Ah, I'm so late! T_T I only thought it had gone for three months, but then I looked at the update time and saw that it was four, and I freaked out! I'm so sorry, I'm such a bad person...but I finally bring an update! :) This chapter has some IchiHime, just warning those of you who might not be cool with that pairing, so...Enjoy!
One in a Million: Chapter 7
"Here we are," said Rukia as she led her redheaded boyfriend through the doors of her favorite cafe, their hands interlocked as a 'ding!' sound came from the bell above the door, signaling their arrival. A few stray customers littered the small joint, a young couple chatting as they nibbled at a pizza, and a man-he looked about their age-pounding on the keys of a laptop, as his no doubt freezing coffee cup sat beside him, forgotten. And then, of course, there was Orihime...and a guy. Rukia's brow crinkled.
"Oi, Orihime," called Rukia, being sure not to shout too loudly; the last thing she wanted was to disturb the quiet atmosphere of the place. Said woman looked up from the mystery man whom she was chatting with, and then she waved a hand in her direction, signaling that she wanted them to come over.
"Come on, Rukia-san!" she encouraged. Rukia, perplexed, abandoned her grip on Renji's hand to walk over to the couple, taking a seat directly next to Orihime. Not surprisingly, Renji followed suit without hesitation, plopping down across from her and next to the guy.
"Kuchiki-san, Abarai-kun..." she said anxiously, looking back and forth at them both, "This is my new boyfriend!" she spread her arms and stretched them towards the man, as if presenting him to an audience. Rukia's eyebrow raised, halfway between suspicion and surprise, while Renji just sat there, perplexed, an aura of confusion emanating from him. And the guy...well, his hair was spiked out all over the place, and colored a bright orange that drew your eye to it almost immediately. He was looking at the new arrivals coldly, almost hatefully, a deep scowl crossing his face as he glared in their direction.
"Oh, Ichigo-kun, don't look so mean!" cried Orihime before either Renji or Rukia could grow angry enough to knock the guy into next week. "You were laughing and smiling with me just a minute ago! What happened?" 'Ichigo-kun' looked to the side, away from the rest of the party, and seemed to think for a minute. Either he decided to cede with Orihime, or he just realized that he was being rude, because his head turned towards their direction again, and the side of his mouth quirked upward into an awkward and obviously-forced smile.
"Kurosaki Ichigo," he said simply, holding his hand out to Rukia. He was forcing a relatively nice tone out, and it almost looked like doing so caused him pain. At least he's trying... thought Rukia, deciding that she wouldn't beat him up. At least not now. The matter, she conceded to herself, needed more consideration. So she simply grasped his hand, shaking it and putting on a smile(a very easy thing regardless of her mood, thanks to her superb acting skills.) She did, however, talk in her normal voice, not bothering to break out her high-pitched good girl one.
When Ichigo turned to Renji, though, it was a very different story. The taller male was glaring straight back at the orange-haired man, unwilling to come to any kind of compromise without a fight. Suddenly, the redhead felt a sharp kick to the shin, and his eyes flitted over to his raven-haired girlfriend, whose death glare plainly said, 'Suck. It. The fuck. Up.' Renji growled slightly, before gulping and forcing his mouth into a smile. It was actually quite amusing to witness the two men(who obviously wanted to go outside and beat the crap out of each other)commanding civil behavior upon themselves. Orihime's smile drooped.
"I'm sorry about Ichigo-kun, Rukia," apologized Orihime. "He's normally really happy when he and I are together, but whenever someone else comes around, he gets all grumpy like this..." Rukia touched her friend's hand soothingly, shaking her head.
"It's okay, Orihime..." she reassured. "It's not like you can control his behavior, and besides...Renji's not acting any better, so we're even." Neither of the women seemed to care that the very people they were chatting about were only two feet away from them, and the two men were giving them looks crossed between disbelief and indignation.
"I'm acting fine!" protested Renji. "This guy started it!" He jerked a thumb in the direction of Ichigo, who's eyes narrowed threateningly at the man.
"I'm not the one who barged in and just interrupted a conversation!" argued Ichigo back, the two men's faces nearing.
