Liar, Liar

.

It takes less than a minute to regret coming through the door.

Rukia isn't used to being teased which goes without saying, beyond her older brother and siblings-in-law, she doesn't have much experience in it.

Something her colleagues at the TA office care little for as she's greeted with smirks, knowing glances and the occasional wiggle of eyebrows. Somehow, only Rangiku succeeds in making it appear entirely friendly, though Rukia hasn't enough time to be thankful for that when the buxom blonde slides over to sing, "So…"

Her brows raise warily. "So…?"

"How's it going?" Rangiku prods, eyebrows still dancing. "You know…with Ichigo."

From the desk nearby, Nanao, Professor Kyoraku's TA, exhales loudly, like she's been hearing all about Ichigo all morning which, from the looks of the other TAs, Rukia could bet is what actually happened. Nonetheless, some try to wander closer discretely, and Rukia can feel her hackles raise.

"Fine, great," she grits.

Forgetting the fact that falling for Ichigo could literally be the easiest and worse thing to ever happen to her.

He volunteers at the fire department? He loves the hell out of his sisters? He bakes her favorite cupcakes? Christ, how is any of this fair?

"So," Rangiku repeats, eyes glittering, "it's official?"

"Yes." We signed a contract and everything, I'm thinking of getting it notarized, she doesn't add out loud, and starts removing the class materials from her bag in a bid to organize the rest of her day. She'd shadowed Professor Ukitake's classes all morning and while he was looking a lot better than yesterday, who knows how long he'll last –

Her train of thought is cut off by Rangiku's squeal and the finger she's pointing around the room as she declares, "You see, I told you!"

Someone groans and Rukia doesn't look up to see who, but hears them say, "Well how were we supposed to know? Maybe Ichigo just wanted a bit of fun."

Rukia's ears burn at the same time that Rangiku scoffs. "Oh please, Ichigo wouldn't know how to have fun if it bit him in the ass. Besides, if I hadn't called him to give her back, I know for a fact he wouldn't have."

There's a snort from somewhere in the room, followed by the declaration of, "That was before. He's had her now, he'll probably move on like Kaien did. Not that anyone blames them." There are a few snickers around the room, encouraging the person to continue, "Did you see her on his lap at the last party? God, Kaien had to work his ass off to even get a kiss and Kurosaki didn't even need a day. But you know what, the chase is done." He meets Rukia's eyes with an almost friendly leer. "Kuchiki-san's too serious."

"If I were you, I'd learn to follow Kuchiki-san's example," Nanao interjects, tone flat and expression unimpressed. "You're already on the verge of getting kicked off the programme, Hashi-san. Idle gossip does not the academic track make."

"That isn't -"

"Kuchiki-san is a year below you, and you're concerned about her private life? Please," she scoffs. "You should be concerned about your grading, if I have to correct another batch of papers you screwed up, I'll throw you to Kyoraku's first-year students myself."

Rukia and everyone else in the room stare at her as silence descends the office.

"Just so we're clear," Rangiku finally says, "that was awesome, right?"

Nanao huffs, though there's a ghost of a smile on her lips and she sends a discrete nod Rukia's way. Rukia's never felt closer to anyone in this office until then. She's so overwhelmed she could actually cry.

The office door opens before anything further can be said, however, and Professor Ukitake is shuffling in.

Everything is mentally pushed to the wayside and Rukia's on her feet in an instant. "Sir?"

He flashes a smile at her, though his eyes are drawn and tired. "Ah, Rukia, just who I wanted to see. I'm starting to feel a little ill…I think it best if I take off early. Will the afternoon be covered, or will cancellations be necessary?"

It only takes a glance to confirm the first before she's listing off who'll take each class and what's meant to be covered as well as the batches of papers to grade and how they'll be distributed amongst his TAs. In the same breath, Rukia informs her professor that thanks to Kiyone and Sentoro competing to complete their assigned modules on the days he was unavailable, those classes can be declared complete, and that she's already working on schedules for revision to be emailed to the students in those classes with priority flags for those in need of them the most.

Around the room, the slow blinks her colleagues treat her with don't bother her nearly as much now that Nanao is the one smirking like she knew she made the right choice to stick up for Rukia. And even Rangiku blinks past the glassy gaze and grins at her, throwing her a thumbs-up from over Professor Ukitake's shoulder.

Speaking of, the man, most importantly, looks relieved. "Thank you, Rukia, I appreciate it."

The room parts to let him through, and the silence this time is broken by Hinamori who whispers in awe, "She's amazing."

"Oh, that's it," Rangiku exclaims, "you're definitely coming to Rukongai tonight!"

Rukia disagrees, but Ichigo doesn't.

