Disclaimer- I don't own Bleach

Chapter 9

Remembering the Day the Rain Stopped

A glimpse into the past...

Sayomi walked quietly into the warehouse, her dull blue eyes staring blankly at the concrete floor. It was late evening and a storm had begun to pelt sheets of rain down on the town of Karakura a little while before. She was soaking wet and shivering as she made her way to the back of the warehouse, through a doorway that led to the small rooms that had once been offices, but were now used as bedrooms.

Her hair clung to her face as little droplets of cold water slid down her cheek to drip onto the cool concrete floor, leaving a trail of small puddles behind her. Her kimono stuck uncomfortably to her body as she walked away from the group of people who were watching her as she wordlessly passed them all by.

"It's been five years, do you think she'll ever get over it?" Love asked as she disappeared through the dark doorway.

"Who knows? She never really accepted being here and we've been here for almost fifteen years now," Kensei replied.

"That's a little different though, the man she loved was still alive then. I think she's always hoped that some day things would go back to the way they were," Rose said softly.

"It ain't gonna happen, the sooner she realizes that the better. I'm tired of watching her sulk all the time," Kensei said.

"Worried? People will start to think ya like her, Kensei," Shinji drawled.

"I don't like her, I hate her. Stuck up pain in the ass," he grumbled.

"Uh huh," Lisa, Love and Rose said at the same time.

"Oh, shove it," Kensei barked as he stood up from the chair he had been in to stalk through the same door Sayomi had disappeared through.

"Would you knock that shit off," Kensei snapped at Sayomi, causing her to jump slightly in surprise.

"What?" She asked, turning to look at him from her spot on the ground in front of the door where she had been watching the rain as it fell. It had been raining for a whole week now and she had spent most of that time curled up by the door, watching as the different size drops fell from the dark gray sky and collided with the wet earth. She had always loved the rain, watching it, listening to it and the smell of the fresh water.

"You've been sitting there all week like some lost kitten. Stop moping around already, it's depressing," Kensei said.

"Oh, sorry to have to disturbed you, oh happy one," Sayomi replied in a mix of sarcasm and coldness.

"Just knock it off," he grumbled.

"Whatever," she mumbled quietly as she stood from the ground and walked away, back to her room.

"What was that about, Kensei?" Love asked curiously.

"Nothing, I'm just sick of her attitude."

"You mean the lack of it? You and her haven't gotten along so well in the last few years, have ya?" Shinji asked as he tilted his head back to look at Kensei from the couch.

"I don't think they ever got along to begin with," Love said.

"That's how they liked it, if they weren't fightin', they weren't happy," Shinji said.

Kensei stood abruptly from his seat and disappeared through the doorway in the back of the large warehouse.

Her room was small, just like they all were. She had few things in the space aside from a dresser, a bed and a few stacks of books. There was one small window in the back of the room and she stared blankly out of it as the rain outside continued to fall.

Sayomi had just finished changing into a pair of dark blue hakama and a sleeveless white top when her door opened without warning, she whirled around to face the uninvited intruder.

"What do you want?" She hissed coldly.

"I want you to stop acting like such a baby."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. All this moping and slouching around like you have nothing to live for is getting annoying. Where's the Sayomi that we all knew, because this sure as hell ain't her," Kensei snapped.

"She's dead, remember," she snapped back. "Died a long time ago when she went to help rescue some of her comrades."

"You make it sound like you didn't want to help."

"If I had known what was going to happen, then I wouldn't have," Sayomi shouted. "I lost everything because-"

"Like we didn't?" Kensei raged. "This isn't all about you, Sayomi. Pull your head out of your ass and move on."

"Mind your own damned business, Kensei! I know this isn't all about me, I'm not the only one who was forced from their home after being changed into a monster. I know that, but I lost more than just my home and you know that, so get the hell out and leave me alone," she yelled, as tears began to from in the corners of her eyes. She wiped them away angrily and glared Kensei.

"If you need to cry, then cry. Just get over it already, Sayomi. You knew a long time ago that things would never be the same again," Kensei said.

"Leave me alone, Kensei," she said as she turned away from him to stare up at the single small window in the tiny room.

"Why can't you move on, Sayomi?"

"Because I have nothing to look forward to now aside from killing the bastards that ruined my... our, lives."

"And then what? After they're dead, what will you do then?"

"Leave me alone," she muttered quietly.

"No."

