A/N: So, I managed to finish chapter 5 before the wedding after all. Chapter 6 will take a couple of days though.
This story is progressing way slower than I thought it would. When I first came up with the idea, I was expecting Ichigo to be masturbating in a school supply closet from all the seductiveness at this point. (I'm kidding, I'm kidding…)
Still, it's slower than I had originally thought. But whenever I try to make them do something too forward, they seem to think it's too OOC for them. So here we are, taking it slow. But no matter, our eyes (and Orihime's) are set on the goal.
I have a couple of questions that I would love for you to answer. But before that, please enjoy chapter 5, once again the longest chapter yet. 😊 And please review to motivate me to keep writing after my wedding!
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Chapter 5 – falling
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Ichigo was walking home, lost in thought. He'd spent the afternoon with Inoue. Although they usually didn't spend a lot of time together just the two of them, that in itself didn't feel like such an abnormal occurrence. But he felt strange. He felt like something had shifted between them. Or maybe something had shifted inside of him. After they had touched there and after he had just blatantly stared at her ass and thighs, he felt like their relationship was different – tainted somehow.
He blushed as her remembered those moments in her tiny kitchen. He had never looked at her that way before. And now that he had, he started to feel guilty. She was one of his best friends for crying out loud, he should not think of her like that! People were always reducing her to her looks, and he was furious about it. What kind of a hypocrite was he, doing the same thing to her now?
But it sure felt nice, a sly voice inside of him interjected. With her ass against your dick like that. Sure could get used to that. The voice cackled. And her thighs… Imagine squeezing those thighs, hmmm…
"What the hell?" Ichigo was shocked by his own thoughts. This wasn't him. This was something his hollow would think, but not him.
Oh no King, don't blame me for this, that was aaaall you. I mean, don't get me wrong, I completely agree, but those were still your thoughts. Maybe you're finally starting to see the fun things in life and can stop being the stuck-up buzzkill that you are…
He heard his hollow laughing maniacally, but before he could retort, his combat pass started blasting.
He wasn't sure if he had ever been that relieved by the arrival of a hollow. Just what I need now. He pushed the battle pass against his chest, deposited his body in a side alley and jumped to the top of the next street lantern. He was fuming. He wasn't sure who he was angry with, but he felt furious.
The hollow was a small regular hollow. It was dead before it had even realized that it was being attacked. Ichigo ground his teeth. He would have preferred an enemy that could put up a fight. This measly hollow probably would have died just being close to his spiritual pressure in Bankai state.
"I thought killing hollows in this town was my job, Mr. substitute soul reaper," he heard an amused voice behind him. Yoshida-san was a decent soul reaper. After taking over hollow duty in Karakura, Ichigo had barely needed to step up anymore. Usually, he was grateful for that. Today, however, the guy irritated the hell out of him.
"Well, you're late to the action, Yoshida" he ground out. "You wanna fight me instead?"
He saw a glimpse of fear in the other soul reaper's eyes and realized that his reiatsu was flaring up like crazy. He didn't bother lowering it.
"I wouldn't dream of it, Kurosaki-san. No hard feelings, alright?" Yoshida had lifted his hands in a calming manner. Ichigo regarded him coldly, but then turned on the spot and sped away. He was frustrated. Why the fuck was he so frustrated? He didn't usually feel this way. He didn't usually snap at people like that. Hell, he had almost picked a fight with a representative from soul society!
He needed to blow off steam. He needed a challenging opponent. But he couldn't very well just march up to his strongest friends and demand they fight him just for the heck of it. Although… Kenpachi would probably go along with that. He'd make for a good sparring partner. He would most likely be happy about it, too. Ichigo briefly considered asking Urahara to open a Senkaimon for him. Then he dismissed the thought. Urahara would surely ask him what for, and he seriously had no explanation for that. Why in the world was he so irritated that he would go fight Kenpachi on his own accord?
He huffed and stopped in his tracks, forcing himself to just breathe. Inhale through your nose, rein in your reiatsu, exhale through your mouth. Inhale through your nose, rein in your reiatsu, exhale through your mouth…
He started to calm down. He tried to relax his face. After a couple of seconds, he turned to retrieve his body. Everything was fine. He just needed to calm himself.
