This definitely came out later than I expected. I know you guys are tired of hearing me apologize, so I won't, but you get the picture.

A reviewer had asked me, "Why the hell would everyone be happy that Ichigo stayed? Aren't they all enemies?"

Well, think about it... if you had to be on a ridiculous reality show and live in the same house with your rivals, wouldn't you prefer the ones you can stand and are on friendly terms with... or would you rather stay in the house with douchebag enemies like Grimmjow and Gin, who will do whatever it takes to drive you over the edge and basically cheat and take advantage for the next couple of months? It's an easy way out and all a preference thing. Plus since Ichigo hasn't blatantly shown interest in Rukia yet, he's not much competition so it's better for the others if the men who were, were ruled out. As for Ashido, Urahara, and Orihime... they were just in for the suspense. When competitions like these happen, you tend to pick out who you're thinking will be out and in.

Hope that helps and thank you all for your wonderful reviews! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.


After Rukia gave Ichigo his compass, she congratulated the remaining men and decided to turn in for the rest of the night.

The minute she left, however, a stare down started with Shuuhei and Renji towards Grimmjow.

"That was really low..." Renji growled.

The wrestler looked at them with a bored expression. "What was, Mr. Pineapple?"

"You damn well know what! You didn't—"

Ichigo loudly cleared his throat.

Both Renji and Shuuhei snapped their heads towards him.

His eyes met theirs and then quickly darted to the side and when they followed his glance, they knew exactly what he was referring to. Kuchiki Byakuya was still in the room. They looked at each other and had the same thought. That was good, though! If he knew, they could get rid of the bastard!

Ichigo saw their intentions to continue and shook his head slightly.

Grimmjow, who had been following their silent argument, let a smirk spread across his face.

Byakuya watched the exchange and decided to take the hint. He stood, picked Shirayuki up, and walked towards the door, bidding Ashido and Urahara goodnight as he did.

When the big boss left, there was a moment of silence to make sure that he was gone before all hell broke loose.

Shuuhei charged at Grimmjow and slammed the wrestler into the wall by the collar. "You fucking bastard! Why the hell did you tell Rukia that it was you, who gave her the rabbit!?"

Grimmjow just held his grin. "She asked me who gave her the bunny..." He glanced over at Ichigo. "Then I remembered the threat..." He held up a hand to his forehead and continued dramatically, "...and feared at the thought of dying in the hands of little strawberry, so I sucked it up and told her I did."

Shuuhei snarled, "Why you." He pulled his fist back and was prepared to hit when he was stopped by Ichigo's hand.

The fitness instructor's eyes moved over to Ichigo's. "Don't you dare defend this low-life, Ichigo!"

Grimmjow looked over at the back of Ichigo's head and laughed. "Of course he will. He still wants to go home. Poor strawberry."

Ichigo ignored the wrestler and spoke in a calm tone. "Step back, Shuuhei."

There was a short staring contest before he reluctantly let go of the wrestler.

He swept invisible dirt off his shirt and said, "Thanks orange-top, but you could've just let me beat the shit out of him myself. I would've within the next minute, really. It feels weird to have a guy holding me—"

Grimmjow quickly jumped away from Ichigo, who's punch hit the wall.

Needless to say, the people in the room were slightly shocked.

He chuckled. "Knew that was too easy..."

Ichigo's scowl intensified. "Don't flatter yourself. I just didn't want Shuuhei to ruin his chance with Rukia by beating you to a pulp on my behalf."

Grimmjow smirked and tilted his head to the side. "What's wrong? Thought you wanted to go home? Aren't you glad that I told her it was me? You would've been eliminated too if it weren't for that pussy of a stylist."

They glared at each other until Urahara clapped his hands. "Alright boys, that's enough. All fighters back to your corners." They stood their ground. "Come on! Chop chop! Or else, I'll sing you guys to sleep in your rooms tonight!" he continued as he sang the last part.

Urahara smirked at their quick retreats. None of them even hesitated to leave because they knew the strange man by now.

Ashido looked over at the older man. "So, it was really Ichigo-san?"

He pulled his hat down and nodded.

"Why didn't you correct her then?" he asked, confused.

Urahara sighed. "Ichigo's been wanting to go home since the day he got here. He made us all promise—well more like threatened—not to tell her, in hopes that she'll just grant his wish. You know how much Rukia loves her rabbits."