"Dammit, Kensei, what the hell is your problem? I'm not hurting any of you, I keep my distance and leave you all alone, so do me a favor and do the-"

Her words where cut off when Kensei spun her around to face him, his face a few inches above hers as they glared at each other.

"My problem is that you're just giving up. Nothing went the way it was supposed to for you, well too damn bad, nothing went as it was supposed to for any of us. But you don't see us giving up, we're making the best out of what we've got. You're not Sayomi, she wouldn't give up so easily, she's too stubborn, but you, you're pathetic," Kensei said as he released her and made to leave.

"I'm pathetic?" She barked bitterly.

"That's what I said, care to prove me wrong?"

"Screw you, Kensei. What the hell do you know? I don't give a damn what you think, my life isn't any concern of yours, so butt the hell out already," she snapped.

"See, that's a little more like the Sayomi I know," Kensei said.

"Whatever, just get out before I make you."

"A threat, huh? Not too scary coming from a pathetic little cry baby."

Kensei caught Sayomi's fist as it shot towards his face, she cried out in anger and wrenched her fist away from him as she lifted her right leg to kick him in the stomach. He blocked her easily, simply raising his arms to knock her away.

"Jeez, is that all you've got? What a let down," he taunted.

"Shut up," she screamed at him as she launched herself at him again. She kicked and punched and spun but never landed a hit on Kensei who was looking rather bored as he swatted her limbs away from him like he was swatting a fly.

An angry snarl escaped her lips as she took a step back before lunging at him again when he yawned. Her fist collided with his stomach, sending him back a few steps, she spun on her left foot as she raised her right in an attempt to hit his ribs and knock him down. He caught her, however, and twisted her leg. She growled but jumped as he twisted her body, using the momentum to spin in the air and land on all fours, her head tilted up, an angry scowl on her face.

"Feel any better?" Kensei asked.

She growled again before snapping upright and tossing her right fist out towards his head, he turned aside as her fist glided passed his cheek and caught her left fist as she threw that at him as well. He grabbed her right wrist before she could throw another punch at him and pushed her back into one of the bare, hard walls of her room.

"Let go of me you bastard," she spat as she struggled against him.

"No, now stop bottling everything up and just let go already. You're not alone, regardless of what you think."

"Let me go," she demanded while she continued to struggle against Kensei's taller and much larger frame.

"You don't get it, do you?" Kensei asked the angry girl he had pinned between himself and the wall.

"Get what? That you're a meddling-"

Sayomi's eyes widened and she stopped struggling as Kensei's lips crashed down on to hers.

"What the hell?" She yelled as she shoved him off and wiped a hand across her mouth.

"You may think you're not hurting any of us, Sayomi, but you're wrong."

Sayomi just stared at him for a few seconds, breathing hard from the fight and the struggle to get out of Kensei's grip. Once her senses seemed to return, so did all of her anger, the numbness she had felt for as long as she could remember was swept away by the violent rush of emotion. With her anger came every other emotion that she had locked away to be replaced by the blissful numbness that she had let herself wallow in for so long. She hadn't wanted to face reality, but here it was kissing her and telling her things she didn't want to hear, true or not.

She needed to let it all go, it would consume and devour her if she did not.

Kensei watched her as she seemed to shrink and then fall to the floor in a heap, her shoulders bowed and shaking as quiet sobs racked through her body.

Sayomi let Kensei sit next to her and pull her into a warm embrace as she unleashed all the emotions and sadness she had kept bottled up for so long. The rain outside her window intensified and her room was filled with the sounds of the rain as it pounded relentlessly into the warehouse.

"How are you feeling?" A rough voice asked.

"Ugghh," was all Sayomi could manage as she raised a hand to her throbbing temples.

"Well, you look like shit."

Sayomi growled and blinked her eyes open to glare at Kensei who was sitting on the edge of her bed staring at her.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, she had tried to sound mean and cold but her voice was gravelly and worn.

"Making sure you were ok," he answered.

"I'm fine, so leave."

"I'm not going anywhere, you need to learn that you have people who are going through some of the same things as you. We're here to help, Sayomi."

"I don't need your help, Kensei, or your pity now go-"

"Pity? Who the hell said I pitied you? I said you were pathetic, not that I pitied your sorry ass!"

"I'm not pathetic," she snapped as she tried to push herself up only to fall back on to her pillow with a groan as her head throbbed even more.

"Uh huh."

"Oh shut up," she grumbled.

"No."

