Thank you for all you kind thoughts and wishes regarding me relatives and for the reviews, alerts and favourites. They have really cheered me up over the past two weeks, especially as I also came down with a fever/flu bug thing 10 days ago and I am still suffering the tail end of it now. :-(
Here's the next chapter of Moving On and it is very long so you might want to make yourself comfortable now.
Disclaimer: Don't own Bleach or any of the characters.
Rukia shifted in her seat and nervously picked at the label on the bottle of drink she was holding. Although Byakuya did not approve of her visiting bars, Renji had dragged her out to a few in the past but she had never really enjoyed the atmosphere. Even though she was currently surrounded by some of her closest friends, albeit in one of the shadier establishments of the Seireitei, she still felt nervous and uncomfortable. However, that may be more to do with the reason she was at the bar, or should she say, the person behind the reason she was at the bar.
Ichigo.
The morning after he left for the Academy she had woken up full of doubt and she had spent the time since he had departed going over and over the conversation they'd had, the kisses they'd shared, and the information he'd told her about his life in the living world. He'd openly admitted to her that he'd had one night stands in the past and he'd even told her the reason he'd first kissed her was to have sex with her that night. Had everything he'd said after Captain Ukitake had left just been a rouse in the vain hope that he could have sex with her before he left for the Academy? Sure, at the time he had seemed so genuine and sincere, but she was completely inexperienced with matters of the heart and had he just been saying those things to get her to sleep with him? After all, he had been at the Academy for over a week now and not once had he come to visit her or tried to make contact with her.
There were also her own feelings and actions of that night to consider. Had everything she'd felt that day purely been as a reaction to him dying and the ugly reappearance of the crush she'd had on him 20 years ago? Their kiss had been her first, had she jumped to the wrong conclusion in thinking that not every kiss was like that? The more she'd thought about the situation, the more confident she became that she had only reacted that way because of the tragedy of the night and because of a stupid crush she had on him decades ago.
And then there was her job to consider. If Ichigo was serious about them dating and if the feelings she'd experienced had been true, if she got caught having an affair with a student then she would be stripped of her position and she would probably be placed in the Maggot's Nest. She had worked too long and hard to lose it all over whatever she might or might not feel toward Ichigo. Again, logic reasoned she should not see Ichigo anymore.
Not only that, but she had her position as a noble to consider. The Kuchiki's would probably disown her if she were caught having an affair, after all they had practically abandoned her when she had been sentenced to death all those years ago, and she would bring shame on the family name. After all the Kuchiki's had done for her and the time and money they had invested in her she could not fail the noble clan again. If anything, she owed it to the Kuchiki's to allow them to marry her off to some other noble clan. It was the least she could do really.
Once she had thought about everything that had transpired between her and Ichigo that night with a cool and logical head she had come to realise over the past few days that she had gotten swept up in all the emotions she had experienced the day Ichigo had died and come to the Soul Society permanently. Dating him, if in fact that is what he wanted from her, was an extremely bad idea. Perhaps once he graduated they could become friends again, but becoming romantically involved with him now or in the future was simply out of the question.
Now she just had to tell him that.
As if on cue her thoughts were interrupted by a cheer erupting in the bar and immediately her head snapped towards the door, her eyes widening as soon as her eyes fell on the orange haired male that occupied the entrance. She could barely see him due to the throngs of people that stood before her, but she could see his face clearly and she watched as Ichigo smiled and nodded awkwardly at the occupants of the room as they cheered his arrival. She watched as his eyes began to survey the room, never stopping or looking at the same face twice, that is, until his eyes met hers.
Rukia could have sworn that in the moment their eyes locked the earth stopped. In that moment it was just the two of them in the room, there was no singing, no cheering, no other soul reapers, it was just her and Ichigo. Her breath caught in her throat, she felt her heart rate quicken, her stomach clench, and that strange warmth flooded her body yet again. All thought, logic, and reason left her body as they continued to stare at one another, and in that moment Rukia Kuchiki knew that every valid reason she had thought of over the past few day for Ichigo and her not be together was in vain.
Because for the first time in her life her heart won over her brain.
Ichigo trudged through the streets of the Seireitei tugging at the kimono Rangiku had pulled out of Renji's closet for him to wear. It wasn't that there was anything wrong with it per se, in fact he was surprised to find that Renji had quite good fashion sense, it was just that he hated wearing kimono's and had rarely worn them in the living world. He sighed internally as he pulled at the material once again and he realised that this was what his wardrobe would likely consist of now that he was a permanent resident of Soul Society.