Ashido nodded in memory of his past adventures with her obsession. "But why did he give her the rabbit in the first place? If he wanted to leave so badly, he should've just been an ass and she'd send him packing in an instant."

"Eh... guess he couldn't bring himself to be over-the-top rude. That and some threat dealing with his father... but when they first met, all they did was fight and argue. They still do, but it seems more playful than malicious. Like a couple of preschoolers really."

"He wanted to be eliminated by tonight, right? What's going to happen now?"

Urahara shrugged. "Who knows. Maybe he'll stop fighting and fall under Rukia's spell just like the rest of them."

"Should we tell her the truth?"

He whipped out his fan. "I'm not sure. What do you think, Bya-kun?"

Ashido raised an eyebrow and turned towards the threshold. Within a few seconds, the older Kuchiki revealed himself and was petting a tired Shirayuki.

The man next to him released a wide grin. "So how long have you been there, Bya-kun?"

Byakuya glared at him due to the nickname, but shrugged at the question. "I never left."

Ashido was shocked. He didn't think the great Kuchiki Byakuya was one to eavesdrop.

Urahara chuckled. "Yes, yes. Should've known. So what should we do about the situation?"

Shirayuki looked up at her owner's brother. Surely he knows that this lie could affect the outcome.

He was still and emotionless as he thought, his eyes closed.

Upon opening his eyes, he spoke his opinion. "She'll find out eventually, so let it be."

Urahara smiled and snapped his fan shut. "Then, let the fun begin..."

Ashido nodded, but felt slightly uncomfortable about keeping this from Rukia. He glanced at the now sleeping rabbit in Byakuya's arms.

Shirayuki had fallen asleep with one thought running through her mind. All humans are imbeciles...


The Next Day

Breakfast had resumed as usual, except the tension seemed to increase by tenfold.

Ichigo had to re-straighten Renji and Shuuhei out about the bunny issue. They had annoyingly questioned him why he wasn't even slightly angry for what Grimmjow did.

He didn't want her to know and even if he wasn't eliminated this time, he still wanted nothing to do with the ridiculous reality show. His hair brought him enough unwanted attention and the last thing he needed was to increase it by remaining. It was plain and simple that all he wanted was to go home.

Orihime watched the men eat their breakfasts in silence. The aura was just too much for her that she didn't even happily greet them like the mornings before.

After they were done, she hesitantly told them to all meet in the main lounge for the day's activity.


"Good morning everyone!" sang a happy Urahara.

The guys moaned and groaned.

Urahara shrugged his shoulders. "Hey, it had to be done." He popped out his fan. "So anyway, the agenda for today is... cooking!"

More groans.

"Settle down, settle down." Urahara sighed. "It is Byakuya-sama's second challenge. You are to cook a fabulous dish for our little princess using the secret ingredient that will be revealed to all of you in the kitchen. You'll have all day to prepare your entrées and start over again should you mess up. The top three will be rewarded with a one-on-one date with Rukia-chan. First place winner gets a whole day with her, while second and third share a day. Second place will be from morning to noon, while third place is from noon to night. So everyone head out to the kitchen, get your aprons and hats, and let's get cookin'!"

Everyone stayed seated.

The man with the striped hat waved his fan to the threshold. "Come on... for Rukia-chan!"

Boredom was clearly etched onto their faces.

A wicked gleam rested in Urahara's eye. "Either you guys get going or else all of your meals from now on, will be made by our lovely... Inoue Orihime."

In less than a second, every ass was booking to the kitchen and a loud commotion could be heard as they grabbed their requirements.

Urahara snickered.

He knew that they had noticed her personally-made, yet rather unusual, meals. She would always make something to her preference for her breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner. They usually consisted of bean and or fish paste with anything other than the norm. When she'd offer it to the table, they'd usually lose their appetites for the rest of their meals.

Both Ashido and Byakuya side-stepped the stampede and cautiously entered the main lounge. They each glanced at the mob, then to each other, and then to the smiling family friend.

"What did you say to them?" asked an astounded Ashido.

His smile was wide, but as he was about to answer, Orihime popped her head into the room.

"Urahara-san, did you call? I heard you say my name and something about meals..." She gasped. "Did you want me to cook something for you!?" Her eyes were shining quite brightly.

