Bleach 14
ブリーチ

When We Were Young 2 (Day 2 – October 6)
ウェン・ウィー・ウァー・ヤング

oOo

After Hisana-nee-sama left me at the school gates, I rushed to my classroom. I wanted to see him – Kurosaki Ichigo. Throughout the night, I thought about him constantly. I couldn't understand how someone so young could seem so sad. It didn't make sense to my fledgling mind. When I reached the room, he was already sitting at his desk, the same sad expression plastered on his face; the same sad, little umbrella perched against his desk; the same indifferent expressions on the faces of his fellow classmates. I couldn't understand why they would feel the need to segregate him the way they were, but I was determined not to let it continue.

I strode over to his desk and glared at anybody who dared to stare at him; they all looked away nervously – my face was livid and my emotions were raging. He must have noticed my presence as he swivelled his head to look at me; his eyes were quiet in their regard. "Good morning, Kurosaki-kun," I said sweetly, watching as his eyes gave way from sadness to surprise.

"You…you're…speaking to me?" he asked in a quiet, strained voice that made my heart prickle. I felt anger at his classmates for making him feel so inferior. Instead of voicing those opinions, however, I chose to simply nod brightly at him.

"Why would I not want to, Kurosaki-kun?" I asked with concern. He chose to shrug; a pitiable expression, to be sure.

"Nobody else wants to," he said without anger; rather, with quiet acceptance.

"Well, I'm not everybody else," I said with a big smile. He looked at me, his face scrunched as though he was deep in thought; he seemed to come to a decision as his eyes opened wide with quiet hope, and he offered me a short smile.

"Good morning, Kuchiki-san," he grinned weakly, holding his hand out to me. Instead of shaking it, however, I leaned forward and gave him a brief hug. He hesitated, seemingly not knowing what he should do in the situation; in the end, he kept his arms held rigid to his sides while I embraced him. As I pulled away, he looked at me with a questioning glance.

"I prefer hugs to handshakes," I said in answer to his unspoken question. He nodded before he opened his mouth, then quickly closed it again. "What is it?" I asked him, noticing the sudden action.

He shrugged his shoulders again. I accepted that he didn't feel comfortable discussing it there and then. It was enough that we had progressed beyond being merely neighbours in the classroom; now, I could honestly say that we had the beginnings of a real friendship.

"Would you eat dinner with me?" I turned to him, my eyes wide as the question came out of his mouth without any conscious thought on his part seemingly, for he looked extremely embarrassed. He turned away shyly, his cheeks turning bright red.

I merely smiled. "I'd like that," I hummed. He smiled slightly before focusing his attention to the front of the class as the teacher walked in. His smile faded a little but at least he didn't seem quite so sad anymore.

The teacher seemed to notice as well. She looked over us all before noticing him; she gave a slight gasp of happy surprise. "Kurosaki-kun! You seem a little happier today."

He seemed embarrassed, especially when all the children turned to face him, suspicious gazes surrounding him. I watched with dissatisfaction as he shrank back from them. "I am," he mumbled, his head held in his hands again.

The mutterings began then; all of his classmates, who were supposed to help him, were talking about him in muttered sentences. Their voices were like an angry swarm of bees, too far away to see yet close enough to hear the ferocity of their chorus. "Stop it!" I shouted, rising to my feet in an angered state. "Stop talking about Kurosaki-kun!" Everyone looked surprised, none more so than the boy in question; his mouth was open and his face spoke of wonder.

"Kuchiki-chan!" came the teacher's shocked response. "We don't allow shouting in the classroom. Must I tell your guardians?"

"Tell them to stop being mean to Kurosaki-kun, then," I retorted with an angry glance at everyone in the room; I had been studying Byakuya-nii-sama to the point I could mimic many of his expressions – even he had no idea just how proficient I had become.

"Class, settle down," the teacher spoke in an authoritative tone. "Kuchiki-chan, please sit down." I did as asked, even though I was still angry. I chanced a glance at Kurosaki-kun – his eyes were shining and he offered me the first genuine smile I had seen. I smiled back at him.

The bell for lunch rang; all the other children raced off to find their friends and get their lunches. I waited for Kurosaki-kun; he was fidgeting with his umbrella. "It isn't raining, you know," I said as I walked over to him. He looked at me for a second before his head sank.

"I know it isn't," he responded evenly. "It doesn't matter if it is or is not raining though. Wherever I go, this umbrella goes with me."

"Is it…important to you?" I asked quietly. He nodded slightly.

"Yes," was all he said before he went quiet. I didn't mind; I was getting used to his silent phases. I took his hand – he yelped in alarm – and together we raced to the cafeteria.

"Why is it important?" I asked between mouthfuls of lunch. We were sitting outside on a small bench; none of the other children would come near us. I realised that we were now officially outcasts, or rather, that he had always been one and by defending him, I had joined him in the circle of separation. I didn't really mind though. I didn't want friends who would be so heartless and lacking in compassion and understanding.

He chewed slowly on his meal before swallowing. "I don't really want to talk about it, Kuchiki-san," he answered haltingly, his attention focused solely on the food sitting on his lap.

"…okay," I responded. He turned to me, his face an expression of wonder. "What? You thought I was going to make you tell me?"

"…maybe," he said embarrassedly.

I laughed shortly. "When you're ready to tell me, I'll listen. That what friends do, Kurosaki-kun."

"Friends…?" he questioned, hope blossoming in his chest, judging by the colour appearing in his cheeks.

"Friends," I agreed, feeling that he was someone I would like to have in my life.

"I haven't had any friends before," he admitted quietly.

"Can you keep a secret?" I whispered, moving my mouth near his ear. "Neither have I."

"Do you think…we…can be friends?" he asked whisperingly.

I surprised him by hugging him again, just like earlier in the day. "I'd like that," I replied.

"So, Rukia-chan, did you have a good day?" asked Hisana-nee-sama as I exited the school building. "Oh, and who is this?" she asked as she noticed the boy following me out of the school, the umbrella held firmly in his hand.

"He's my first friend," I said proudly, smiling at him.

He smiled at me, before bowing lightly to my sister. "I'm Kurosaki Ichigo. Pleased to meet you, Kuchiki-san."

Hisana-nee-sama smiled deeply; already, he had endeared himself to her. "Likewise, Kurosaki-san. Rukia-chan, we have to be going."

"Can we drop him off home, Hisana-nee-sama?" I asked pleadingly.

"Sorry, Rukia-chan; Byakuya-nii-sama is expecting us," she said apologetically, smiling at him lightly.

"It's fine," he said. "I don't want to put you out. I'll see you tomorrow, Kuchiki-san."

"Okay; bye," I said with a smile and a wave. As the car rolled away from the school, I felt as though I had achieved quite a lot. I had stood up for someone else and made my first real friend in the process. I could tell that things were only going to get better from that point onwards.

oOo

Author's Notes: Two weeks have come and gone; goodness, how fast does time go? Since this series began, I've spoken to a lot of different people and made lots of new friends. Hopefully, you'll all continue to support this series. My thanks to the multitude of new alerters over the last few days; my utmost thanks go to Rukia's Reflection and Katsumi Hatake for their reviews.

finaldragonquest

21/11/2011