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Orihime hesitated before stepping into the classroom. So far, her plan had worked out fine. She was still in phase one. She had no new measures planned for today, just more of the same. But still, she felt insecure. After her crush had left the day before she had been happy – until she had suddenly felt his spiritual pressure violently flaring all over the place. Had she made him angry? Was this her doing?
She sighed. No going back, only going forward. She opened the classroom door and stepped inside.
"Good morning, Kurosaki-kun, Ishida-kun, Tatsuki-chan!" she exclaimed happily. Her friends greeted her back while she made her way over to where they were standing.
"Good morning my lovely Hime," someone screeched next to her ear while two arms reached around her waist, squeezing tightly. Orihime cringed inwardly. "Good morning, Chizuru-chan!" Before she had finished her greeting, the arms around her loosened. Tatsuki had punched Chizuru in the face and was no scolding her whilst shaking her fist.
"You ugly Tomboy, you're just jealous of what Hime and I have," Chizuri retorted venomously.
Tatsuki was about to reply when suddenly a different voice spoke.
"Seriously, Honshou, won't you stop molesting Inoue already, she obviously doesn't return your feelings! It's getting old. Don't you think it's time to stop embarrassing yourself?"
Everyone turned and stared at Ichigo. Since when did he get involved in situations like this?
Kurosaki-kun, Orihime sighed inwardly. Ichigo seemed really irritated.
"Get your chins off the floor and stop looking at me like that. I know you're all thinking that she's making a fool of herself, it's about time someone said it," he barked angrily at his friends. They all looked away to evade his glare. Next to Tatsuki, Chizuru's chin started trembling. She turned on the spot and ran out of the classroom.
"Kurosaki-kun, that wasn't very nice," Orihime said meekly. He turned to look at her with an unreadable expression. "Whatever Inoue, I just wanted to help. Or do you mean to tell me that you actually enjoy her attention?" "Well… no, but-" "So there you go."
Orihime opened her mouth to reply, but she didn't know what to say, so she closed it again. The air had become awkward. Ichigo walked over to his desk without sparing another glance at her. Their friends had observed the interaction closely. No one dared to say anything, but they exchanged confused looks. Ichigo was obviously in a foul mood, but this was the first time any of them had seen him lash out at Orihime. He lashed out at Ishida, at Keigo, even at Rukia or Tatsuki, but he was always gentle with the healer. Something was up.
Orihime looked crestfallen and sat down at her desk. It was just as she suspected. Kurosaki-kun was mad at her. She didn't know how to proceed from here.
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What in the world is wrong with me? Why am I acting like this? Ichigo was cursing inwardly.
Whatever, the lesbian had it coming, a voice inside him said. She should know better than to touch Inoue in front of you. Ichigo scowled. Something was off. Honshou had touched Orihime in front of him a thousand times. It had never bothered him before. Class had started but Ichigo couldn't be bothered to interrupt his brooding to pay attention.
Now he had lashed out at Inoue, too. He felt terrible about that, she was the victim here. Although she never did say anything to stop that crazy lesbian. Didn't she just go out and about to tell him that she could hold her own? So why didn't she? Well, to be fair, you went out and about to tell her she shouldn't and just let you handle it. Ichigo clenched his fists. The pen he was holding snapped in two, lacerating his skin. He cursed silently as he watched his palm start to bleed. This day was getting better by the minute. He looked up and saw Ishida shoot him a dirty look. Tatsuki looked concerned. He glared back at Ishida nastily, but the Quincy suddenly seemed distracted. Ichigo knew that expression.
And sure enough, his combat pass started blaring. He got up and showed his bleeding hand to the teacher. "Sorry Sensei, I need to go to the nurse." And with that, he ran outside.
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"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Ishida came up running next to him.
"Mind your own business, Ishida!"
"Oh, don't get me wrong, Kurosaki, I don't give a flying damn about what's got your panties in a bunch like that. But if you don't control your freaking spiritual pressure, all the hollows from Hueco Mundo will soon be here in Karakura, expecting the feast of their life."
Ichigo gulped, realizing he hadn't paid any mind to his spiritual energy. But he wasn't going to tell Ishida that.
"Whatever Ishida. What are you doing here anyways? I can take care of the hollow. If I even make it there before Yoshida."