All three of the men in the room immediately thought of her more recent concoctions and sweatdropped.

Urahara gave her a nervous chuckled. "That's—okay, Inoue-san... I'm good..."

She moved her eyes towards Byakuya and Ashido. "Then, did you want me to cook something for Kuchiki-sama and Ashido-san?"

Ashido instantly paled and Byakuya lightly coughed.

"Thanks for the thought Orihime-san... but we just ate." Ashido politely said.

Byakuya nodded. Their thoughts the same. I'd run too, if I were them...


The kitchen was quite large in itself. There were a total of four full stove tops and four side ovens. There was also an enormous island right in the middle as well as more than enough counter space and four huge refrigerators.

The entire room was completely over-filled with every vegetable, fruit, meat, and condiments known to man. The amount of it all was definitely enough to feed the entire country of Japan.

There was a large bucket with a white blanket covering it in the center of the room and many of them guessed that it was the so-called secret ingredient.

Urahara entered the kitchen with a 'Kiss the Cook' apron and a white and green striped chef hat. "All right, directions? You must prepare an edible meal for Rukia-chan. Byakuya-sama and Ashido-san will be there to judge as well. The secret ingredient must be involved in the dish in one way or another and no sabotaging each other's entrées! I will watch out for that. We will present your projects to them at seven sharp. Now..." He rubbed his hands. "The secret ingredient is..." He lifted the piece of cloth off of the bucket to reveal, "Cucumbers!"

Renji grinned. Go figure... it's one of Rukia's favorite things to eat.

"Well?" asked Urahara. "Be like Shirayuki and hop to it!"

The guys made their way to the bucket to grab their cucumber cylinders and went to various empty counters to think of what they'll make.

Urahara watched them, but stopped them with a sly grin when he saw them head to the stoves. "Wait! I almost forgot! Since there are only four full stations and seven of you, you will have to share. In which case..." He took his hat off and flipped it so that the opening was facing up. "You'll have to pick which stations you get and who'll get one all to himself!"

"Are you fucking serious," growled Grimmjow. It was bad enough that he has to actually cook and not ruin someone else's stuff. He also knew they were going to have to share, but to have to pick one from a hat?

He glanced over to the rest of them. The chances of him getting stuck to someone who wasn't his roommate was very high.

"Yup! They're numbered one through four and so are the pieces of paper in my hat." The blond grinned and held out his hat. "No peeking and no trading!"

The Results

Toushirou- 3

Grimmjow- 4

Ulquiorra- 2

Shuuhei- 4

Ichigo- 2

Gin- 3

Renji- 1

Renji turned his head slightly to see the rest of his opponents. Geez... if there was tension before, there's a helluva lot more of it now.

Shuuhei and Grimmjow glared at each other as they placed their ingredients on the counter space around stove number four.

Gin had towered over Toushirou as they set their things down. "Let's try to help each other out, eh? Shirou-chan?" His smile was quite big.

Needless to say, the little law student's eye couldn't stop twitching.

Ichigo and Ulquiorra hadn't even acknowledged each other throughout the move. If anything, they gave the other the cold shoulder and wouldn't even spare a glance. They were just there to get things done and be on their gloomy way.

Urahara was quite proud of his idea and gave himself a pat on the back.

When things started heating up in the kitchen, Rukia and Ashido entered to see the progress.

The minute they stepped in, Urahara drawled, "You better duckkkkk..."

They were confused until the right corner of the kitchen exploded. Both Ashido and Rukia had hit the ground for cover, while Urahara stayed up on his stool and covered his face with his fan. The heiress and heir then got up and waved the smoke out of their faces as the head chef laughed hysterically at the cause of the explosion.

Grimmjow and Shuuhei stayed glued to their separate counters, staring at the oven. They then directed their eyes to glare daggers at the other.

"What the hell did you do to my chicken?!" screamed Grimmjow.

"What chicken?! You blew it up, you dumbass!" Shuuhei countered.

Rukia raised her eyebrow as they continued to fight. "And Nii-sama has the nerve to tell me that I can't cook?"

She let out a small shriek and hid behind Ashido, who got punched square in the face by a nice, big bag of flour.