"What's with the wanna be caring attitude? It doesn't suit you," Sayomi said after a few minutes of silence.

"Someone has to look out for you, you can't seem to do it yourself."

"Are you just going to keep insulting me? Because if so I'm not in the mood so go away and bug someone else."

"I don't want to."

"Fine, do whatever you want," Sayomi said as she rolled over to face away from him.

Sayomi opened her eyes after a few minutes of ignoring the fact that she could feel Kensei's eyes on her back. She grabbed her pillow from under her head and whacked him with it, sending him to the floor.

"What the hell?"

"Stop staring at me you damn pervert!"

"I wasn't staring at you! And pervert? I'm not a pervert!"

"What do you call watching a girl while she's trying to sleep?"

"I wasn't watching you! Why would I wanna watch you?"

"I dunno, you kissed me last night, so you must feel something for me," she shouted.

"You must have lost your mind, I can't stand you," Kensei shot back.

"Well good, because old men aren't really my type," Sayomi retorted.

"Who you callin' old, shrimp?"

"Shrimp?" Sayomi screeched as she sat up, her headache completely forgotten as she glared at him as he stood from the ground, she stood up herself so that she didn't have to look up at him.

"What, can't you see me from down there?"

Sayomi growled and punched him in the shoulder.

"Ow! Enough with the violence, woman!"

"Don't you woman me, Kensei!" She shouted as she as she put her hands on her hips and stared at him, a slight red tint to her cheeks from the yelling.

"What are ya gonna do about it, shrimp?"

Sayomi growled and lunged at Kensei, she tried to punch him but he moved and pushed her back. She threw another punch but he grabbed her wrist and twisted it behind her.

"Are you done yet? This is getting annoying. Like fighting a little kid," he asked.

She threw her elbow back into his stomach earning a grunt and making him release her arm. She spun around to face him and to throw another punch but instead she found herself grabbing his shirt and yanking him down before pressing her lips to his in a rough kiss.

Kensei was a little surprised but responded eagerly and pushed her back into the wall behind her. Her hands snaked around his neck, while his hands found their way to her waist, he pulled her closer to him causing a small gasp to escape her lips at the roughness. Her head tilted back and Kensei trailed kiss down her throat to her shoulders making a soft groan escape Sayomi's lips.

Trailing his hands down Sayomi's body, Kensei lifted her up and she wound her legs tightly around him as he held her to him. Their lips met again and Kensei took a step back from the wall, Sayomi's legs tightened around him so she could keep herself upright as he took a few steps towards her bed. He lowered her down and laid over her.

She hesitated and Kensei pulled away from her, looking down at her flushed face and swollen lips in concern.

"I'm sorry, Sayomi," he said as he began to push himself up.

"No," she answered as she grabbed him and pulled him back down, she turned her head away slightly as if embarrassed. "It's just...I'm...I'm..."

"Oh," he said, slightly surprised, she was trying to tell him she was a virgin, something he hadn't expected. "We don't have-"

"I want to," she said before he could and pulling his lips back down to hers as she slipped her hands under his shirt and began to tug it over his head.

"Are you-"

"Stop being a gentleman, Kensei, it's annoying," she interrupted breathlessly as she ran her hands over his muscular chest and traced the tattoo on his abdomen with her finger.

"I'm just-"

"Shut up," she ordered as she bit his bottom lip before kissing him deeply.

It seemed like hours that they kissed and let their hands roam over each other, exploring one another as their clothes slowly disappeared, leaving nothing between them.

Sayomi was lost in in the feel of Kensei's hands on her body as he pressed against her and kissed her in places that awoke a fire inside her she had never experienced.

"Are you sure?" He whispered as he nipped lightly at her ear.

She nodded, her voice was gone and she wasn't sure she would ever get it back.

She felt his fingers entwine with hers as he pinned her arms above her head, gently though not forcefully.

"This might hurt," he said softly as he locked his eyes on hers.

Her hands tightened on his ever so slightly and she nodded. An instant later she had to squeeze her eyes shut as pain lanced through her body, she cried out and her eyes watered. Kensei kissed her gently and lightly squeezed her hands in reassurance.

If it hadn't been for the pain, a part of her thought the sensation of her body connecting with Kensei's might have been enjoyable, but the feeling of her insides being on fire was too much. A tear escaped her closed eyes and trailed down the side of her face.

