Hello, I am back! :3 Ha ha, I know...I promised I would have this chapter up awhile ago, but...stuff got in the way. :) Soooooo, sorry. :D

Anyway, here's chapter 14! :P

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As we piled into the car I noticed Ichigo shift in his seat, oddly nervous. I figured it was just because Hisana had caught us kissing, but I was honestly denying that it was because of what I had told him. Even if he had said he loved me too, I was pretty scared that he was just trying not to hurt my feelings.

"How was your first day back you two?" Hisana asked, glancing at me in the rear view mirror before returning her eyes to the road.

I forced my worries away and answered, "Alright. Waking up early was a pain, but it was okay." My voice was surprisingly level.

She nodded before glancing over at Ichigo. He noticed and turned his head toward her, but his gaze resided on the view ahead of us. "It was fine, thanks."

"Good, I'm glad," she stated, her smile growing. "It's really good to see you guys, it's been about five days since I've seen either of you."

"Yeah, it's been awhile," I said, looking up at her. "What have you been doing today?"

"Oh, I had lunch with Byakuya and then he came over to the house. He's there now," she stated lightly, trying to get off the subject of her new relationship. But I wouldn't let it go so easily; it was obvious that they were really serious about each other.

"Goodness, Sana," I said, smiling at her brightly. "Have you two spent every day together since you started going out?" I asked, knowing the answer.

She just shrugged and answered, "Not every day."

"I think he loves you, Hisana. Or he's just obsessed."

"Shut up," she answered, her face tinting pink. "Anyway, he said he had something he wanted to talk to me about, so when we get home could you please just go upstairs for awhile?"

"Sure, no problem," I said, already planning on eavesdropping. I know it's rude, but I was a little worried by that. It sounded like he wanted to break up with her and I wanted to hear his reasons for it.

Hisana glanced over at Ichigo, seeming to notice what he was wearing for the first time. She smiled happily. "You like the clothes?" she asked.

Nodding, he smiled also. "Thank you, Hisana, you didn't have to-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. But I wanted to. You look so adorable!" she exclaimed, reaching a hand over and patting his arm lightly.

He turned to look out the window, muttering a thanks. One thing still hadn't changed about Ichigo, he still couldn't take a compliment.

The rest of the ride was quiet, the low hum of the radio the only noise. As we pulled into the driveway I grabbed my bag and stepped out of the car. Ichigo and Hisana got out also and we all walked into the house. Byakuya was pacing around the kitchen, his hands in his pockets. He stopped when he saw us enter the living room. Hisana grinned at him warmly, her feelings for him written all over her face. He returned the gesture before looking at me and Ichigo. "Hello Rukia, Ichigo. Are you feeling better?" he asked, locking his gaze onto Ichigo's.

"Yes, thank you," Ichigo answered.

Hisana glanced at me before coughing, letting us know it was time to dismiss ourselves.

"Well," I started, giving Byakuya a cold, skeptical look. "We better get upstairs and get our homework done. We have a lot to do," I said, grabbing Ichigo's hand. I started up the stairs slowly, watching over my shoulder until Hisana went back into the kitchen. I stopped and started tip-toeing back down the stairs, getting a confused look from Ichigo.

"Ru-" he started before I cut him off.

"Shh!" I held a finger to my pursed lips to emphasis how quiet he needed to be. We continued down the steps until we were leaning against the wall next to the opening that led to the kitchen. I peeked my head around to see them standing in front of each other, both smiling widely.

"Rukia, why are we doing this?" Ichigo whispered, guilt and worry thick in his voice.

"I'm just being a good sister, trust me," I said, not taking my eyes off of them.

"What did you need to talk about, Byakuya?" Hisana asked, her smile widening as she slipped her hands in his.

His smile seemed to falter as he avoided her gaze, causing me to glare angrily. I can't believe he's doing this!

"Well," he started after taking a shaky breathe. "These last few weeks have been...so great. I haven't had such a close relationship with someone since Kasumi," he said, mentioning his ex-fiancée. Hisana had told me the story about how she had backed out of their engagement a few weeks from the wedding with no explanation. The fact that he was mentioning her now made me even more anxious, but I held my tongue.

Nodding, Hisana listened while he continued. "It's only been like...two weeks and I keep thinking that...this is going way too fast." As the words left his mouth I saw Hisana's expression fall, a deep frown crossing her features as she pulled her hands away.

My anger built up inside of me and I was ready to storm into the kitchen. Ichigo seemed to noticed my planned actions because he grabbed my arm and held me still carefully. I nodded and continued watching them, forcing myself to just let them talk.

As I looked back at Byakuya he seemed to realize that my sister already knew what he was about to say. "No, what I mean is...it's too fast to make sense. I've been trying to figure out why you mean so much to me when I haven't even known you for a full month." He paused again, looking down for a moment before looking back at Hisana's confused face, his hand slipping into his pocket. He pulled his hand back out, something in his hand, but I couldn't tell what it was.