It happened that Shuuhei had dodged when Grimmjow threw the bag at him. Grimmjow however, had done the same when Shuuhei threw a head of lettuce at him, hitting Renji instead. The pattern continued until everyone was in on it.

Of course the two idiots would start an all out food war.

Ashido stood still as the bag slipped to the ground and carefully opened his eyes.

He then slowly turned his head to the side to look at Rukia with his emotionless face. "You just had to hide behind me... huh?"

Rukia blinked. She gave him a once-over at his floured form, then smiled shyly. "A heh... um... thank you? Ashido?"

He allowed a smirk to overcome his face. "Not a chance..." and with that, he picked her up and hugged her close to his covered self. He nuzzled her neck with his powdered face as she happily squealed his name.

Food was being mercilessly thrown around and Urahara was dying of laughter at it all. That is... until a fish was thrown right into his wide-opened mouth and shut him up instantly.

That's when everyone else laughed at his expense for once.


Rukia had cleaned up by presentation time and was patiently sitting at the end of the dining table. Her brother sat on her left and a recently showered Ashido, sat next to him. She had to admit that she was starving and couldn't wait to eat her meals.

Urahara led the line of men from the kitchen to the dining room and they were all holding their lidded, silver platters as they marched behind him.

Byakuya raised an eyebrow at their food-covered forms.

Ashido noticed and leaned in to whisper, "One does not have time to bathe, when one is trying to prepare Rukia-chan a good dinner. Especially when one starts a food fight, after one messes up his dish."

Byakuya only closed his eyes momentarily as a sign of acknowledging this idiotic turn of events.

Urahara came to a stop next to Rukia and smiled. "Let there be food!"


Gin

Entrée: Teriyaki Chicken with Pickled Cucumbers

The chicken was grilled to a perfect golden brown color and the cucumbers were artistically placed around it.

He put the dish in the center of the three.

Rukia took a big whiff of it in and sighed, "Hope it tastes as good as it smells! Itadakimasu!"

She eagerly took a portion of the chicken and some cucumbers onto her plate. Byakuya and Ashido then followed suit.

They all nodded in approval of the wondrous taste in their mouths.

Gin grinned and lightly kissed her happy, chewing cheek. "Only the best for my little Rukia-chan."

Ulquiorra

Entrée: Sweet Chile Cucumber Pickles

Though it wasn't refrigerated overnight, it was still well marinated in the vinegar soup.

However, since it only looked like cucumber soaked in red water, Byakuya had to raise a brow and said, "Hope you didn't go through too much trouble."

On the side, Renji leaned in to whisper to Ichigo. "That's what I said..."

Ichigo's reply was, "Well it only took him five minutes and then he threw it into the fridge. On the plus side... he left after that, so then I had the area to myself."

Renji nodded as he watched the pale man's nonchalant shrug towards the older Kuchiki's remark.

Rukia stuck her fork in to stab a cucumber slice and started munching on it. Her right eye immediately squeezed shut at the taste and she gave a slight chuckle. "It's a little too sour for me..."

Byakuya was stoic as he ate his and Ashido unintentionally made a cute fishy face.

Shuuhei

Entrée: Korean Short Ribs with Cucumber Kimchee

Rukia eyed the plate of ribs with the cucumber kimchee on the side and it was beautifully glazed over with barbecue sauce. Her fingers went to hold her rib while her fork sliced through the meat.

To their surprise though, it was still quite pink. They all looked at the chef.

Shuuhei cursed and his eyes were filled with apology. "I'm sorry, Rukia. I was afraid it was going to be like that since someone..." His eyes flickered over to Grimmjow. "...blew up our oven. It came out nice, so I thought it still worked. Guess I should've left it in longer."

She smiled at him. "That's okay, Shuuhei."

"Next time an oven explodes, know well enough to use one that didn't," Byakuya snapped. "Or at least check it with a meat thermometer before presenting it as food."

Shuuhei flinched and bowed. "Yes, sir. I apologize again."

Rukia's fork kept on making round trips from the plate to her mouth. "The cucumber kimchee came out delicious though!"

He smiled. Her happy face made him feel a little better. He still felt like a complete idiot though, but smirked when he thought about the expression that'll come to their faces when it's Grimmjow's turn.

