Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.

Day 3

"Then I told her to shove it up her-" I quickly covered my ears and hoped that Yoruichi's words would be semi-clean. No such luck.

"As much fun as I'm having right now...I need to get back, Ichigo said he would make pizza for lunch and I'm starving!" I said and patted my stomach trying to show the woman that I was ready to go.

"Oh, sure sure." She murmured and waved me away with a flick of her wrist. I quickly stood and pushed my cup of tea away from the edge and farther onto the glass tabletop. "Remember the scuba diving were doing today, three o'clock sharp! Everyone else that we asked to go all said the they didn't want to because apparently sharks are dangerous!"

She burst out laughing like it was preposterous at how people found the huge ass sea creature scary.

"Yup, looking forward to it!" I laughed with her but it was forced and she noticed. She leaned unladylike over the table and practically had her whole bust falling out of her tight top and onto the crystal. "Don't tell me you're scared?"

He eyes had taken on an animalistic quality. She slid slowly back till her back was touching the white chair.

"I an not scared!" I cried and regretted it when other couples looked towards our table. I leaned forward with both hands pressed firmly to the table. Yoruichi's smirk remained unwavering.

"Well then, lets make a bet about who can swim with sharks the longest." She smiled slyly and held out her perfectly manicured hand. "Win, and I'll let you spend the rest of the day with your lover-" She winked. "But if you lose you'll have to come to supper with us."

"I'll kick your ass." I declared and stomped off till I reached the road to town. Ichigo wasn't expecting me till at least an hour later, might as well get my gift shopping done. Besides, Ichigo gave me his credit card and it would be a waste not to brake it in.

My flip flops made loud slapping noses on the payment but because no one was around I didn't pay much attention to it. I held my hands behind my back and hummed an old song under my breath. My small legs seemed to eat up the road and before I knew it, I was nearing the town.

Pretty hand painted signs hug outside the doors and dogs, cat, and other questionable animals lounged around on the welcome mats, taking in the noon sun. Between the cracks in shops sat little carts filled with an assortment of small trinkets. Some had piles of beaded jewelry, others were fabric and beautifully crafted clothing. One was even selling medical herbs.

I ran my fingers over the hand-blown glass beads in admiration. They were a swirl of color, with little flecks of green and yellow. I moved on to the next stall. Fresh fruit was stacked into pyramids and smelled wonderful. The credit card was burning a hole in my pocket and I really wanted something to eat.

"A mango for the lady." A voice said from behind me and I spun around to thank my buyer, not thinking of how close he might be. I smacked into his chest. "Oh goodness, I'm sorry!"

"Its fine, it was my fault." I rubbed my nose and looked up at the man. His black hair was neatly cut above his brow and his green eyes were bright. It was strange, but i think he had Ichigo's nose.

"Lady!" The store woman called and held out my fruit, wrapped in a paper towel. I grabbed it and waited till he payed.

"My names Kaien Shiba." He held out his hand and I shook it, telling him my name in between bites. He seemed to think I was funny. "Its not often I see single people here, I thought I was the only one."

"Oh no, I'm here with my husband." I said quickly, might as well put that out there. His face fell and he let out a huff.

"Well that's too bad, I would have liked to get to know you better." He smiled and I could feel myself blush. He was sweet. As we were walking I caught the large clock placed in the arch of a stores roof. I let out a yell.

"I have to go! We have twenty minutes to get to the boat!" Kaien seemed to have no idea what I was talking about so I just waved and threw the rest of the mango into the trash before sprinting down the beach to the cabin.

I clomped up the steps and threw open the door before racing into and grabbing my swimming suit. The sound of the shower running was grating on my nerves so I threw open the door to the bathroom and pounded on the rippled glass, ignoring the blush creeping up my neck.

"Get the hell out! We have ten minutes to get down to the boat! We can't be late." I could hear him stop moving before quickly jumping into action.

"Grab me a towel!" He yelled and I sprinted to the shelf.

