AN: a century later……..here's chapter 7….

Disclaimer: Don't own Bleach….I don't own Bleach…

Chapt.7 No Idea

"Where are you gooooiiiiiiiing?" Shunsui sang.

Nanao stopped abruptly. She was caught.

"It's none of your business!" she replied, going on her way while trying her best to ignore him. Naturally, he followed her outside.

"You're out early. Where are you going? Where are you going?" he chanted deliberately to annoy her.

It didn't last for one minute when Nanao finally snapped. "Shut up, Shunsui! Stop acting like a child! I'm going to the market place, ok? I just need to buy some necessities."

"See, that wasn't so hard now, was it?" he crossed his arms and grinned. "Little miss hot head."

"Oh, what, is that a new nickname?" she asked sarcastically.

"Well, it is true, so, yeah, it is."

"No it's not!"

"Yes, it is," he insisted.

"No it's not!" she insisted back.

Shunsui remained silent and scratched his chin with his hand. He placed his arm on her shoulder.

Like an instant reaction, she jerked away the moment his skin touched her shoulder, head fuming.

"HEY! YOU—"

"See what I mean." He smirked at her, showing that victory was his.

Nanao turned bright red. "That's…that's not fair!" she stuttered.

"Whatever you say, hot head."

By the time the two reached the market, it was already dark, making the place look a lot more crowded with the lights.

"Wow. This place is really….popular. Wait for me, Nanao-chan!" he called reluctantly as Nanao prepared to visit the busy stalls.

She turned to him, sensing his dislike to enter the place and said, "You do know that I'll be more than happy if you don't want to go, right?"

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm going." I'm not letting you out of my sight lest you leave me again.

Nanao shrugged. "Fine. Do what you want. Don't tell me i didn't warn you!"

With Shunsui's tall frame and broad shoulders, 'difficult' wouldn\t be enough to express what he felt as he squeezed and forced himself to keep up with his slim female companion who can slip past the crowd without exerting much effort to do so. The air was suffocating, the heat, intense, even though it's evening. In no time, Shunsui found himself sweating. He trailed his fukutaicho—exfukutaicho—as she lingerd from stall to stall, buying necessary household items. She paused for an unusually long time at a antique shop that he finally caught up with her, panting.

"What's wrong?"

"No-nothing."

"Nanao-chan, you're not good at lying. Your face apparently has worry and trouble written all over it so don't tell me it's nothing."

She looked at him, not with her annoyed look, but with something else. He didn't know what he felt at all; he never saw that look before. It's as if her feelings—worry, fear, repulsion, regret—were all mixed together. The only thing he knew was that it was dead serious, that explained her silence since she would normally snap at him for saying something like that.

"That book," she pointed at an old, worn out, black book behind the window. "It was a gift for me from my father before he left. I can't believe it, it's still exactly the same. If you're wondering why it's not with me since it's mine, well, that's because when my father died, all our possessions needed to be sold so I could eat, even the book. It was that or my life."

"Then why don't you buy it? After all, it's important to you."

"What are you, insane?" she retorted, this time using her normal voice. "It's way to expensive. It'll take me a year before I could afford the price. Besides, I shouldn't buy something if I don't really need it. It'll be just a waste of my money. Let's go," she smiled. "I've finished."

Such a pained smile, Shunsui inspected. He glanced at her back as she walked on and then at the book. Without even thinking, he knew exactly what to do.

They treaded in peaceful silence on the way back. Nothing but the sound their feet made as it dashed against the hard earth could be heard.

"Hey, Nanao-chan," he muttered, taking her hand, "Why don't we take another route?"

Before she could protest, he yanked her away from the street and into a vast meadow.

"Ahh….that's better." He sat on the cool grass and patted the space beside him. "Sit down. The air is cool, so it'll be a wonderful time to relax. The atmosphere is nice, don't you think?"

"Shunsui, what kind of game are you playing? What's with this all of a sudden?" her voice revealed doubt and most of all, suspicion.

"Ok, I'll go to directly to the point. I want to know you. If you don't mind, I would like to hear the rest of your story."

"My story?"

"What happened before you entered the academy? What happened after your father died? I just want to know who you were."

"I-I don't want to talk about it. It's nothing…none of your business," replied Nanao, tentatively sitting down, hugging her leg. She let the silence of the night calm her nerves. She guessed she must've looked awfully tensed on their walk back to make him do this. "I….was eight when I met my father. It was supposedly a lucky number, so I picked your division," she began.

"Hmmm…so that's why," he replied to let her know that he was still listening.

"Well, I stayed with him for 2 years or so. My dad wrote a lot as a hobby. He would read to me occasionally to calm me down. His last story was my favorite and I cherished it."

"That was the book from a while ago."

"Yes, it was. At ten, dad died and I was left alone. I lived with strangers after that and I worked at nasty places. My tenants were mostly drunk so sometimes, they would hit me…" she paused. "That's why I hated people who are drunk…it shows the worst of people. So examining my pitiful life, I began to dream of entering Seireitei's massive gates. I eventually got there, though I recalled being sneered at, by my hope for a better life…and a future. I want to be somebody they'll respect. I want—"

"Hush."

She was silenced by his soft caress and blushed slightly.

I had no idea how much you've been through. All the years we spent together and I hardly know you. I had no idea….of how much I had hurt you.

He wouldn't have let that moment end in an instant if she didn't slap his hand—hard.

"OW! What was that for?"

"Shunsui," she growled, her keen eyes glaring. Shunsui retreated, whimpering in fear. "Don't you dare think that just because I'm no longer your fukutaicho, you can touch me like that. GOT IT?"

Shunsui gulped and nodded vigorously, drops of sweat running down his forehead.

"Good." She got up and resumed to walk back home with Shunsui behind her, carefully keeping distance.

"Wait a minute, Nanao-chaaannn." He hollered when they were only a few meters away from home.

Her head swirled. "What?" her eyes narrowed.

"I believe…" he reached for something hidden in his pink robe, "this belongs to you." He produced a black book from his robe and tossed it to her.

"Th-this is…"

He winked at her and grinned mischievously at the look she gave. She was shocked. And he disappeared in a flash. Absolutely priceless, he thought as he shunpoed away from her.

"Shunsui…" she smiled. It was hard for her to admit that the person she hated the most had just done the sweetest thing anyone could possibly do to her; another thing was that her stomach felt weird when she stuttered, "Th-thank….you."

End of chapter 7!! There will be two more chapters left before I'll end the story. Thanks for waiting and reading. Please review! (I know, it's kind of mushy hehehehehe)

--Genasyz-- who says press the go button on the lower left. 3