Ichigo

Entrée: Grilled Garlic Shrimp over Coconut Rice with Mango Cucumber Salad and Guava Dressing

Rukia's mouth was watering when Ichigo removed the lid to his dish.

The perfectly skewered, marinated shrimp laid over the white rice while the cucumber salad rested on the other half of the plate, with diced tomato and mango, arranged as a red and yellow flower on top of it.

She grabbed a stick of shrimp and put some rice onto her plate. She then mixed them into her mouth and moaned at the taste.

"This is really good!"She looked up at him as she continued eating. "Didn't think you'd have it in you... especially the presentation."

Ichigo shrugged. "My little sister loves to cook and is quite the expert. She'd always ask me to help her when I visited, so I'd pick up a couple of tips while I was at it."

Rukia nodded as she stuck another piece of mango into her mouth.

Byakuya also had to admit that for a disrespectful brat, he had impressive cooking abilities. In all truth, he thought that his dish would be something like Ulquiorra's.

Even Ashido didn't think he'd do so well. He eyed the orange-haired man as said man watched Rukia happily eat. He noticed that the corner of the man's mouth was struggling to keep his usual permanent scowl as they were twitching ever so slightly upwards.

Ashido closed his eyes in thought. I wonder...

Grimmjow

Entrée: Sesame Noodles with Cucumbers and Shredded Chicken

Well... that's what it was supposed to be...

Rukia, Byakuya, and Ashido all blinked at it.

It was a little on the... burnt side... the noodles, that is... even the cucumbers... and the chicken...

Ashido poked a large clump of black. "Are you sure that that's a piece of chicken?"

Grimmjow immediately pointed at Shuuhei. "He should be disqualified since he was the one who sabotaged the oven!"

"Me?!" exclaimed an angry Shuuhei. "Don't blame me for your poor cooking skills! If anything, you should be disqualified for ruining the oven for mine!"

They bickered on and on as Urahara threw the platter into the trash.

Byakuya kept in mind that if for some reason Rukia did end up with the wrestler, he'd have to hire her a full-time cook for the rest of her life.

Toushirou

Entrée: Sesame Tofu and Cucumber Salad with Soy Sauce Eggs

The tofu and cucumbers were equally tossed together on the platter. The eggs were sliced into perfect wedges and surrounded the ring of it.

He was a law student. He obviously doesn't have much time to cook and lived off of ramen. It should be understandable.

Rukia ate her eggs and then dug into the salad. "At least I won't have to worry about gaining weight. Thank you, Toushirou."

He blushed at her smile.

Ashido and Byakuya had to disagree. She was small enough and this just didn't not cut it in comparison.

Renji

Entrée: Teriyaki Salmon with Mirin Cucumber Salad

The salmon was peacefully laying on top of the cucumber salad and was screaming, "EAT ME!"

Rukia obliged in no time and half of the salmon was on her plate along with some of the salad.

She knew that he was always good at the art of food preparation. Whenever he'd visit her, she'd immediately throw him into the kitchen to make them a snack before they did anything.

"Renji, this is amazing! It might be one of your best masterpieces, yet!"

She held out a fork of salmon and smiled at him, urging him on.

He returned her smile and bent down to take the piece into his own mouth, keeping eye contact with her as he did.

Byakuya was anticipating his dish as well. Back when they were younger, he would steal some of the leftovers that Renji had made for them while they were out playing.

Ashido was sure he was in heaven at the taste.

He heard some whimpering to his left and when he turned his head, he was met with a begging Urahara.

Ashido sweatdropped as he stared at the man's wide puppy pout and tossed some of his salmon into the air while the latter snapped it up.

Well, Byakuya wasn't the only one who stole some of the leftovers back then. After all, by the time Renji and Rukia came back they were always met with an empty plate of what used to be.


The men were left standing in the dining room, while the three judges went off into the kitchen to discuss the winners.

Urahara wiped his face as he finished off the last bit of Ichigo's shrimp.

Orihime then stepped into the room with a bright smile on her face with Ashido following behind her.

"The results are in, gentlemen!" she announced.

"Rukia, Byakuya-sama, and I all reviewed the food. You all did well, but only the top three will go on a one-on-one date with Rukia for the next two days," Ashido said.

"So then the winners are..." Orihime flipped open the piece of paper in her hand. "Third place... Ichimaru Gin."

Urahara made them clap even if the man did freak them all out.