"Your spiritual perception is lacking as always. I sense at least eight hollows all around the city thanks to your little hissy fit before. You're going to need all the help you can get if you don't want any civilian casualties."
Ichigo clenched his jaw. He knew he was terrible at sensing reiatsu. He tried to focus. It was blurry, but Ishida was right, he felt hollows in different directions. Darn it, he hated it when the smartass was right.
"Guys let's go," said a deep voice behind them. Not even waiting for an answer, Chad had run past them, closely tailed by Inoue.
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Ichigo was flashstepping away from the hollow he had just slain. It had been of medium strength and quick to defeat, but then again that didn't say much, as Ichigo wasn't easily rattled. He figured that after defeating many of the espada and even Aizen, only a vasto lordo might give him a little challenge when it came to hollows.
He opened his senses and tried to find Inoue. He didn't like that she was fighting. It wasn't that he didn't trust in her power. She had the ability to reject anything after all. He just knew that she hated fighting and that she always suffered when she put an end to a life – even if it was a hollow. So he tried to spare her from it. And he had been too much of an ass already today, so he had all the more reason to go to her.
He felt her reiatsu in the distance. With her was another dark reiatsu, it was stronger than the hollow he'd fought before.
He clenched his jaw in worry and hurried towards them.
He was still some distance away, when he spotted Inoue standing on the roof of a ten- story building. Opposite of her was a huge hollow with multiple tentacles and a nasty grin on his face. She was standing behind her shield in fighting stance and even though he couldn't see the small sprite, Ichigo was sure that she had just sent out Tsubaki to attack. It seemed that he had assumed right, because just in that moment, the hollow's mask cracked, and it started to dissolve. Ichigo felt his heart grow a little lighter. He couldn't help but feel proud of his gentle friend. She'd come a long way.
Suddenly his heart froze. A new hollow had floated up beside the building behind Inoue and it seemed she hadn't spotted it yet, as she had her back turned towards it.
"INOUE, WATCH OUT!" Ichigo yelled desperately, but it came too late. He could barely make out the look of surprise on her face before the hollow just smashed her off the building.
"INOUE, NO!" Horror overcame him as he watched his friend fall.
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Orihime exhaled sharply as she watched the hollow dissolve. It hadn't been as easy to defeat as it should have been. She was simply distracted today. Kurosaki-kun had been so angry before. She wondered if she could make it up to him somehow. Suddenly she heard his voice yell in the distance.
"INOUE, WATCH OUT!" She swirled, but it was too late. The power of the blast was horrible. Her ribs just cracked from the violence of it. It hurt like crazy. Yet, as she fell, all she could think of was how stupid she had been to let her guard down. I'm sorry Kurosaki-kun… There are so many things I haven't told you yet.
She braced herself for the impact. From that height, she figured it would only hurt a second before she died. She wondered if her friends would come visit her in soul society. She wondered if she would find Sora. But then again, she most likely wouldn't even remember Sora. But a girl could hope. She smiled sadly. It wouldn't be bad though. She might even become a Shinigami, she had plenty of spiritual energy.
She closed her eyes and listened to her own heart beats. They were going to be her last after all.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
And then suddenly, she wasn't falling. And everything went black.
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Orihime's eyes fluttered. She felt so nice and warm. Was this death? If so, it was bliss. It felt like a hug from the person you love. Even the smell was right. She inhaled contently. She loved Kurosaki-kun's smell. It was so… manly. Strong. Gentle. She smiled happily. If this was death, it was okay. Suddenly she felt a tentative touch. It felt like a hand was cupping her cheek. She strained her eyes open. The light blinded her for a second. But then she saw his face above her.
"Hey," he said.
"Hey," she answered almost inaudibly.
Suddenly he buried her in a hug. "I am so glad you're alive," he whispered hoarsely in her ear. She briefly wondered if his voice was sore from crying.
She relaxed into the hug. This was where she wanted to be. "Me too," she said.
She didn't know how long they stayed in that embrace. It felt like an eternity, yet too short, when he gently asked her if she was strong enough to heal herself.