"Whaddaya mean, 'barge in?'" exclaimed Renji. "Rukia and I were supposed to come here! The girls had it all set up!" Both men turned their looks on the women across from them, and Orihime blushed.
"I-I'm sorry..." she said, her head bowing as her eyes began to tear up. "It's just, I was having so much fun with Ichigo-kun that I forgot to mention it...please forgive me!" She bowed forward a bit more towards them, hands fisting in her lap. Before Renji could make anything of the situation, Ichigo had rushed to his girlfriend's side, kneeling on the ground as he tried to comfort her.
"It's alright, Hime..." he cooed, rubbing her arm. "I'm not mad, alright?" Said woman looked up, using her finger to wipe away a tear as she stared him in the eyes.
"Oh, Ichigo-kun...you're so good to me!" She practically leapt forward into his arms, embracing him, arms moving to wrap tightly around his neck as her chin met his shoulder.
And as Renji and Rukia watched the two on the ground, they both thought only one thing: ...Huh?
"Uh...we''ll just leave, okay, Orihime?" asked Rukia, feeling a bit awkward as she watched the somewhat personal moment unfold before her. Almost instantly, Orihime broke away from her boyfriend, giving Rukia a look of apology.
"No, you don't have to go, Kuchiki-san...I promise that Ichigo-kun won't act up again..." She looked almost sad, and Rukia certainly didn't want that going on any longer.
"No, it's alright, really..." assured the shorter girl. "I'm not even really hungry, and I think that Renji and I should leave you guys to yourselves." Orihime, though with a bit of doubt still present in her eyes, nodded her consent, and not a second later, Rukia was up out of her chair, not bothering to even push it back in as she dragged Renji out of the shop by his hand.
"But I'm hungry..." whined the redhead as they got further and further from the front door. At this, Rukia sighed, knowing that she wouldn't have any peace until they ate.
"Are you happy now?" asked Rukia as she and Renji took seats beside one another on the 3rd row of bleachers bordering the old baseball diamond. The diamond, which was normally used for little league games, was desolate today, the only commotion going on being the team of kids practicing in the rather large grass field that surrounded the diamond, so as not to wear out the already-ancient dirt.
"Hell yeah!" exclaimed Renji as his girlfriend handed him his sandwich, which he instantly began unwrapping. Rukia just rolled her eyes in amusement, knowing that his big appetite was just a side effect of what a large guy he was. She, on the other hand, almost never complained about being hungry, since, naturally, being in a wealthy family meant that she always had plenty of food, not to mention the fact that she was much smaller than the average woman.
Suddenly, a baseball, in all its glory, came flying over the bleachers from behind them, and landed near the edge of the bottom set of seats. They stared at it for a moment, dumbfounded, before there was a loud shout from the direction where the children were practicing.
"Oi! Is there anyone over there that can toss that ball back over?" Followed by the yell was the faint voice of another person, saying, 'I'm not sure if anyone is back there, Shunsui...' At the name, Renji perked up, dropping his sandwich as, in one fluid motion, he leapt down to the ground after a small readjustment of position, then scooping up the ball and scurrying back up the bleachers, two at a time, obviously aiming to reach the top. Rukia, stunned by the sudden movement beside her, snapped out of her confusion when she noticed Renji running back up. She scrambled, food forgotten, turning around and following him up as fast as she could, though she was restricted from traveling two steps at a time due to the shortness of her legs, especially when compared to his.
"Slow down, you ape!" she called, panting, but it didn't even seem like he noticed her demand, as he continued up at a fast pace, reaching the top in no time. And Rukia, herself, was at the peak of the bleachers just in time to have her idiot boyfriend scream at the top of his lungs.
"HEY COACHES! REMEMBER ME?" It was a happy yell, sure, but that didn't change the fact that Rukia's hands practically flew to the sides of her head to guard her ears from the noise. She cringed, glaring at him evilly. And just as she was about to shout at him again, the people from the ground spoke.
"Renji?" asked the one with long, white hair. "Is that really you-who am I kidding, of course it's you! After all, there is only one person around that has that hair!" Rukia moved her hands down, now looking at Renji, not with anger, but with confusion painting her features.