"Second place... Kurosaki Ichigo."

More forced clapping.

"And first place goes to... Abarai Renji! Congratulations, you guys!"

Shuuhei and Renji were involved in a man hug, dragging an unwilling Ichigo in, as Renji hollered for victory.

"Renji-san will go on his date with Rukia tomorrow, while Ichigo-san and Gin-san will go on their dates the next day." Ashido then clapped his hands, which caused a line of cooks to march into the room. "Now, for all of your hard work, Rukia is throwing you a party."

Her personal chefs set up table after table of delicious food and desserts. A couple of the butlers came out with many bottles of sake as well as entertainment systems to set up. Streamers and confetti exploded out of nowhere and music began blasting from the speakers that were just placed in the room.

Urahara came out with a striped, party cone-hat and Orihime waltzed around. They both blew their party blowers and screamed, "Let's get this party started!"

The men cheered and rushed to the mountains of food first.

Hey, a long day of cooking for the princess and no food for themselves. They were starving!

Well... all but one, anyways.


Ichigo closed the sliding, glass door behind him. He could still hear the music, but it was a bit blurred.

It was better than nothing.

He stepped out towards the backyard and looked up at the dark sky from beneath the porch's roof. It was already very late into the night and the clouds made it nearly pitch black outside. He could smell the rain that was undoubtedly coming.

Ichigo closed his eyes for a moment before he walked out into the night to sit down on a concrete bench. He then clasped his hands in front of his face with his elbows resting on his knees.

"I wanna go on the ferris wheel with you!" cried a child.

His mother smiled. "We will."

Thunder could be heard.

"And then the scrambler?"

"Yes."

Lightning was able to be seen.

He jumped up and down in joy. "And then round and round on the merry-go-round?!"

Her smile got brighter. "Until we puke up all of our guts!"

"When can we go?!"

"We'll all go tomorrow, okay?"

He smiled and nodded his head in excitement. "I wanna ride all the rides with you!"

A rain drop hit Ichigo's face.

She laughed. "You will, sweetie."

Police sirens could be heard in the background.

Their laughter filled the air, doing their best to drown out the sirens. The sirens were dominating though.

His calloused fingers dug themselves deeply into his slightly damp, orange locks.

Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeechhhhh!

The child's butt hit something hard. He opened his eyes to meet a river of blood...

Ichigo gripped his head even tighter.

It was a long, thick river... but where was it coming from?

He slowly looked to his left and was met with...

The rain poured uncontrollably onto him.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!"

The rain was washing all the blood into a nearby sewer as the little boy cried.

"Please, wake up! Wake up! WAKE UP! PLEASE?!"

He heard a small gasp of, "Oh... my... God..."

It was the policemen. He could faintly hear one of them calling an ambulance. The other was trying to comfort him and placed a hand on his—

A touch to his shoulder made his head shoot up within a second.

Amber met violet.

She was standing there, completely dry, while he was numb and soaked from the cold rain, but he could barely feel the rain hitting him. Then again, that was because she was holding an umbrella over the both of them.

His breathing was definitely off sync from its natural tune. Her form was slightly bent forward so that she could see his face and she hesitantly lifted her hand from his shoulder to his forehead, feeling the cold sweat, instead of rain.

For the first time since they met, Rukia saw it in his eyes... the aura that everyone got from him. It was all there.

The pain... the regret...

But something that only the closest people to him have ever been able to make out...

The loneliness.


Preview for the next chapter

"What could you have done?" she asked softly.

"Something... anything!"

"There was nothi—"


So, there was more to this chapter, but if I continued, it'd be double this amount. Therefore, that'll be your next chapter. And yes, it's most likely the chapter that most of you have been waiting for. Teehee.

Now, is it me... or is Kubo denying Rukia the chance to see Ichigo as some kind of hollow form? I've been thinking about it since I saw the latest chapter and tried to remember if she ever saw it or even if we knew she saw it. I'm thinking no. In any case, I feel that he's going to end Ichi's hollow problem with Rukia! Well the fangirl in me could definitely dream =3

Thank you all once again, for leaving me wonderful reviews. They really do brighten up my days and keep me motivated.

Well, same ol' same ol'... PRESS THAT BUTTON AND REVIEW PLEASE!

Until next time =]