"I'm not sure, I'll have to ask my powers. Ayame, Shun'o, what do you think?" The two Rikka appeared. "We'll try our best, it should be fine." Her healing dome curved over the two teenagers. Now Orihime took in her surroundings. They were back on the roof of that building. Kurosaki-kun was kneeling, cradling her in his lap. She blushed.
"What happened?" She asked tentatively.
"You fell," Ichigo answered tonelessly, evading her gaze. "I was still so far away I thought I'd never reach you in time. But somehow, I did. I must have gone into Bankai without realizing. You were just inches from the ground when I got to you." His voice sounded strained, as if he was in pain. She gathered all her strength to lift her hand to his face, lightly trailing over his cheek. Maybe it was her exhausted state, but she swore he leaned into it for a moment.
"But then when I reached you, you were already unconscious. I- I must have gotten a bit emotional because the hollow that got you just dissolved when I brought you back up here." His cheeks tinted lightly at the admission.
"How long was I out?" Orihime asked. She felt her shattered bones slowly fusing back together.
"About 15 minutes, I think." He grimaced as he answered her question. Oh goodness. Did that mean he had cradled her in his arms for 15 minutes? Orihime cursed herself for being unconscious. "I thought of bringing you to Tessai to heal, but there was a hollow in that direction and Ishida was fighting it, I didn't want you to get caught in the crossfire, so I figured I'd wait a few minutes." He reached his hand up to rub his neck. He seemed a little embarrassed.
"That's good," Orihime smiled. "Say, what about the others?" She scrunched her nose up in worry.
"I think they're okay. With the one that got you, I killed four of the hollows. Then you got that big one and I'm sure Ishida and Chad got the others." He paused briefly. "You know my spiritual perception is terrible, but at least I can't sense any hollows in the vicinity."
"That's good," she said again, before exhaustion overcame her and her eyes fluttered shut again.
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When she awoke again, she was in her bed.
"Hey again," said Ichigo. He smiled at her warmly, and she thought her heart would give out from beating so. "Ayame and Shun'o were done healing you. They said you only need to rest now and then you should be as good as new. So I brought you home." The smile was replaced by a frown.
"You forgot to lock your door. That's dangerous," he scolded her softly.
"It's fine Kurosaki-kun, I forget that all the time and no one has ever broken in."
"Technically I just broke in," he retorted flatly. She giggled at that.
He sighed. "Please try to remember, Inoue, it's for your own safety." "Aye aye." He looked pleased with that answer and turned his head to the window. When he returned his gaze to her, his expression had changed.
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"I'm sorry about snapping at you this morning, Inoue." Her orange-haired dream was looking at her apologetically.
She hated it that he was looking at her like this. It was her fault anyways; she had made him mad. "Oh no, it's fine, Kurosaki-kun, I'm sure you had your reasons to be angry with me."
"No, actually I didn't. You did nothing wrong. I've just been so frustrated lately; I don't even know why."
"Frustrated?" Orihime's eyes widened. Could it be...?
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"Are you sure they're alright?" Orihime was staring worriedly at the scene in front of her. Ikkaku and Shuheei had gotten in a fight and were going at it hard. Rangiku laughed merrily. "Oh, don't worry about it, Orihime-chan. They're guys, they're just frustrated." "Frustrated?" "Yeah, you know," Rangiku wiggled her eyebrows at her but quickly stopped when Orihime looked nothing but confused. "Oh, my sweet Orihime-chan, of course you don't know. Let me explain. It's sexual frustration." "Sexual frustration?" "Yes, pent-up sexual energy. When guys don't get any action, they sometimes don't know what to do with all their testosterone and they get really testy and angry and tend to do stupid things. And sometimes they even get into fights, just to blow off steam." Orihime was blushing like crazy at this explanation, only managing to stutter "I see…"
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"Yeah, I can't really explain it, but the frustration has been killing me."
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A/N: Haha, I had so much fun writing sexually frustrated Ichigo, it just came flowing out. It just works so well with his character. xD
Anyways, here are my questions:
Do you think Orihime is OOC in this story? If so, please elaborate.
How am I doing with the smut? Do you want more of it? Less of it? Should I be more descriptive? Just give me your thoughts on that please.
(I know there hasn't been that much yet, mostly Orihime's dreams, but I'm still interested in your opinion for future reference.)
Any other thoughts/requests for this story?
I really really appreciate your reviews.