A/N: I only updated this fast because you guys reviewed XD I hope you enjoy it!


Ichigo was cracking up on the inside.

And it wasn't because he knew that Renji could never have Rukia. Neither was it because Renji was staring at their position in envy. No, Ichigo was cracking up because Renji's face was turning to a shade of red never known to man; so red, in fact, that it put the vibrant colour of his hair to shame.

"What's up, Renji?" Ichigo said, still bending over Rukia, her hand still in his. "Not jealous, are you?"

Rukia could practically see the taunting tone in his voice, and yet, she didn't care. She was solely focused on the hand on top of hers that was tracing light circles on the back of her hand. Her already flushed face from the close proximity with the young man darkened even more when she realised her small fingers were twiddling his little finger. She basked in the euphoria that it brought as she took in every detail of the moment, totally ignoring the quarrel of the two testosterone-high males present in the room with her. She phased out all the commotion around her from her mind, a light buzzing sound was all that remained. She was, after all, in pure bliss. And observant as she was, she had no idea why.

"Wha-What the hell idiot?! I am not jealous!"

Yeah right, you bastard. You are so jealous.

"Riiight… so can you like, leave? As you can see, Rukia and I still have stuff to do."

"Like what? You trying to molest her? I think not. And what if I say no, I won't leave. What're you gonna do about it?" Renji sneered back, anger seeping through his words.

How dare that idiot even try to kick me out?! I mean, it's not even his house!

Of course, Renji conveniently forgot that it was, in actual fact, Ichigo's house.

And no way in hell am I going to leave Rukia here alone with him. What if he tries something?! No. No way. He will not touch Rukia! Rukia's mine! All mine.

Ichigo opened his mouth to give back a select few choice words from his very… colourful vocabulary, but the girl sitting in front of him, who seemed to break out of her perverted trance, cut him off.

"GUYS! Knock it off! Mere words aren't going to solve anything! So, shut. The. Hell. Up!" Rukia emphasized her words, her anger boiling to a level everyone knew not to mess with. Everyone except Ichigo and Renji.

"Ya hear that, Ichigo? Words aren't gonna solve anything."

"Yeah." Ichigo's grin morphed into a devious smirk. "Let's take this outside, fucktard." And with that, he stood up from the protective crouch he had over Rukia and slammed the Substitute Shinigami badge on his chest. Before he flashed-stepped out of the room, surprisingly, he bent down and gave a chaste kiss on Rukia's left cheek. "Wish me luck, love," his husky voice floated through her ears and caused her to whimper involuntarily when he stood up and flashed her an incredibly sexy, in her humble opinion, grin.

She heard him chuckle as he left the room, and Renji soon after, a string of curses and cuss words leaving his mouth. She sighed contentedly, but quickly stood up when she realised what had taken place. Her face reddened considerably.

"PERVERT!"


"What do you mean Kurosaki-kun is fighting Abarai-kun?!" came the high-pitched cry of a certain ample-chested girl. Anyone could tell, especially the ever observant Quincy, that is held a distressed note to it.

"I meant exactly what I said, Inoue-san. Kurosaki is in a fight with Abarai right now. Simple as that." Ishida looked uninterestedly over his frameless glasses and stared as the girl sitting in front of him started shifting uncomfortably in her tiny plastic chair.

"But-but… why?!" Orihime's anxiousness nearly caused her to poke the needle she was holding in her hand onto her oversized boobs.

"Well, that I don't know Inoue-san." He stirred nervously as the needle narrowly missed her assets. He looked up when her hands stopped moving. "There is only so much I can learn just based on their reiatsu fluctuation levels."

Orihime immediately stood up and raised her right fist, dropping the needle and fabric she was working on to the floor and declared, "I have to find out!"

What if Kurosaki-kun's hurt?! And I'm not there to protect him!

She ran out of the sewing club's co-curricular room, leaving a surprised Ishida staring after her. He turned around, only to find the other members' stupefied expressions.

"I… I guess I had better go after her," he sighed tiredly.

They merely nodded absentmindedly in response and returned back to their project.