"They're my old coaches from little league!" he whispered excitedly. "I didn't know they were still coaching!" It was obvious that he was elated to see these guys, so Rukia restrained herself from starting a shouting match in front of them. Instead she looked down with him, to see the two men. The one that hadn't spoken to Renji, for some reason, wore a traditional sunhat, and wore his dark hair in a flowing ponytail. They both wore the team's uniform, and the one with white hair was wearing a baseball cap to match.
"Yo, Renji, is that a lady friend you have with you up there?" asked the one with the sunhat. Before either individual could answer, he continued, "Sorry if we...interrupted anything." The statement was followed by a wink, causing both Renji and Rukia to go red in an instant.
"Don't tease them, Shunsui," said the other man to his colleague, and then he smiled up at the both of them warmly.
"Miss, I'm Juushiro Ukitake," he called to them. "It's a pleasure to meet you." Rukia's blush faded a bit, before she replied,
"Thank you. I'm Rukia Kuchiki. Nice to meet you." She would've done a quick bow if she was in the position to. "And, actually...I'm Renji's girlfriend." She smiled, and the dark-haired man said,
"Well, miss Rukia, I'm Shunsui Kyouraku. And, if I may say so, you seem to be a lovely young lady." He removed his hat, then performing a deep bow before gracefully rising back up and replacing his hat in one fluid motion. Rukia didn't know whether to be flattered or creeped out, what with the way this man was going about his compliments, but nevertheless, she answered with a, 'Nice to meet you!'
"Are you flirting again?" came an angry female voice from nearby. Out of the shadow of a tree came the owner of the voice, and by the looks of it she was an assistant coach. A very furious assistant coach.
"H-Hello, Nanao-chan!" called Shunsui back to her, obviously flustered. "Y-You've got it all wrong, you see, I was simply introducing myself, and I happened to notice how very nice this young lady looked-"
"-GIVE ME A BREAK!" roared the woman, her dark, done-up hair bouncing slightly as she snatched the man's ear, dragging him into the shadows from whence she had came, and no doubt planning to give him the lecture of a lifetime.
"Sorry about that," said Ukitake awkwardly to Renji and Rukia, drawing the couple's attention away from the scene that had just occurred. "Nanao's the new assistant coach, and she's really been cracking down on Shunsui's, um...'politeness to women.'" Renji smirked at that, as the co-coach had always been an obvious ladies' man.
"What happened to Lisa?" asked the redhead, remembering that, when he had played on the team, she had been the second-in-command coach.
"Lisa? She went off to college a couple years back. We do miss her, but Nanao is doing a fine job in her place. And, Renji, if I may ask, could I have the ball back?" The question was asked with utmost politeness, and reminded Renji of the baseball in his hand, an object he had forgotten about some time ago.
"'Course!" he beamed, tossing it down. Ukitake deftly caught the projectile, then throwing it back towards the group of children just behind him so they could resume practice.
"Perfect aim as always, Abarai!" complimented Ukitake, and after a 'thanks!' from Renji, the couple left, this time walking down the bleachers as they returned to their food.
"You do realize that you probably messed up your sandwich when you dropped it, right, Renji?" One look at the scattered food item on the floor of the bleachers was enough to confirm her suspicions.
"...SHIT!"
As soon as Rukia turned the handle to the front door of her home and stepped inside, she was engulfed by a tall shadow, and when she looked up, she found it to be the shadow of none other than her brother-in-law. As always, his face remained cold, hands buried in the pockets of his business suit as he stared down at her. Before she could get a word in, he spoke flatly,
"Your sister wishes to see you, Rukia." He turned, walking up the first flight of stairs, and Rukia didn't need to be told to follow him. However, the whole situation was a quandary to her. It was very rare for her sister to summon people, especially herself, into a room to speak with her. Normally, Hisana would, herself, travel to where other people were to discuss things with them. A flash of fear went through Rukia, as the thought struck that Hisana's health may have taken a turn for the worse, which was very bad, since the woman already became sick easily and often.
"What's the matter?" she asked her brother, swallowing hard, and trying to hide her tremendous trepidation. She received no answer, and then the man stopped abruptly, turning to face her. The movement snapped the small girl from her thoughts, making her realize that they were right beside her sister's door. Without a word, Rukia slipped in immediately, closing the door softly as she gazed at her sister, who was sitting up on the edge of her and Byakuya's bed.
