood you. Vampirism will work like an infection in this story, but not to Ichigo - and that will be the centre of the plot!

anon, Renji's reaction was more about his selfishness at being beaten to the punch rather than the welfare of the vampires.

kleinegirl87, yes, Rukia has been sexually active before with another vampire! Yes, she's fed on Hisana and Kaien. Renji wanted to marry Rukia "the human way"; through a proper, procedural marriage rather than neck biting. Byakuya is coming!

Guest, Rukia never fed from Ukitake! Ahh thank you so much for your support, it means so much to me!

jobananasan, Byakuya was hurt by Hisana and doesn't want Rukia to experience that same pain. On the other hand, he takes his unresolved frustrations with his wife out on his daughter as well, which isn't OK, but will be addressed as the plot progresses.

Zangetsu50, yes! Please do. Thanks for your support and kind words!

Thanks so much, everyone!

Working hard on the next chapter for you guys!