Chapter 03 – cruise
"Ichigo! Wake up! We're going to be late!" Yuzu shouted at her older brother.
"Let's just leave without him." Karin said.
"Ichigo!" Yuzu shouted again.
"Okay, okay, I heard you. Let's go, let's go." Ichigo mumbled as he clambered down the stairs, his hair uncombed and carrying his bags.
They were going on a cruise, all 3 of them. It was a treat after his 2 sisters did well in their final year exams.
As they neared the port, Yuzu chattered excitedly, it was going to be her first time on a ship and she couldn't wait. She held Kon by one hand and waved the other around excitedly, talking about how long it had been since they took a family trip, especially after their dad passed away too, and how Ichigo had been so busy studying in university.
Ichigo smiled. She was right, in some ways. It was a much-needed break for him, and he needed some time to sort out his thoughts.
Nearby, a limousine pulled up. Karin raised her eyebrows, as Yuzu eyes grew big with amazement. Ichigo walked past, oblivious to it. The trio boarded the ship, and made the painful process of trying to locate their room.
The limousine door opened, and out stepped Aisha, talking on her cell phone. With her other hand she grabbed Byakuya and pulled him out. Behind them, out stepped Rukia.
Aisha closed her cell phone and threw it into the car, and then she reached into Byakuya's pocket and took out the blackberry throwing it onto the seat of the car.
"Remember. You promised. No work."
Byakuya said nothing.
Rukia looked around, trying to spot Renji. She looked at the time on her watch and looked around again.
"Renji!" she said, when she finally spotted the red hair.
The two of them hugged before grabbing their bags and following Aisha up the stairs and onto the cruise.
As they were shown to their rooms, Rukia thought back to the time when she had last been on a ship. It had been with Hisana and Aisha. The 3 of them had shared a room, and spent a lot of fun time together, talking and laughing late into the night. Now there was Aisha, who was almost like an older sister, and Byakuya who was like an older brother, and of course Renji, her boyfriend who was always there for her.
She smiled, so much had changed in the past 5 years, but she saw Ichigo's face again and shook her head. She wouldn't let him take away all that she had now, after all the effort she had put in to forget him, she wouldn't allow him to creep into her heart again. Besides, she now had Renji, she told herself, willing herself to believe what she said.
They were shown to their rooms, and Rukia flopped onto the soft bed, she was tired already.
Meanwhile a young lady with long brown hair boarded the ship, pulling her Gucci trolley bag behind her. Showing the porter her ticket, her bags were taken from her and she was shown to her room.
"Matsumoto-san, your room. Please enjoy your stay."
She stepped into a lavishly decorated room; there was a chandelier, and a huge canopy bed. On the table stood a champagne bottle and a wine glass.
Closing the door behind her, she sat on her bed, sipping the champagne; all the while wishing someone was there with her.
"Hinamori-san. Wait up will you?" a young white-haired boy said, lugging his oversized bag.
The girl in front of him, ignored his pleading, and increased her pace as she searched for her room.
"Why is it so noisy outside?" a tanned skinned woman said, fiddling with her gun.
"I'm sorry, Yoruichi-sama, but I really can't be helped."
"It's not your fault Soi Fong. I just hope that Urahara is right about this."
"And what makes you think I'm wrong?" a man wearing a stripped green and white hat said, as he walked into the room without knocking.
"I don't know. Aizen and gang seem to have a knack of disappearing."
"You know, it would be a good idea to keep your gun hidden. And I'm sure he's on this ship this time. He's definitely meeting his comrades."
"We've been chasing them for months and still I feel like we've made no progress."
"Who ever said the chase would be easy?" Urahara replied.
"Welcome everybody on board this 5 day cruise. This is your captain speaking. Please enjoy your stay. We shall now begin our voyage."
The ship's horn blew and the ship set sail.
Rukia walked out onto the ship's desk, letting the sea breeze play on her face. She took a deep breath of the salt water, and watched as the port grew smaller and smaller.
She was having her school break now. Ever since she had taken Byakuya's advice and gone into business, she had been swamped with modules and projects to do. University was tough, but it helped that she had both Aisha and Byakuya to help if she needed. After all, they had been at the helm of their companies for so long, university projects should be a breeze for them.
Renji soon joined her looking out at the ocean.
She had met him entirely by chance. She had lost her hand phone and he had been the one to find it. They had just become friends, but she soon realized that they had a lot in common, and they liked each other. After a few months of being friends, he had asked her if she wanted to go further, and she said yes.
It had all been very sweet, and she loved him a lot.
Renji was a police officer. Although he was busy, he always made time to talk to Rukia, to find out how her day was, to cheer her up when she was down, to stay up with her if she had to bur the midnight oil, to send her to school if she woke up late. He was there when she felt lonely, and he understood her completely.
This was their first holiday together, and it was special for the two of them.
Renji wrapped his arms around Rukia's slim frame, and she leaned back on his chest. They stood there for what seemed hours, not a word passing between them, but the silence seemed to speak volumes as they enjoyed each other's company.
On the deck below the 2 lovebirds, Yuzu and Karin were relaxing in the Jacuzzi, as Ichigo lounged on the deck chair, reading magazines.
In the ship's casino, VIP room, 3 men were playing blackjack. They had arrived in a helicopter after the ship had set sail, and for most of the evening, they had sat there, playing and drinking. There was little conversation and their face showed no expression, except for the occasional smirk.
Soon after, they had their dinner and adjourned to the presidential suite, where they sat and talked.
Back in her room, Soi Fong tuned the radio receptor so that they could hear what was being said.
"Finally, we have them." Yoruichi said.
"So what's next?" a voice from the radio said.
"That's Tousen." Urahara identified.
"That's a secret." A second voice said.
"Gin." Urahara identified again.
"Yes, there seem to some eavesdroppers. Didn't you know that walls have ears?" a third voice said.
"Aizen, damn it, he knows. But how?" Urahara exclaimed.
After this, all they heard was static.
"They must have found the bug and killed it." Soi Fong announced.
"I don't understand. How do they know every time?" Yoruichi said, frustrated.
"Another failed attempt. Now what?" Urahara asked.
The 3 of them just stared each other, trying to come up with a plan in their mind.
Note: I just had to put a note here. Thanks to all the reviewers who have taken the time and effort to review. I really appreciate it! I just want to say that, this fic is alternate universe, so they don't have any spirit power or anything. They are just normal human beings, who are studying/working. It's mostly a love story thing, with a bit of mystery and I'm sort of following the ss arc, where Aizen and gang go evil and all…and I'm sort of building from there. um…so ya, I'll update once a week at least, and I really hope you guys will enjoy and review. thanks.