It had been over 10 minutes since they had left Renji's home and he had no idea where they were. Renji and Rangiku were in front of him leading the way through the twists and turns of the Seireitei and he had blocked out the conversation the two Lieutenants were having as he started to realise just how little he knew about the geography of Soul Society. Sure he knew there was the Seireitei and the Rukongai. He knew there was 320 districts in total in the Rukongai and that's where the souls who were not shinigami lived. He knew the Seireitei was where the Gotei 13 Barracks were based, where the homes of the high ranking officers were, and the nobility and Central 46 resided, but he didn't know anything else. He didn't know where the shopping district was, or where the good bars were, or where people hung out...and although he had been to Soul Society hundreds of time before, he had always been accompanied by someone. He was ashamed to say he hadn't really paid attention to his surroundings when he had been in the Seireitei before and he was starting to resent that fact now. Suddenly the importance of the Geography that were in his class schedule struck. At least with the class he may be able to walk between barracks without getting lost.
The longer they walked the more and more nervous he became. When Rangiku had first informed him that Rukia would be at the bar tonight he'd felt excited about the prospect of seeing her again, even if it was in a public area. But the closer they got to the bar, the more he started to doubt himself. It had been over a week since he had last seen her, had she changed her mind in the interim? After all, he had not heard anything from her since he'd been enrolled in the Academy. There was not one part of him that regretted his decision to date Rukia and he was serious about doing things properly once he left the Academy, and if that meant sucking up to Byakuya, then so be it. He had spent too long in his human life trying to find the "perfect" woman, and he wasn't going to waste his time in his afterlife. It may have taken him 20 years to realise it, but he was pretty sure Rukia was the only one for him and he was going to fight with all her had for her.
"Watch it!" Renji growled, startling Ichigo out of his reverie as he realised he had just walked straight into Renji and Rangiku.
"Sorry" Ichigo muttered distractedly which caused Rangiku to shoot him a questioning look.
"I thought you'd be happy to be here Ichigo?" she drawled.
"Or is the pressure already too much?" Renji challenged.
"Huh? No" Ichigo answered distractedly, causing the two Lieutenants to shoot a look of concern at each other. Ichigo not responding to Renji's taunts just wasn't normal.
"Look Ichigo, if you really don't want to be here..." Rangiku began.
"No, it's ok" Ichigo replied with a sigh before looking up and seeing they were at a bar "So is this where we are meeting everyone?" he asked trying to change to subject.
"Yep! Best sake in town!" Renji replied taking Ichigo's lead "Now come on, you'll feel better once you've got a shot down you!"
Rangiku opened the door to the bar and before he knew it Renji had shoved him inside and he was greeted by a round of cheers and chaotic singing. He tried to smile weakly to show his appreciation, but intentionally being the centre of attention had never really been his thing and he felt nervous. Suddenly he wanted nothing more than to see Rukia, blow off the party, and go somewhere private so the two of them could be alone.
The room was packed with shinigami and he felt mild panic when he couldn't immediately identify anyone he knew, his eyes flittered over the room desperately searching for familiar faces and trying to find the two violet eyes he longed to see the most. He waved awkwardly as his eyes scanned over the room and he was surprised to see Komamura, Kensai, Shinji and Toshiro huddled together at the rear of the bar. Each Captain nodded as his eyes slide past theirs and Ichigo respectfully returned the nod. Izuru Kira, stood with Tetsuzaemon Iba, Shuhei Hisagi and Sentaro Kotsubaki at the bar and each Lieutenant raised their glass to him as his eyes met theirs, already the group were looking slightly worse for wear. Next his eyes wondered over to an attractive teenage girl with pink hair arguing with Kenpenchi who was perched on a barstool at the bar and he could tell that the Captain was mad by the expression on his face. He briefly wondered why Kenpenchi simply didn't take the girl outside and fight with her if she was annoying him so much, until he realised with a start that the pink haired girl was in fact Yachiru. He had to stop himself from laughing at the thought of Kenpenchi trying to deal with a stroppy teenage girl as he remembered his sisters and their hormones all too well. Next to the arguing pair stood Ikkaku and Yumichika who were looking rather nervous as Kenpenchi's face turned redder by the second.
His eyes continued to the right of the room and he saw Captain Unohara, Isane Kotetsu, Hanataro and Kiyone Kotetsu sitting at a table smiling at him happily and he returned the smile. As his eyes continued to the right he saw Captain Kyoraku sprawled in the far right hand corner of the bar with Lieutenant Ise and Captain Ukitake, and then finally he found the pair of eyes he had been longing for the most.