Seeing the tear escape her eyes, Kensei released her hands and brushed it away with his thumb as he pressed his forehead to Sayomi's. Her eyes fluttered open and the moment their eyes met Sayomi smiled and wrapped her arms around Kensei pulling him down so that nearly every inch of their bodies were touching. She kissed the side of his neck before burying her head into his shoulder. Kensei's hands entangled themselves in her long hair and he tugged lightly, getting a soft moan from Sayomi in response as he brought her face back to his and pressed his lips against hers hungrily. As the kiss deepened so did their breathing and Sayomi could feel a new warmth building within her, this one was far from painful and she couldn't help but to dig her fingers into Kensei's back as the pleasurable feeling washed over her. She felt Kensei tug on her hair as his body stiffened and his back arched upwards, a small cry tore threw her lips as she felt her own body respond and her head tilted back as her back arched up and off the bed for a moment.

Kensei remained on top of her kissing her face and neck as she breathed raggedly, his hands were still buried in her hair and she was loosely clutching on to him. Now that everything had slowed and the euphoria of having been so lost in the feelings of what they were doing were wearing off, the pain between Sayomi's legs was once again very noticeable and she shifted her position under Kensei. Withdrawing slowly from her, Kensei laid on his side and pulled Sayomi to him, her eyes had closed and a few stray tears had found their way from the pale blue orbs and silently rolled down her beautifully flushed face.

"Are you alright?" He asked, his voice was unusually caring and warm as he held her to him and kissed her forehead.

She swallowed and nodded. "I'm fine."

Noticing that she was shivering, he reached down and pulled Sayomi's blue sheets and beige blanket over them. After pulling the blankets over them, he rested his arm over Sayomi's waist as she curled into his chest. They remained like this until Sayomi's breathing evened and she fell asleep in his arms. Kensei was awake for awhile longer, watching her as she slept peacefully, her lips parted slightly and a glow on her cheeks that he hadn't seen there before.

Kensei yawned and stretched but quickly realized he wasn't in his bed and there was something warm next to him. Lifting his head he turned to see that Sayomi was beside him, she lay on her side facing away from him, one hand under head and the other loosely clutching her blue sheet over her naked chest. A small smile found its way to his face, a genuine smile, not something usually seen on him as he brushed a few strands of her white hair from her forehead before kissing her head softly.

Doing his best not to wake her, he got out of the bed and got dressed before quietly leaving the room.

Sayomi fidgeted in her sleep and slowly blinked her eyes open, she rolled onto her back and sighed when she saw that Kensei had already gone. She clutched the sheets over her bare chest and and closed her eyes.

'He left, after all the things that happened last night, what we did, he just left without saying anything.'

She didn't know whether she should be angry or hurt or even if she should feel anything at all. There had never been anything between them but friendship before, she didn't know why she thought one night would change that, or if she even wanted that to change. She didn't know what had come over her the night before, but she knew she didn't regret it. Somehow in the midst of fighting and then joining together so intimately she had found the parts of herself that had been gone for so long. She had always known that she would need to move on, she just never wanted to do it alone and she wouldn't admit it. She thought that moving on would mean that she would have to forget everything, but she realized now that wasn't the case, she could remember everything but she could still be happy, something she hadn't thought was possible before then.

'I wonder why he left? Does he not feel-'

Her thoughts were cut off as her door quietly opened. She sat up in her bed, her sheet grasped over herself as she blinked at Kensei as he walked into her dark room, muttering to himself as he tried to shut the door. When he finally did he turned around and looked down at her.

"You're awake," he said.

"Yeah, where were you?" She asked, she frowned at the needy undertone to her voice.

"Coffee," he said as he held a mug out to her.

"Thanks," she said as she took the mug after tucking the sheet around her and securing it under her arms.

She sipped at her beverage quietly, keeping her eyes anywhere that didn't involve looking at Kensei. She didn't know why, but she felt extremely self conscious and a little embarrassed.

"Do you want me to leave?" Kensei asked sensing her discomfort but taking it as more of a rejection.

"Huh? No, I just.. I feel strange is all. After last night."

"Do you regret it?"

She shook her head. "No."

"Then what's wrong?"

"I don't know. I feel a little.. I dunno."

Kensei looked at her with her head bowed slightly and he saw the vulnerability in the way she sat and in her eyes as she cast a glance at him. He set his mug down on her dresser and plucked hers from her hands and set it down as well before sitting on the bed next to her and pulling her into a hug.

Sayomi didn't know how to respond, she tensed slightly in surprise and her eyes widened.