Ishida sighed once again and left the classroom.

Me and my big mouth.


"Howl, ZABIMARU!" Renji's battle cry echoed around the area as the two blades met with a sharp clang. The sound of metal against metal rang through Ichigo's ears as he grit his teeth and put all his weight against his sword and pushed against Renji roughly, trying to overcome the red-head, and subconsciously, making him realise that there was no way in hell that he was going to get together with Rukia. No way in hell.

"Heh… think you can beat me, asshole? Getsuga Tenshou!"

Renji jumped high above the ground and dodged the fatal blow. As he sailed through the air, he stared down at Ichigo.

"Arrogant bast-"

He was cut off as he felt Zangetsu pressing against the back of his neck. He winced a little when he felt it draw a little blood.

"At least I have an excuse for being arrogant." Renji growled ferociously at the snide remark that came from behind him.

"ICHIGO!" Rukia, face red from some unknown reason, arrived at the scene. Her face, however, paled considerably when she saw the postion the two Shinigami's were in.

"Ichigo! What the heck are you doing?! Don't kill Renji!"

"See," Renji muttered quietly so only Ichigo could hear,"she cares for me."

"Nah, she just doesn't want blood right outside our house. Besides, you have nothing of worth to compare with having a child with Rukia."

"Shut up asshole!"

"ENOUGH!" Rukia screamed, and immediately, as if God himself had spoken, they froze. Just then, a Senkai gate opened and out came a very pissed captain.

"T-taichou!"

"What the-? Byakuya's here?!"

"Nii-sama?!"

They all stared in disbelief as Kuchiki Byakuya, Captain of the 6th Division, turned around and swept his gaze around the area, looking for someone in particular. When he glanced upwards and caught sight of Ichigo, holding his fukutaichou in a chokehold, in the air above him, he spoke in a low murmur that sent shivers along their spines.

"Kurosaki, get your hands off my lieutenant before I personally remove them. And you are to address me as 'taichou', or 'Kuchiki-sama'. Do not speak to me in such an informal manner."

"…uhh."

Ichigo loosened his grip, enabling Renji to elbow his gut and break free. Ichigo, caught off guard, wheezed as the sharp joint winded the breath out of him, and flew into a nearby bush. Renji smirked evilly but it soon turned into an expression of worry as he felt Rukia's eyes burn holes into his back. He chuckled nervously and ignored it, walking towards the stony captain.

"What is it, taichou? A problem in Soul Society?"

"No. Renji, you were expected to return to Seireitei a few hours ago. We are leaving. Now."

"O-okay. I'll uh, just go." He sped off towards the gate and walked through, without sparing a glance to the pissed-off Rukia. She glared as her friend walked through, but broke out of it when her brother started to speak.

"Rukia. I assume you are well, living with the hooligan? If you have any problems, you know I will not hesitate to kill the boy. All you have to do is say the word."

"N-no no, living with the… hooligan is fine! No need to k-kill him, Nii-sama! Eheheh…" She trailed off as she stared at the emotionless face of the captain. He gave her a strange look, as strange as it could get for the man, and nodded.

"Take care, Rukia."

With that, he turned and followed his lieutenant through the gate. She stared after his retreating back even as the gate started to vanish, but turned around when she heard a grunt of pain.

Ichigo was getting up from the bush, twigs and leaves stuck onto his hair and uniform. He turned towards Rukia when he felt her gaze on him.

"Why the hell did you bring him for?" he asked, eyeing the flour sack in her arms.

"Why you-! What kind of father leaves his child with his wife and runs off with another man?!"

"Eh?! Rukia! That's just sick! Eww." Ichigo twitched slightly at the thought of him and Renji eloping. "Don't ever say that again, Rukia. Please." He gave one last shiver at the thought when suddenly, he froze.

Rukia watched as the orange-haired male in front of her started scratching all over his body.

"I think… I need a bath."

Rukia's eyes widened to huge proportions as he took off the top half of his robe, and the sight of him sweating and panting brought chills all over her. She barely stopped herself from drooling at the sight of him when she realised something.