Rukia.
As soon as his eyes met hers everything seemed to fade into nothing and it was just the two of them. His heart rate increased, heat flooded through his body, and he could swear that he could feel the electricity crackling between them. The longing in his stomach intensified and he wanted to walk over to her, pick her up, and simply whisk her away to the outer reaches of the Rukongai just so it was the two of them. But alas it was not meant to be.
"Come on, let's get you a drink!" Renji yelled as he threw his arm over Ichigo's shoulder. Before Ichigo had time to react he felt himself being pulled towards the bar.
An hour and a half. That's how long Ichigo had been in the bar and he had made no effort to come and see her. Rukia had watched him at the bar as soul reaper after soul reaper came and welcomed him into Soul Society. She'd watched as he'd drunk with Renji, Rangiku, Kira, Shuhei, Tetsuzaemon and Sentaro. She'd watched as he'd said hello to Captains Hitsuguya, Muguruma, Komamura and Hirako. She'd tried not to stare as he'd greeted Kenpenchi, Yachiru, Ikkaku and Yumichika, although watching Kenpenchi challenge him to a fight had been amusing. Luckily for Ichigo Captain Unohara had reminded Kenpenchi of Head Captain Yamamoto's orders and smiled that smile of hers which had caused Kenpenchi to back off. Ichigo had then said hello to Captain Unohara and her table afterwards before promptly being called back to the bar by Rangiku.
So an hour and half later she was still sat with Captain Ukitake, Captain Kyoraku and Lieutenant Ise, yet she could not concentrate on the conversation they were having as each second that passed in which Ichigo continued to ignore their table, the more her heart broke a little. She had been stupid to think that Ichigo would have feelings for her and she was stupid to listen to her heart. Had she not learnt by now to always follow her head? She sighed as she reached for her drink only to realise that her bottle was empty.
"Does anyone want a drink?" she asked almost sadly as she stood up abruptly from the table startling her friends.
"What are you talking about Rukia-san? We still have a bottle of the finest sake right here?" Captain Kyoraku drawled lazily causing his Lieutenant to roll her eyes.
"I'll have a glass of water please?" Nanao asked her friend kindly before resuming her conversation with her Captain.
"I'm fine Rukia" Captain Ukitake nodded seriously. For a brief second she caught her Captain's eye and she could see that he knew she was upset that Ichigo had so far blanked their table "Are you?" he asked softly so that the other two occupants of the table could not hear.
Rukia simply nodded before she headed towards the bar, her slight figure and diminutive height making it difficult for her to make her way through the crowd. Reason number 1 why she hated bars: The crowds. Just as she was about to give up on her quest she felt an arm snake its way around her waist. Within seconds she had turned ready to kido blast the owner of said arm into oblivion, until she saw the orange hair of Ichigo Kurosaki standing behind the arm owners back.
"Why don't you leave the lady alone?" Ichigo warned menacingly causing the drunken soul reaper who had dared grab her to turn around.
She saw the soul reaper's eyes widen as he realised who exactly the orange haired man was. As if in slow motion he turned his head towards her, blinked, and promptly removed his arm from around her waist as he realised he had just man-handled Lieutenant Kuchiki, Lady of the great Kuchiki clan, and the adopted sister of Captain Byakuya Kuchiki.
"S...Sorry Lieutenant Kuchiki" the soul reaper ground out before swallowing hard and bowing down before her.
Reason number 2 she hated bars: Sleazy men. Rukia nodded once in acknowledgement of his apology and the drunken soul reaper scuttled away. She looked up at Ichigo and froze. All the anger, sadness, and rejection she had felt only moments before flooded from her body as she peered into Ichigo warm brown eyes and once again she felt her world stop.
"Are you ok?" Ichigo asked with concern as he willed his heart to stop beating so frantically and his breathing to return to normal. The woman before him looked stunning. He hadn't gotten a proper look at her before when he had first entered the bar, but now he could see her fully. Rukia's long hair fell in waves down her back and light make up adorned her face. She was wearing a dark purple kimono with a lilac flower pattern that flowed all around the bottom of the kimono with a lilac obi that completed the outfit. The colour of the kimono highlighted her indigo eyes and he was mesmerised by them.