"Kensei?" She questioned.

"I won't hurt you."

She gasped at his words but couldn't think of anything to say so she remained quiet and wrapped her arms around him.

"Thank you," Sayomi said quietly after a few minutes.

A little surprised by the statement Kensei tried to look down at Sayomi but her head was tilted so that her forehead was pressed against his chest and he couldn't see much of her face.

"For what?" he asked.

"For everything. I'm sorry I've been such a pathetic mess."

"Don't worry about it, just knock it off, alright?"

"Alright...Kensei?"

"What now?"

"Why... why did you..."

"Isn't it fairly obvious by now?" He replied, tilting her head up to kiss her forehead again.

Sayomi smiled. "Who knew the ape was capable of being such a softy," she teased.

"Shut up before I kick your ass."

"Like you could, jackass."

"Nice to have you back," he replied after a few second pause.

Sayomi smiled. "It might take a little while, but I think I can start getting over it all now and move on to new things."

"Good. I don't want to have to beat you senseless again."

"Actually you didn't beat me senseless, I remember being the one hitting you," Sayomi pointed out.

"Well, I might not have beaten you up, but I remember you not being able to talk last night."

Sayomi turned a very bright shade of red and she turned away with a scowl on her face. "Shut up."

"Admit it, I'm the best," Kensei said proudly.

"Well, of course you are, dumbass, I don't have anything else to compare it to."

"What are you trying to say?"

"That if I don't have anything to compare-"

"You're not sleeping with anyone else, I'll kill him!"

"Jealous much, ape man? All I said was that I had nothing to compare it to since I hadn't done it before, so of course you would be the best."

"So I'm the best?" Kensei asked again.

Sighing and rolling her eyes, Sayomi stretched and 'accidentally' hit Kensei in the jaw.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"Sorry, I was stretching and your big mouth was in the way," she replied blandly.

"Stupid woman," he grumbled.

Sayomi chuckled. "You're the stupid one, you like me."

"Did you just admit you're stupid?"

Sayomi blinked at him for a moment. "Shut up," she mumbled.

"Get up, the rain finally stopped," Kensei said as he stood from the bed.

"Did it?" she asked as she glanced back, out her window, sure enough she could see a few rays of the bright morning sunshine.

"Yeah, stopped sometime last night. Now come on, you're going to stop moping and have breakfast with everyone."

"Alright, alright," Sayomi said as she scooted to the edge of the bed the sheet still clutched over her. She looked at Kensei and raised her brows at him.

"What?"

"Get out," she said.

"Why?"

"Because I said so, now out," she said as she laughed for the first time in a long time and stood from her bed to push Kensei from her room.

Thirty minutes later, Sayomi had showered and changed into clean clothes when she made her way into the little area that was used as a sort of living room. There was a table and a few chairs as well as a couch and a few pillows to sit on.

Looking around she saw that Kensei was cooking as everyone else sat around, waiting for the food to be done so they could eat. She walked up beside Kensei who glanced at her curiously, she just smiled and helped him finish the cooking without a word.

After the meal was done they all went about their usual day. Sitting around the warehouse doing anything they could think of to relieve the boredom they felt.

Sayomi sat beside Kensei and leaned against his shoulder to read the newspaper he was reading. Wordlessly, he handed her a random section which she took before laying down, placing her head on his legs and holding the newspaper out before her.

The fact that Sayomi actually smiled didn't escape anyone's attention, the fact that she was practically glued to Kensei for the next few days didn't either. No one minded really though, the fact that they seemed to be off in their own world, they were happy for them. It had been so long since Sayomi had laughed and smiled and slowly she was becoming the Sayomi they all knew and missed. Of course that also meant that the loud, opinionated and stubborn Sayomi was frequently butting heads with the stubborn and quick to anger Kensei. The two would argue a lot but they always seemed to be enjoying it, the hints of smiles on their lips.

~A/N~

Yes, this is still going to be a Sayomi/Byakuya pairing, but the relationship between Kensei and Sayomi still has some relevance considering the two of them were involved for quite some time. There are emotions and feelings that shouldn't be ignored and lead to conflict later on, as some of you may already know. Anywho, this one wasn't changed too dramatically. Pretty much the same as the original. A few more chapters and we'll start getting into more and more new content as the story progresses.

Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed! Your thoughts are much appreciated!

Please feed the review monster, he's grumpy today. Didn't have his coffee and someone ate all the cookies... Review please!