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XXI: PHOTOGRAPH
One week and three days ago"Did not!"
"Did too!"
Ichigo rubbed his forehead. "Now I'll go there and throttle them! Maybe we'll get a bit of peace and quiet!"
"I'll help you." Rukia nodded.
Fate – who surely had a twisted sense of humor – had somehow maneuvered so that Tatsuki ended up sitting next to Renji for the ride home. They had begun to quarrel even before the autobus started.
Frankly, they had started to get on everybody's nerves.
"God, aren't they tired yet?" the orange haired boy groaned, closing his eyes. So, he totally missed the mischievous glint that flashed in Rukia's eyes.
"Well, humans find surprising strength for the things they enjoy…" she stated matter-of-factly. However, there was a wicked undertone that didn't go unnoticed by the human boy.
"Eh?"
Rukia shrugged, smirking. "Why, for example, I know a certain boy who never grows tired of…" the rest of the sentence came out as an incomprehensible mumble – mainly because Ichigo had covered her mouth with his hand. Then, he all but tried to choke her.
In the background, Renji and Tatsuki were still arguing.
Hours later, a sudden silence filtered from the back-seats – springing forth many theories.
"Maybe she knocked him out."
"Maybe he threw her out of the window."
"That's impossible, we would have heard the glass crash… I think they killed each other."
As their closest friend found the most absurd hypothesis – and made up excuses not to go and check on them – Mizuiro and Asano started wondering what had happened as well.
They had the right to be worried – after all, the two spitfires occupied the seats right behind their own.
Quietly – and after many respective reassurances – the two boys turned around and took a shy peek.
Then they did a double take and looked again.
The Miniature Sergeant and the Red Ape, the most terrifying people of the whole school – scratch that, of the whole town, the bitter rivals, the Cat and the Dog had fallen asleep. Cuddling.
Arisawa's head rested against Abarai's shoulder and she practically curled against his side, while Abarai's right hand rested directly atop of her left one. His cheek was pressed against the top of her head and he was imperceptibly leaning toward her.
"Do you see what I'm seeing?" Asano whispered.
Mizuiro only nodded.
"Quick, pass me my camera."
One week and two days ago
Tatsuki didn't get it.
Why the Hell all her schoolmates were pointing at her and whispering to themselves, giggling occasionally? And why many girls were trying to glare at her when they thought she wasn't looking?
As if that wasn't enough, also her friends were acting weirdly – they looked very nervous and quite cautious around her.
She got her answer around break time, when Abarai Renji literally stormed back from the bathroom. There was a dark cloud looming over him, occasionally broken by a lightning or two, and his expression guaranteed slow and painful death.
He also looked a bit flushed, but it was probably better not to point that out.
"Have you gone to the bathroom recently, Arisawa?"
She raised her eyebrows. "No, why?"
The red-headed (and now red-faced) Shinigami shoved a sheet of paper right in her face. "Look."
Tatsuki grabbed it and lowered it a bit, casting it a brief glance. Then she stiffened and looked again.
The colors where a bit dull and the upper edge was a bit torn from where Renji had ripped it from the wall, but the picture was still pretty clear: it was photograph of herself and the red-head. Both sound asleep and both cuddling.
Slowly, she crumpled the paper and threw it in the bin before her spiritual powers could get out of control and the offending picture mysteriously turned to ashes.
"Who did this?"
"I suspect it was Ichigo's moronic friends – Asano and Mizuiro."
Both turned toward the spot the boys usually occupied, but they were nowhere to be seen.
Tatsuki clenched her fists. "You hold them still and I punch them."
"No, you hold them still and I punch them!"
"I still don't think it was a good idea…" Mizuiro said.
"Oh, shut up! Maybe you got the looks, but I definitely got the brains!" Asano replied. "It was hilarious! As you seen, we can avoid them until they calm down."
"If you say so…" the shorter boy said.
Suddenly, a third set of footsteps echoed in the corridor. Mizuiro looked up – and all the color drained from his face.
"Hey, Asano?"
"What?"
"If you truly got the brains, I suggest you to put them to a good use now." he pointed to the tall boy who was walking toward them from the opposite end of the hallway.
It was none other than Abarai Renji – who was smirking like a cat who just caught a bird.
Asano swallowed hard. He was about to propose an hasty retreat, but the sound of footsteps coming from behind them froze him on the spot.
With a feeling of impending doom, he risked a glance over his shoulder – and immediately wished he hadn't.
Arisawa was there, advancing on them with a psychotic smile plastered to her face.
Asano closed his eyes and whimpered, "We're dead."
Renji laughed. "You don't know how much."
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