While it's on the table to refuse, no explanation necessary as per their agreement, Rukia can't find it in herself to cow from the scrutiny. She knows she's being watched now, and not just by Inoue or Yui Mei and Kaien, but just about everyone she's ever forged a connection to, however, tenuous. It…honestly infuriates her.

She's lived her whole life trying to be as unassuming and unobtrusive as possible, only for it not to matter. They were always going to talk about her.

"How do you do this?" she finds herself asking him.

"Do what?"

She inclined her head in silent supplication; at the people that are wandering nearby, glancing and whispering at their corner of the room. Fortunately, there's a group sitting near them, scattered on the floor and on the other couch, though they're caught up in their own conversation and a game of cards Rukia doesn't understand the rules of; providing a further buffer between them and everyone else.

"Are they bothering you?"

Logically, Rukia knows that while people are interested, they aren't invested; they don't really care. Whatever's happening between her and Ichigo is just something to be gossiped about and cast aside. It doesn't matter. It doesn't. But her skin itches with the weight of their assumptions and she feels the urge to run.

It's a stupid feeling and almost stubbornly, her fingers dig into the cushion of the couch. I'm not afraid. I'm not.

"No."

He huffs out a quiet laugh. "You're a terrible liar."

"I beg to differ," Rukia retorts, "I got you, didn't I?"

"Fair," he acquiesces with an incline of his head and a smirk curling the corner of his mouth. Though his arm around her shoulder tightens, and Rukia has the vaguest feeling of being shielded. "Why does it bother you?"

"I don't know; anxiety doesn't need a reason."

"But there's usually something that ticks it off, gets your heart racing." His eyes are the color of butterscotch, and his hair looks almost blonde in the moonlight streaming in from the window behind them. "What happened today? You sound weird."

"And here I thought I was good at keeping my feelings to myself." Or maybe her family had always just been polite enough to wait her out. Ichigo doesn't have those same qualms though, as he raises a brow. She huffs out a sigh. "Just the usual shit about you and Kaien that's all."

"Me and Kaien," he repeats like the words together don't make sense, and Rukia almost laughs at his offended expression.

"Yes," she exhales, "new boyfriend, old boyfriend."

"Thirty-day trials don't count," he deadpans, and to that, she snorts.

"That's what I keep saying but," Rukia exhales, embarrassed when she admits, "he was the only evidence anyone had that I'm not some frigid workaholic, and he cheated on me so -"

Openly annoyed now, Ichigo interjects, "Sounds like a 'him' problem, not a 'you' problem."

"Anyway," Rukia waves a hand, trying not to show how pleased she is to hear it out of someone else's mouth that isn't hereditarily obligated to, "they're convinced you've had your fun with me, and you'll ditch me like Kaien did."

"Well I won't because dumb-haircut is an idiot," he scoffs.

"If we can keep this up for a month, I'm sure it'll be another conversation entirely."

He squeezes her knee to promise, "We'll go the distance."

"So you say." As she turns her head, she tamps down on her startled jerk, though not before Ichigo feels it. With them pressed together, his arm around her, and touching from foot to shoulder, Rukia shouldn't have been surprised, but she stills when she feels his warm breath against her neck as he asks, "What?"

"Inoue is so creepy," she inwardly shudders as the other woman stares unblinkingly at them from across the room. "Don't look," she warns him, and she feels his smile against her skin as he placatingly agrees, "Yes dear."

"Ugh," Rukia mutters to him, rolling her eyes. "That sounds so old."

"Bae?"

"Ew, take that back." She shakes a little from the force of his muffled laughter, and she makes a big deal of poking his side as she informs smartly, "My name is fine."

"But darling," he drawls in a deadpan and it's her turn to smother her laugh. When she pulls away enough to catch her breath, his smile is stupidly soft, though he's beaming down at her with amber eyes like nothing could possibly make him happier.

"How are you like this?" she can't help but ask, too compelled to touch him and rub at the corner of his smile with her thumb that she doesn't stop herself. Neither does he.

"Like what?"

"Like: leather jacket, tattoos, resting murder face and then," Rukia pauses dramatically, "squishy." Ichigo snorts, but she's insistent. "I'm serious: How do you do it? How are you just so unapologetically yourself?"

"I don't know how to be anyone else," he says, "besides, people see what they want, I just give them something fun to look at."

It's her turn to snicker. "Wow, someone thinks highly of their aesthetic."

They're close enough she can feel his cheeks warm. "You should talk; Miss Ice Queen, cold, beautiful and untouchable."

"I'm not cold, I'm selective," Rukia defends.

"And you selected me."

"You're welcome."

Ichigo's laughing again, and if anyone has any doubt that this isn't real, even Rukia has a hard time believing it.