With his free hand Byakuya grabbed her left one and took another steadying breathe. After a moment of silence he knelt down on one knee, holding a small, open box out to her. My eyes widened, completely shocked at what was happening.

My sister's eyes were also wide and glued to the ring being offered to her. Still, she stayed quiet as Byakuya continued. "I love you, Hisana. And I know this is really fast, but I've never been more sure of anything before. Will you marry me?" As he asked, his brow creased, obviously panicking about her reaction.

"I...," she started, her voice drifting off as she stared at him, her large eyes seeming to become more wide. I waited for her to show any sign of a decision, itching to interfere. Finally, a small smile made it's way to her face as tears formed in her eyes, a perfect opportunity to jump in.

Stepping into the opening, I exclaimed, "Say yes!"

Hisana's head snapped toward me while Byakuya only shook his head, smiling. I expected her to scold me, but she only turned back to him and grinned.

"Yes," she said excitedly, hugging onto his neck tightly. His brows rose in surprise before he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer. I ran into the room and hugged them both tightly, earning chuckles from both my sister and her fiancé.

"I'm so happy for you two!" I exclaimed, pulling away so Byakuya could slip the ring onto her shaking hand. Tears ran down Hisana's face and she quickly brushed them away with her free hand. I didn't want to intrude on their big moment, so I backed up, a wide grin on my face. "I'll leave you guys alone," I said before side-stepping over to Ichigo again, who hadn't moved. "Let's go upstairs," I said, smiling up at him. Smiling back at me, he nodded and grabbed my hand. As we started up the stairs I heard my sister say "I love you so much, Byakuya," her voice shaky as she continued to cry.

My smile widened as Ichigo and I continued up the stairs, heading toward my room.

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Ichigo and I stayed in my room until we heard any sign that we were welcome downstairs. We talked and did homework for about an hour before Hisana came in and told us that Byakuya was called back to work. Her joy was all over her face and although I was a little upset about having to share my sister, I was way more happy for her.

That night Byakuya came back around eight saying he had made reservations for him and Hisana at some fancy restaurant in half an hour. She rushed to get ready, but the end results didn't show her hurry. She had curled her long hair in spirals, causing it to lose a lot of its length. It now ended at her shoulders and the stubborn strand stuck between her eyes in such a familiar fashion was also curled, still resting along the center of her face. She was clad in a black formal dress ending right above the knee. It was strapless and form-fitting, plan but very flattering.

At eight-twenty they left, both looking as ecstatic as ever. Hisana had left us a casserole to heat up for a late dinner, so as they left I led Ichigo into the kitchen.

After pulling the glass dish out of the fridge and sitting it on the counter I approached the oven and set it the appropriate temperature. When I was sure it was preheating I turned, about to take a step forward but was stopped. Ichigo was standing directly in front of me, startling me. I laughed and smiled up at him, realizing the warm smile on his face.

He grabbed my arms lightly, his long fingers curling completely around my thin limbs. He leaned in closer to my up-lifted face, pressing his lips against mine. He pulled away for a moment while I laid my hands against his chest. Without warning he kissed me again, pulling me closer. Standing on my tip-toes, I deepened the kiss, but Ichigo soon pulled away. He smiled down at me before kissing my forehead and hugging onto my waist tightly. As I wrapped my arms around his waist I realized how thankful I was for Ichigo's self control. I had found myself forgetting all logic when kissing him.

Resting my head against his chest, I asked, "Can you believe Hisana's getting married?" My shock was evident in my tone.

"Yeah," he answered, leaning his weight against the counter absently.

"I can't," I stated. "At least not this soon. I knew he loved her, ever since the start. I mean, yeah, I doubted him for a second, but that's all. I just never expected him to propose after two weeks."

Ichigo didn't respond and when I looked up at him I saw him nod slightly, but he looked distracted. "You okay, Ichi?" I asked, causing a grin to spread across his face.

"'Ichi'?" he asked, obviously amused.

I returned the gesture. "Yes, Ichi. Does that bother you, Ichi?"

He laughed and slightly shook his head.

"Don't ignore my question, you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered, his smile still present.

The casserole took longer than we anticipated to heat up, so our dinner was really late. Afterword we finished a few math assignments together, that time consisting of me trying to explain the complete concept of radicals to him. By the end of that hour he still didn't seem to understand. We watched a little television, the volume low so we could talk instead of pay attention. By ten-thirty Ichigo was dozing off on my bed, so I stepped out of my room to called Isshin and tell him that his son would just stay over for the night.

I was planning on waking Ichigo and leading him to the guest room, but when I returned to my room and saw him sprawled out over my bed, I decided against it. I sat next to him and ran my hand through his hair gingerly. I decided to stay up and wait until Hisana got home, excited to talk to her about her night.

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Okay, so, sorry for the wait. There's chapter 14! :D Hope you enjoyed, please review! :3