"Why the hell did you place them all the way up there?!" I screamed and heard bottle of shampoo and conditioner fall off their ledges. I grabbed the hamper and pulled it over till I was tall enough to grab them.

My foot kicked the hamper back into place while my arm wound back and threw them in a waded up ball. I was happy to hear him fumbling in the bathroom, trying to get ready.

"Don't come into the bedroom I'm changing-" That was as far as I got before he threw open the door and walked in like he owned the place. "You asshole!"

I threw the clock radio at him while simultaneously zipping up my swimsuit cover up. I hadn't even finished putting on the skimpy bottoms yet.

"Calm down! I didn't see anything!" He yelled over his shoulder and the blood pooling in his cheeks told a different story. I blatantly looked at his chest while he was changing, thinking about out of the two boys I had seen today, which would look better in their swimming trunks. I shook my head to clear the stupid, immature, and unneeded thoughts.

My feet slipped into my worn pare of white flip flops and we both raced out of the house like we were possessed. Three minutes.

Ichigo grabbed my hand and dragged me along like some kind of rag doll. My legs were aching and I resolved that I would go running with Ichigo in the mornings instead of doing the yoga I was planning to. Stretches can't help me if I'm super late.

"Come on Rukia!" He called and I we both poured on as much speed as we could, Ichigo more than me obviously but that's not the point.

We blew past people lounging on the beach, kicking up sand and causing a ruckus. Ichigo even upheaved a harmless beach umbrella because it was in our way.

The boat came into sight and when we reached it, both of us were panting and wanting to go take a nap. At least I did.

"Where...the bloody hell...are they?" I asked, leaning back onto the boat and waving the the driver.

"I don't know Miss. England do I look like an idiot tracker?" He muttered. "They are practically snarks."

"What?" I asked, I had crawled into the boat and collapsed into the seat. My watch said we made it on time but this part of the beach was empty.

"Snark, its the animal from Lewis Carroll's book." He said and took the seat next to me. "Its a word used to describe someone that's hard to find."

"Wow, you really do have a brain in that orange head of yours." I muttered and rubbed his scalp before he smacked my hand away. "You a sucker for the classics? My brother really liked all of the old philosophers."

"I'm more of a Shakespeare type of guy." He murmured and I looked over at him.

"Really? I would have pegged you for more of a Chronicles of Narnia genre." I said and shielded my eyes from the sun so I could look up the beach. Nobody seemed to be coming. It was past three.

"Naw." Was all he said before shoving his hands into his swim trunks and laying back so his arm was brushing mine. The driver was cursing in Spanish.

"Sorry we're late!" Yoruichi's voice called. Her arms were ladened with towels, drinks and a margarita mixer. "We had to grab a few things!"

Her husband smiled and paid the driver, his smirk hidden behind his fan while he made polite conversation.

"So did you wait long?" He asked, his wife swearing every time her foot slipped off the small step ladder.

"No, we were running a little behind to." Ichigo answered, running a hand through his still damp hair. He had washed it for no reason. He twisted the cap on a bottle of water before taking a swig.

"Oh, a little busy were we?" Yoruichi asked, raising an eyebrow suggestively. Ichigo chocked on his drink. "Its perfectly fine really, you young things are just so, what is the word I'm looking for?"

"Lusty?" He provided.

"Yeah, that's it!" She yelled. The driver chuckled and hit the reverse.

FFYF

"Damn girl!" Yoruichi muttered, flashing a feral grin my way after we had gotten out of the water. "You sure are fearless!"

I nodded and mentally checked that all my body parts were there. Swimming with sharks is the most terrifying thing I had ever done.

We were in cages, the massive creatures swimming just outside. Their bodies shifted side to side with jagged movements, each stroke with purpose. The instructor had placed some chum in the water and I watched as the sharks swirled and rolled, fighting others for the food. Pilot fish clung to their underbellies, using them as protection. It was spectacular, in a National Geographic sorta way. Ichigo was another story altogether.

