Their first dance
Based on an image by FanArtist over in the IchiRuki LiveJournal community. Go see the adorable art! URL: community.livejournal(dot com)/ichiruki/278945.html
A chaperone watched the scene from across the gym curiously. He had been casually overseeing the class that was assigned finishing touches before the fund-raising event. While they were running short on time, things were coming together quite nicely. Guests were starting to trickle in, and nearly everything was in place. Most of the students were a flurry of activity, adjusting this bit of tinsel or that bundle of balloons, but the short transfer student had been standing motionless for several minutes now. Neck craned upward, she was eying the decorations that dangled from the ceiling by thin strings. They spun slowly in a draft, catching the room's mirrored light. She seemed enchanted.
Pausing a moment to consider, he walked up to her. "I couldn't help but notice your focus on the decorations... Would you like one?"
Rukia squeaked slightly, startled at the unfamiliar voice behind her. Spinning to face the man, she opted to cover her surprise with the usual sweetness.
"Oh! I just couldn't, those are for the charity ball!"
"I don't think we'll miss one, if it's just one." He couldn't help but smile to himself. The poor girl seemed so defenseless with those large, sparkling purple eyes.
"Really?" Actual longing crept into her voice. "Thank you!" She gave a small curtsy. "I'll just go find some help getting it down..."
Ichigo had been standing nearby, having positioned himself with an expertise borne of practice. He was within earshot in case Rukia needed to pull him aside immediately, yet he was far enough away that a casual glance would be more likely to see him as loitering near the punch bowl than hovering around the girl to whom he kept throwing furtive glances.
"Ichigo" Rukia said flatly. Her demand was obvious.
Ichigo rolled his eyes, throwing Rukia an exasperated stare as she continued to wait for him with narrowed, calculating eyes.
"Get it yourself" he muttered, turning toward the snack table to grab a cookie. They both knew she could easily jump high enough. Gigai or no gigai, Rukia was agile when she needed to be.
"Whatever do you mean, Kurosaki-kun?" She trilled, a bit louder. A few other students looked up from their respective conversations. "I'm not nearly tall enough." He had reminded her of that fact often enough. Payback was sweet.
Oh, how he hated that voice. "Well, what the heck do you expect me to do abou --"
"Do you need help with anything, Kuchiki-san?" Mizuiro offered, interrupting what Ichigo was sure was going to be a snappy comeback - he just hadn't quite thought of the ending bit yet. The cheerful boy was holding two clear plastic cups brimming with punch. He offered one to Rukia, who declined.
Muzuiro shrugged and drank down the punch as Rukia explained. "Well, you see, Kurosaki-kun was just telling me that his younger sister absolutely adores plush animals and he was hoping to take one of these decorations home for her."
Ichigo bit down on his cookie violently, choking back a startled noise. Chocolate chip crumbles sprayed forward a moderate distance, falling to the waxed court floor. Rukia grimaced at the distasteful display, eyes flashing sternly.
Ichigo could scarcely believe what he had heard. Bitch, you are a terrible liar. Even if Yuzu did love stuffed animals, he had said no such thing.
Looking straight into Ichigo's glare, Rukia continued, "I told him it was a very sweet idea. Then, he suggested that I pick one out, as he has horrible taste."
Definitely choking on cookie now. Coughing to cover it up. Not looking Mizuiro in the eye. Just about ready to drag Rukia outside and knock some sense into her. I will not make a scene. I will not make another scene, Ichigo chanted inwardly.
"Well," said Mizuiro in a helpful tone, "you're definitely too short to reach those on your own. I think they're using the ladder to fix some banners outside right now, but maybe if you were on Ichigo's shoulders you could reach" he suggested. She really was too young for his tastes, but maybe this setup would finally give Ichigo the chance to realize what was obvious to everyone else.
Ichigo glared daggers at a seemingly oblivious Mizuiro, who excused himself from Rukia's presence to go mingle with a group of upperclassmen ladies by speakers. The band was warming up and things were being to look livelier. Someone had dimmed the lights.
"I can help," offered a deep voice. Both Ichigo and Rukia jumped. Dammit! What was it about tonight that let people keep sneaking up like that? Ichigo decided that he was in a worse mood than he thought; he should have been able to feel Chad's spiritual pressure, at the very least.
"Oh, Sado-kun!" chimed Rukia cheerfully. "Kurosaki-kun was just offering to help me, but thank you."
Ichigo weighed his options: on the one hand, Chad liked cute things too much; get him and Rukia together with a bunch of stuffed bunnies and there was no telling what might happen. On the other hand, he was not in the mood to suck up to Rukia's stupid play-acting, particularly when she kept making him out to be an idiot, which he most certainly was not. Plus, he had a reputation to maintain. Well, the remnants of a reputation, anyhow.
But somehow or other Rukia won. Before Ichigo could get much of a word in edgewise, she was seated on his broad shoulders as he stood at the edge of the gymnasium, peering upward through a scowl.
"The cat, Rukia! Get the cat." Ichigo's voice called up.
"I want the - "
"The cat is right there!" He flung his hand upward, nearly touching the fluffy object himself.
But Rukia would not have it. Digging her heels into his ribs with a strong squeeze of her thighs, she leaned forward, trying to lead Ichigo toward that adorable bunny she had been admiring all night.
If Ichigo's physical prowess had been anything less than extraordinary, Rukia's flailing about would have sent them both tumbling to the floor. Instead, he managed to counterbalance her swinging arms and leaning body by overcompensating, taking large steps forward and back alternately. Rukia pitched wildly, grabbing his bright hair in one palm and cursing at him viciously under her breath.
And so the next few moments locked the quarreling pair in an awkward battle: Rukia attempting to maneuver the boy closer to her dangling prize; Ichigo struggling to simply keep them upright. He had yet to run out of nonchalant retorts to her commands and she was still determined to brute force him into going where she wanted to go. The background music had faded to the tune of a slow waltz but they were lost in their own world, swaying to and fro in almost perfect synchronization.
To the small but growing crowd that encircled them, it was an astounding and embarrassing scene. But for Kurosaki Ichigo and Kuchiki Rukia, there was no better way to share their first dance.