Rukia swallowed hard. Being in close proximity to Ichigo was not doing anything good for her. His dark blue kimono clung to his chest and arms so tightly that she could see the sinew of practically every muscle in the upper part of his body and her mouth run dry and her blood filled with lust. She needed to get away from his intense gaze, his manly smell, and the heat she could feel emanating off of his body. She needed to clear her head and get her world back on its axis, so without answering him, she turned and stomped off to the bar.
Ichigo stared incredulously after the woman that had just left him in the middle of the bar. "Rukia!" he ground out as he followed her.
Rukia scowled at the bar as she reached it. Reason number 3 she hated bars: Her head and shoulder barely made it past the top of the bar making it incredibly difficult to get served. "Hey!" she yelled, not getting any response. "Hey!" she yelled again over the din of the bar before being interrupted.
"Oi, Rukia! I'm talking to you!" came the angry voice of Ichigo Kurosaki from behind her.
She felt his hand touch her shoulder and she immediately shrugged it off, ignoring the tingling sensation his touch had left on her skin. "Took you long enough" Rukia replied icily, relieved to feel in control once again. It appeared that as long as she didn't actually look at Ichigo she could be angry at him.
"Hey! I tried to get over to talk to you but people kept getting in the way" he defended himself.
"Oh, so that's why you managed to get to every other table except the one I was sitting at?" she replied angrily, being mindful that they were in a public place. "At least I know where I stand now" she replied coldly, sneaking a quick look at him.
"Rukia, do you think it was fun for me to have to listen to Renji, Rangiku and co rabbit on and on about whatever subject their drunken brain matter can think of? Every time I went to leave the bar either one of the Lieutenants would offer to buy me another drink, or some random soul reaper would come up and congratulate me on my arrival into Soul Society and offer me some pointless tip on how to survive the Spiritual Arts Academy" he replied glumly.
Rukia felt her resolve soften as she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and saw the sad expression on his face, but still she continued to freeze him out.
"All I wanted to do tonight was come and see you" he added in a sorrowful whisper "But when Rangiku and Renji turned up I couldn't tell them that. Honestly Rukia, this whole time I've just wanted to come and whisk you away so we could spend an evening together, just us. But after my assessment with Byakuya I don't want to draw attention to us."
Rukia's eyes widened as she heard her brother's name "What do you mean 'after your assessment with Byakuya'? What the hell happened?" she demanded in a hushed whisper as she turned to face him.
Ichigo looked around desperately trying to find a place where the two of them could talk in private without drawing attention to themselves. The last thing he wanted now was for them to be caught sneaking out and for rumours to start about them, but he could not find anywhere. Sighing he continued their whispered conversation. "Byakuya was my hoho assessor and my concentration was...off... that day. I started to think that maybe he knew something had happened".
"What!" Rukia whisper shrieked as she clenched her hands by her sides. This was the worst thing that could have happened! If her brother knew about what had transpired between her and Ichigo he'd have a marriage arranged for her before she could even say engagement.
"I just kept thinking of everything that happened between us every time I saw him" he replied sheepishly as he ran a hand through his hair. "But he never said anything, and you know Byakuya, if he thought I had dishonoured the Kuchiki name he would have killed me there and then".
Rukia relaxed a tiny amount when she considered Ichigo's words. Byakuya would have had no issues with destroying Ichigo if he'd have known they had made out the other night. Just then she was jostled into the bar as a group of drunken soul reapers congratulated Ichigo. She turned to lecture the subordinate officers, but the melancholy look on Ichigo's face stopped her. He really did look uncomfortable and...sad. She watched as he graciously accepted their sentiments, but she knew him well enough to know that he was just being polite and her brow furrowed in consternation.
"Ichigo?" she questioned earnestly, her earlier anger forgotten.
Ichigo stared into Rukia's concerned eyes. If he couldn't trust her with what he was feeling, who could he trust? "This is all so weird" he stated softly "Everyone is celebrating my arrival, but I long for my human life still. I wasn't ready to die, it was so...unexpected. Sometimes I wish I was back home".
Rukia's heart clenched at the sorrow in Ichigo's eyes and her heart ached for him. Perhaps this was why souls arrived in Soul Society with no memory of their previous life. It enabled them to start afresh without having to grieve for their old lives. "I'm sorry Ichigo" she whispered sincerely "I wish...I wish this was easier for you"
Ichigo simply nodded before turning to the bar and signalling a barman "What did you want to drink?" he asked her cordially. "I mean, that was the reason you were heading to the bar, right?" he added with a crooked grin.
"A bottle of Coke and a glass of water please" she asked the barman, to which he nodded and turned to get on with her drinks order.
"I hate bars" she muttered under her breath.