"Rukia," spoke Hisana softly, as her younger sibling took a seat beside her on the soft mattress, "Did Byakuya-sama tell you why I wanted to talk to you?" Said woman shook her head.
"No...he just told me that you needed to see me...is something wrong, nee-san? Are you feeling okay?" Rukia's eyes flooded with worry, as she took hold of her sister's hand with concern. Hisana let out a small laugh.
"No, nothing of that nature, my dear sister,"she assured with a smile. "There's nothing wrong, I promise. But there is something important we have to discuss."
"What is it, nee-san?" asked Rukia with a curious face.
"Well...you have been involved with Abarai-san for almost a month now, correct?" Rukia nodded, her mind starting to conjure up all the possible ways this conversation could go.
"And he is the first man you have taken a liking to during the meetings?" Another nod, and then Hisana took a deep breath, as if she were about to tell her sister something very difficult.
"Now, before I ask you this, Rukia, I want you to know-I really, really want you to know-that I only ask this under the clan's demands. The last thing in the world I want is to pressure you, so I beg of you, please, don't feel that this is something you have to do against your will. You have to promise me that your answer will be only what you yourself truly want." Rukia looked away from her sister a minute, searching the floor as she contemplated the older woman's words.
"A-Alright," she whispered, knowing what the question was to be. "I promise."
"Do you think...do you think that there is any possibility that Abarai-san may be...the man you wish to marry?" Yep. Rukia had known it. And, upon hearing the statement, she was suddenly reminded of the reality of her situation. Since her relationship with Renji had started, she had forgotten...she had forgotten about the reason she was seeing him, forgotten about what their ultimate end was meant to be. All that had mattered was that they were together, and happy. That was, until now. Now, she was being forced to think about reality again, and her mind was an absolute jumble.
"...I..." It was all she could bring herself to say, that one syllable. She tried to think about it, tried to think about what her answer was, but her brain refused to work.
"Remember your promise," said Hisana quietly, reaching an arm up and wrapping it about her sister's shoulders. "I swear to you that no details of what you tell me will leave this room, only your blatant answer: yes, no, or maybe. I won't even tell Byakuya-sama anything." And suddenly, Rukia seemed to relax, her body loosening in the older woman's grasp as she realized that this was not a matter she could allow her mind to dictate. So, instead of letting her head work out an answer, she took a deep breath, and let her emotions flood in, breaking the dam that her thoughts had made. Her hand came up to cover Hisana's. Looking said woman straight in the eye with a confident smile, she answered, without a single stutter or hesitation,
"Yes, I think so."
Renji walked down one of the long hallways of his large house, approaching the den where his aunt spent most of her time. His aim was to inform her that he was home, and he was surprised to hear unfamiliar voices coming from behind the door as he neared it. Stopping before the shoji, he leaned towards it, though not letting his ear touch the screen.
"You told me I had a month," came the obviously-irritated, muffled voice of Unohana. Renji's brow furrowed as he heard this. A month for what?
"She is becoming restless, Miss Unohana," came a male voice, one that Renji had never heard before. Who the hell was 'she'? Renji's curiosity was beginning to peak, that was until he heard the next statement.
"I told you once already, I will not allow her to have contact with him! Renji's mother will only make his life hell!" At that, the redhead's eyes widened to platters, and he felt his knees become weak. His mother was dead! She had died when he was 2, just like his father...he didn't want to believe it, didn't want to believe that he had been lied to for 18 years, but...
"Miss Unohana, must I remind you that, since Mr. Abarai is over 18, there are no legal issues concerning-" The man was cut off as Renji slid the door open in a flash, staring at his aunt, and two other men in suits with disbelief and horror painting his features. His eyes immediately flashed to Unohana, and it showed plainly on her face that she was overcome with guilt.
"Renji..."
END OF CHAPTER 7
Hope you all enjoy cliffhangers! But, yeah, Rukia pretty much confessed that she's in love with Renji, and Renji now knows that his horrible mother is alive. All details will be revealed next chap, and again, I'm so sorry for the lateness. Tite Kubo owns Bleach, I don't, and I love and appreciate all comments and opinions!