Oh, god. I am such a pervert! When he was panting and sweating, all I was thinking about was… KYAAA! Stop these dirty thoughts, Rukia! Ichigo is just like a brother to you!

As that thought floated through her mind, she couldn't help but try to swallow the bile that rose to her throat.

She shook her head -mumbling something about being sick- and started walking over to Ichigo, who was now trying insistently to tug out a particular stubborn twig from his hair. She smiled a little at the way his eyes were crossing, trying to make out the twig he was plucking out. She stopped in front of him and looked up.

"Here, idiot… let me help."

Ichigo blushed crimson when Rukia stood on her tip toes, her petite hands reaching for his hair. Her face was just a few inches away from his own, eyes set in concentration and that little tongue sticking out at the side of her mouth.

If I lean in a little more, everything will fall in place…

You can bet your bottom dollar on that, King. This is exactly what you've been waiting for.

But, what if she doesn't feel the same? I… I don't think I can handle her not being by my side…

Sometimes, King, all you've gotta do is take a leap of faith.

I swear to God, you're sounding more and more like a High School Musical character. But I guess you're right. I should at least try.

You go, King!

Well… here goes nothing!

"Yeah! I got it out Ichi…go…" Rukia could feel her face getting hot, for the hundredth time that day, as the orange-haired man leaned down slowly. But apparently, fate wanted to skip all that mushy shit because the next thing they knew, Rukia's back was against the hard pavement, with Ichigo hovering above her.

"Ow! What the hell was that for idiot?!"

"I-I just tripped on that rock right in front of you! I'm s-sorry! Did I hurt y-you?"

Rukia craned her neck and just stared at the teen above her in disbelief.

By now, he would have put all the blame on me! What's wrong with him? He seems so… flustered! But wh- oh. Right. He was going to…

Ichigo had a war raging on in his mind; conflicting emotions battling to become the victor.

What do I do, what do I do?!

Man, that was harsh, eh? That really blew up in your face didn't it?

S-shut up!

Ichigo stared down at the raven-haired beauty beneath him, and was shocked to see her smiling at him. Her hands reached up and cupped his cheeks, and if it were possible, his eyes widened even more than before.

"Ichigo… relax."

Rukia's smooth and soothing voice lulled him into a haze, and before he knew what he was doing, he pulled her into a one-armed hug, his other hand supporting both their bodies to prevent them from falling back onto the floor.

He inhaled her scent as it wafted through his senses, and muttered, "Rukia…"

"What is it, Ichigo?"

Is he going to say what I think he's going to say…?!

Her violet eyes, to him, somehow seemed much brighter than usual, as she looked up into his own amber orbs. "Rukia…" he shook his head as if to clear it of any doubts.

It's now or never.

Rukia, I lo-"

"Kurosaki-kun! Kurosaki-kun, are you alright?! Kurosaki… kun…" Inoue stared at the two Shinigamis on the floor enveloped in each other's arms. The warmth radiating off of them was enough to reach the girl and the young man standing next to her.

The two instantly whipped their heads to the direction of where the familiar voice came from, and found Inoue and Ishida looking at them, surprise written all over their faces. Rukia, on the other hand, could tell there was a hidden pain in the way she was looking at them.

And is that… jealousy I see?!

The two simultaneously looked at each other and back down at their positions. To make matters even worse, Ichigo didn't have a shirt on and Rukia had his face in his hands. They instantaneously broke apart from their embrace and turned the other way, trying to hide their beet-root faces.


Rukia sighed as the four companions walked towards Urahara's Shops with an awkward air about the silence. She glanced inconspicuously towards Ichigo, and found him looking at his feet and walking. He ssemed to be bothered about something, and Rukia could guess why. She sighed again.

Whatever. Life is just unfair. That's all I have to say.


A/N: So?? How was it? Nice? It better be, cause I spent one whole afternoon doing this XD So, right. Back to business. I'll be updating only after I get 150 reviews, cause ya know I've gotta have a break sometime! Exams were just over, so take your time to review, no need to rush!