"Is that why you never go to them?" Ichigo asked in what would appear to be a friendly tone if you didn't know him "Or is it because Byakuya doesn't let you?" he added with a slightly angry whisper.
Rukia flashed Ichigo an angry look. "Me not going to bars has nothing to do with Byakuya" she stated haughtily.
Before Ichigo could respond the barman arrived with their drinks. Rukia slammed down some cash on the bar, grabbed the drinks and stormed off back to her table, leaving Ichigo standing at the bar dumfounded. Immediately he followed after her intent on getting to the bottom of why she didn't go out with her friends.
"Ichigo!" came the drunken drawl of Captain Kyoraku as Ichigo approached the table "How is Academy life treating you?"
Ichigo's heart sank as he saw the other occupants of the table come into view and realised he would not be able to continue his discussion with Rukia. "It's been an adjustment" Ichigo replied with a rueful smile "But I don't start my actual classes until Monday. Good to see you again Captain Kyoraku, Captain Ukitake and Lieutenant Ise. Rukia" he greeted them all with a nod.
Rukia simply glowered up at Ichigo as she took a sip of her drink.
"How did your assessments go, Ichigo?" enquired Captain Ukitake "I heard that you gave both Captain Soi-Fon and Captain Kuchiki a run for their money".
Ichigo chuckled nervously "I guess, but they both ended up beating me. At least Yamamoto passed me out of zanjutsu"
"Impressive" Captain Ukitake complimented.
"Don't go working too hard though, Ichigo. Spring is just around the corner and the plum blossoms will be blossoming soon and they are just beautiful. All work and no plays makes a Soul Reaper a..." Captain Kyoraku drawled before being cut off by his Lieutenant.
"Captain!" Lieutenant Ise reprimanded her superior "There's no need for that type of language. Besides you should be encouraging Kurosaki-kun to study hard and graduate from the Academy as soon as possible. The sooner he graduates the stronger the Gotei 13 will be".
"But Nanao-chan..." Captain Kyoraku began in a drunken whine.
"She's right Shunsui" Captain Ukitake scolded his friend jovially. "Ichigo will make a fine soul reaper when he graduates from the Academy. Speaking of the Academy, isn't it almost curfew?" Captain Ukitake added.
Frantically Ichigo looked at the clock on the wall and saw that it was 10.45pm already. "Crap!" he exclaimed. Curfew was at 11pm and he would have to shunpo back to the Academy if he wanted to make curfew. "If was nice to see you all again, but if you would please excuse me..."
"Yare, yare" Captain Kyoraku waved him goodbye.
"It was nice to see you again Kurosaki-kun" Lieutenant Ise stated.
"Study hard Ichigo. Do you know where you are going?" Captain Ukitake asked him with concern.
Double crap! They'd stopped by Renji's apartment on the way here and he couldn't remember how to get back to the Academy now. "Actually..."
Captain Ukitake chuckled and shook his head and Ichigo swore he saw a mischievous glint enter his eye "I'm sure Lieutenant Kuchiki will be more than happy to accompany you, won't you Rukia?"
Rukia jumped as she heard her name being said, so self-absorbed she had been in doing her best to ignore Ichigo. "H...hai Captain?" she said in an unsteady voice.
Captain Ukitake smiled down at his Lieutenant. He had noticed the tension between the two as soon as they had arrived at their table and he thought that giving the couple a few minutes alone might be a good idea. "I was just saying that you wouldn't mind showing Ichigo back to the Academy as it appears he has not quite got his bearings around Soul Society yet?"
Rukia saw the knowing look in her Captain's eyes and felt the frustration grow within her as she realised she couldn't decline his order "No Captain, it's no problem" she ground out "Come on Ichgio" and with that she got up and stormed out the bar.
"Bye guys!" Ichigo yelled towards the bar where Rangiki, Renji and co were practically comatose with alcohol already and he wasn't surprised when he didn't receive a response.
Quickly he hurried out the door of the bar and was relieved to find Rukia still waiting for him. He had no idea why she was so mad at him for bringing up the control Byakuya seemed to have on her life.
"Look Rukia..." he began but was quickly cut off.
"Save it Ichigo" Rukia stated bluntly before shunpoing away and Ichigo quickly followed behind her.
Minutes later they arrived on one of the side paths that led up to the Academy and Ichigo breathed a sigh of relief when he realised he still had just over 5 minutes to go before curfew.
"You know the way from here" Rukia stated in a monotone voice which for some reason cut right through Ichigo's heart. He watched as she sighed and turned to shunpo away again.
