58. Fool
Prompt: Fool
Setting: Canon
Genre: Romance
237 Words
If Ichigo had to guess what Kuchiki Rukia's favourite word might be, he'd bet all his money on 'fool'.
She'd certainly flung it often enough at him.
Sometimes he might have even deserved it.
... All right, so most of the times he had definitely deserved it.
Especially in the beginning. Then, the word had been clipped, spat out accompanied by flashing eyes of pale violet.
A few times, in the more perilous moments, the word had slipped out, trembling and laced with worry. Once or twice, there had even been shining, unshed tears accompanying it.
More often than not, the word had swiftly followed after Rukia had shaken her head in exasperation.
And when the weeks of their acquaintance grew into months, as their bond deepened into a true friendship, the word had gained the lightness of helpless amusement.
Sometimes, she would still hurl that word out in a fit of temper or righteous anger, but those incidents grew less and less.
Ichigo didn't tell her, but he especially liked the times when on the heels of that word Rukia let out a peal of bright laughter.
But without a doubt, his favourite occasions were those when her eyes softened into a deep purple and shone with emotion. When the word left her smiling lips brimming with warmth and affection.
And Ichigo knew that she was right. Especially in those moments.
He was a fool.
A fool for her.