We had both been in the same cage and every time they so much as looked in our direction, I could feel his back tense up, the muscles tight even through my coverup.

When bubbles from our masks streamed upward, I was caught by how surreal the scene was. I was shocked back to reality when Yoruichi hit my arm.

"So what do you plan on using your time alone for?" She asked, crossing her legs and picking at her fingernails.

"I don't know-"

"Ichigo, Rukia wants to have sex with you!" I slapped her arm and she took it as initiative to continue. "I was going to take you guys out to eat tonight but..."

Ichigo's face turned red as the blood pooled in his cheeks. He rubbed his neck nervously.

"Good god, you're both like virgins!" She laughed and crossed her arms, making the strapless purple top cling to her chest. We both chuckled nervously.

When the boat pulled into the docks the sun was already setting behind the clouds, lighting up the sky with vivid reds, yellows, and oranges. Ichigo and I threw our bags over our shoulders and hightailed it out of there. The couple whistled after us.

"What were you two talking about?!" He whispered furiously into my ear while also smiling and waving at the people down in the boat.

"Nothing, she did most of the talking, I just nodded my head and tried to look interested. I get lots of practice from when you give speeches at the office." I murmured back before shoving my beach bag into his arms and walking back up the beach.

The door gave a click before opening. I kicked my shoes off and trudged up the stairs to the living room then into the bathroom. As I went to shut the door I could hear the sound of our stuff being dropped to the floor.

"I'm getting in the shower!" I yelled at the door, already striping down. It was around there that I remembered all my stuff was in the bedroom. "Grab me a change of clothing, will ya?"

He muttered a reply that I took as a yes and stepped into the shower.

The water was warm and felt good against my skin. The whole day had been draining. No wonder no one wanted to go out with them, the only way that could keep going like at would have to be because they suck the life out of everyone else. My body was tired and ached, my shoulders felt like lead and my legs like jello.

The door opened and I could hear the dropping of fabric onto the sink. I could still feel the blush creeping up my cheeks, staining them a bright red. I knew he couldn't see me but I still covered myself up till the door closed behind him.

After a while the water ran cold and I quickly shut it off, all my hygiene was already done. I toweled off and threw on the ratty sweat pants and the silk night shirt. They didn't match but hey, Ichigo tried.

I pulled a brush threw my hair while slowly padding over to the couch. My body melted into the cushions when I plopped onto it. I flicked the brush onto the coffee table before throwing my legs over Ichigo's, who had his legs propped up on the table top.

"Your turn, asshole."

"Was the curse really necessary?" He asked, flipping through the list of food delivery places. "How about Thai takeout?"

"Yes and then no, we just had Chinese." I muttered grabbing the remote and surfed through the channels. I finally settled on a cartoon.

"Pizza has been a favorite, so how about Mexican?" He tried again, snorting before changing the program back to sports. I sighed and shrugged, leaning my head back against the couch.

He got up to order the food while I rested my eyes. I could hear his voice drifting from the kitchen before the door opened and he popped his head out to ask my order.

"Get me some tacos." I demanded and he just relayed to order to the man on the phone. He then quickly asked for some quesadillas for himself before walking back into the kitchen.

"Will you get the door when the delivery boy gets here?" He questioned, throwing his shirt in the hamper and prepared to get in the shower.

"Sure if you quit trying to strip by me. You'll end up giving the poor boy a heart attack." After his laugh was muted by the bathroom door I quickly turned the tv off and worked on clearing all of Ichigo's crap off the dining room table.

I pushed his notes and taxes and stuff off to the side enough to fit us two and a pile of take out if we decided to eat at the table. Next I mixed up some jasmine tea with the fancy brewer on the counter. After I practically murdered the machine I resorted to mixing up a batch of Kool-Aid I found in a pouch labeled "for the kids".

We spent the rest of the night watching Who's Line is it Anyway? reruns and pretending like we weren't lying to everyone we talked to.

My muse is back! I got a day off school (stomach flu)! So here, have a very late chapter!