"Rukia wait!" he exclaimed as panic overcame him. He couldn't let Rukia leave when she was pissed at him for some reason. He'd waited all week to see her and so far he had only managed about 10 minutes and that wasn't nearly enough.
Rukia sighed dejectedly as she turned towards him. "What do you want Ichigo?"
"I'm sorry if my question about Byakuya upset you. It's just.. it's just that I don't like the idea of him controlling you. If you don't go to bars because you genuinely don't like them, then fine. But if you don't go because he tells you not to, then we may have a problem" he stated gently but firmly with his trademark scowl written across his face.
Rukia looked up into Ichigo's eyes and Ichigo was taken aback by the dejection and sadness he saw in them. "I don't have as much freedom here as I did in the living world" she stated softly "I have duties and responsibilities that I have to abide by as a noble woman, and it's true that the Kuchiki's frown upon their women attending bars. Sometimes I wish I had never been adopted by the Kuchiki's" she whispered sadly as she turned her head away from Ichigo in shame. "But I can't turn back the time and they have done a lot for me. The only way I can repay them is by following and respecting their rules as best I can. That's why this is so wrong Ichigo. We shouldn't be doing this, I shouldn't be doing this".
Nervously Ichigo looked around, and when he was confident that no one was in their vicinity, he gently grabbed Rukia's hand and held it in his. Relief washed through him when she didn't try to pull it away.
"Rukia, do you feel that?" he asked her softly "That connection, that current that's between us whenever we touch?"
Rukia nodded her head, but she still did not look at him.
"I've never felt that before and I want to explore what it means between us. I know the circumstances aren't ideal, but recently I've learnt not to take life for granted. I never had this connection in the living world and I'm not going to ignore it now that I have it here. Whatever this is Rukia, it's special" he stated earnestly. "But I'm not going to force you Rukia, if you can't do this because of you responsibilities then I'll walk away now and I'll let you be."
Not receiving a response from her, he sighed and swallowed down the lump in his throat and the burning feeling that was building in his eyes. Using every ounce of control he had he gently dropped her hand and turned towards the Academy "Bye Rukia" he stated softly.
Rukia's heart beat frantically and she swallowed down tears as she listened to Ichigo's words. She felt so conflicted. She wanted to do the right thing, to be the dutiful Kuchiki, to be the honourable Lieutenant, but at the same time her heart longed for Ichigo. Didn't she finally deserve some happiness, to do something purely for herself? As soon as he had held her hand her heart had felt so full of warmth and peace, and it reminded her of the way she felt when Kaien had been alive. But as soon as he let it go she felt so empty and cold again and she didn't want to feel that way anymore. Ichigo had once told her that she had stopped the rain, truth was, he'd done the same for her.
"Ichigo wait!" she stated in panic. She couldn't watch him walk away, she couldn't let her heart be broken because she hadn't tried to make whatever was developing between them work. Why was she so mad about the comment he had made about Byakuya anyway? It was partially true after all.
Ichigo held his breath and slowly turned towards Rukia upon hearing her voice. The next thing he knew he had the petite shinigami in his arms and she was kissing him desperately and he returned the kiss with just as much need.
Suddenly the beating of a drum broke the stillness of the night signalling the curfew and both shinigami reluctantly broke apart.
"I...I have to go" Ichigo whispered reluctantly against Rukia's lips.
"I know" she whispered in return. "I'll try Ichigo. Us. This. I'll try"
A small smile broke out on Ichigo's face and he kissed her reverently. "Thank you" he whispered as he reluctantly let her go and prepared to shunpo towards the Academy's entrance before the last drumbeat sounded.
"Wait, Ichigo!" Rukia's desperate voice sounded behind him.
"What?" he exclaimed in frustration. He really needed to make that last drumbeat.
"How is this going to work, with us?" came Rukia's desperate voice.
"I...I don't know Rukia, but I'll think of something" he replied. And in a blink of an eye he was gone.
Have to admit this wasn't exactly what I had planned out for this chapter as it's not my intention for them to have a rollercoaster relationship, but I kind of like the way it turned out anyway. It kind of lays the foundation for the next part of the story. I mean, Rukia wouldn't be Rukia unless she was trying to act like a Kuchiki and I think most woman freak out a little when they first meet a guy they really like.
Anyway, this is the last post before Christmas and I hope you all have a great time. Hope you enjoyed the read and I'll aim to post another chapter again next weekend before 2013 arrives (hooray that the world didn't end on the 21st by the way!). Until then...