Life After You

Chapter 9 ~ The Down Side of Ice Cream
Disclaimer: Bleach and all characters belong to Kubo Tite.

Author's Notes: Here it is! Your weekly dose of GinRuki crack! I need to get back to writing this so I can get it finished before I run out of pre-written chapters! I don't want to take a hiatus from posting this if I don't have to! Of course, now that I've finished watching Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, I think I should get back on track. As long as I can keep my fan girling over Ling Yao to a minimum, of course!

Also, pre-warning, there are a few things in this chapter that might not seem too realistic. The only fitting explanation I can offer you is this - the Kuchikis are so wealthy they can pretty much do whatever they want regardless of the situation!

Many thanks to my readers and reviewers Rukes, Xaila'n'Eli, Nnoitra-Szayel, PunkRockHolly, StarPrincess999, and Mary Akataki!


"This is the place in my heart/This is the place where I'm falling apart/Isn't this just where we met?
And is this the last chance that I'll ever get?/I wish I was lonely/Instead of just only
Crystal and see-through and not enough to you/Cause you don't see me/And you don't need me
And you don't love me/The way I wish you would" (You Don't See Me, Josie and the Pussycats)

"You get prettier every time I see you, Miss Kuchiki."

Rukia turned toward her hospital room door and smiled. "Thank you, Mr. Ukitake! How did you know I was here?"

"Retsu told me," the man at the door replied with a kind smile. Rukia went over to him and gave him a friendly hug.

"I'm glad she did. How are you feeling? I didn't see you the last few times I came in," Rukia asked.

"I'm feeling pretty good right now," the man, Juushirou Ukitake, replied as he reached up to ruffle Rukia's hair. Juushirou had known Rukia since the girl had been diagnosed with the same disease that her sister and mother had both died from. When he wasn't in the hospital from his own poor health he was volunteering in the paediatric ward. He loved working with the children at the hospital and was a natural father figure despite never having kids of his own.

"I'm glad to hear that. You look really good," Rukia said as she went back to her bed and motioned for her guest to sit down as well.

Juushirou followed and took a seat next to her. "You look like you're doing very well yourself. I don't think I've seen you look so happy and healthy," he said with a kind smile.

Rukia just blushed and ducked her head sheepishly. "I have the most amazing boyfriend ever. I've had so much fun being with him!"

Juushirou grinned impishly at the embarrassed young woman. "Love and laughter are the best cures for many different ailments."

"I feel better than I ever have since being with him! I've made a lot of new friends, too. High school is actually pretty enjoyable now," Rukia gushed.

"And what does your big brother think?"

"Um... well... I haven't actually brought him home to meet Brother yet. Brother says he approves simply because I'm happy and haven't had a setback in more than a month," explained Rukia.

"But?" Juushirou pressed kindly, but still curious.

"Well... Gin's something of a bad seed... or, well, he was. We met in detention," Rukia said, ducking her head to hide her embarrassed blush. Though it had been an isolated incident, she was still embarrassed about getting detention.

"You got detention? Miss Kuchiki, who knew you were such a rebel?" Juushirou teased, ruffling Rukia's hair endearingly.

"Mr. Ukitake! It's not a good thing!" Rukia exclaimed, scowling slightly at the white haired man. Juushirou just laughed and ruffled her hair again.

"I talked to Retsu and she said if you'd like we can take a walk and get some ice cream," he said casually. Rukia laughed softly. Juushirou Ukitake had a sweet tooth bigger than most children.

"If you would like some company, then sure Mr. Ukitake," she agreed with a smile. There were definite perks to being part of a rich family. Rukia was given more freedom than most patients.

"You are much too kind to me," Juushirou told her, giving her a gentle smile.

"You always were like an uncle to me, Mr. Ukitake. I like spending time with you," Rukia replied, smiling back at him.

"I'm truly honoured by that. Thank you," Juushirou said softly and hugged the young woman. Rukia hugged him back.


That same evening, Gin was out for a stroll. Before he had started dating Rukia, evening strolls had been part of his usual evening routine. Not only did it get him away from his parents, but it allowed him to people watch as well as cause trouble without any real consequence.

'Been far too long since I done this last,' he thought as he walked with his hands shoved in his pants pockets. 'Woulda been better wi' Rukia 'ere,' he thought with a sigh. He hated that she had cancelled another date without any real explanation. He had to admit to himself that it annoyed him. After dating for as many months as they had been, she could have at least showed that she trusted him. She kept her secrets tightly locked away from him. Ichigo and Renji seemed to be under her thumb as well. When he actually let himself dwell on it, it frustrated him that she didn't completely trust him.

But then, did he share his deepest, darkest secrets with her? No, he never had. He had only ever admitted them to one person and she only knew because she had grown up with Gin.

Would he trade his secrets for hers? He couldn't say. He knew it made him a hypocrite, but no part of being in a relationship was logical or made any real sense. It was all feelings and impulse, something he could not treat like a game. Not if he didn't want to fail at it. Gin Ichimaru failed nothing. Despite being in trouble constantly for his antics, Gin had never failed a single class. Failing school would be too easy and his pride would not let him fail anything on purpose. It was that same pride that refused to let him fail at his relationship, too. If people like Ikkaku Madarame and Renji Abarai could maintain romantic relationships, Gin could too. Especially with a girl as amazing and devious as Rukia Kuchiki.

'She's jus' as devious as me,' he thought approvingly. The only difference was Rukia was far more subtle in manipulations while Gin loved the attention. 'Bet we could come up wi' a serious grad prank,' he thought as he walked absently. Though graduating before her, there was no one Gin would want from his class to help pull a prank of that magnitude. No one had that same subtle skill that Rukia had. No one would suspect her, either. That made her the perfect partner.

The possibilities swam through his head s he came to a stop at a red light. He let his attention briefly return to his surroundings and heard a familiar laugh.

Gin frowned and looked around for the source of the laughter. He felt his blood run cold when he did. His girlfriend sat in front of an ice cream parlour across the street from where he was standing. She was eating ice cream and laughing with an older but still good looking man. Despite the man's white hair, he didn't look old enough to be a grandparent of Rukia's. That and from the things Rukia had said, the Kuchiki elders were far too reserved to go out and have fun like normal people.

Gin wanted to go over there and drag Rukia away from the man. She seemed perfectly healthy to Gin. So logically Gin jumped to the worst case scenario. All at once, everything he had believed in had changed. The cancelled dates; the secret she, Ichigo, and Renji were keeping – they all made much more sense to him. His chest tightened at the thought of Rukia with another man. He prayed he was just seeing and hearing things. Maybe it was just someone who looked like Rukia from the side.

His hopes were shattered when the girl turned and noticed him watching her. There was no doubt in his mind that it was Rukia. She paled visibly when she saw him watching her. Quickly he turned away and walked in a different direction. He could not watch her or talk to her in that moment. He knew he would do something rash if he tried. If she tried calling to him, her cries fell on deaf ears. He would not allow himself to look back. Until he cleared his head, he would avoid her and refuse any explanation she offered.