A/N: Happy Christmas, everyone! This update is a little something for you all. And I want to apologise for not replying any of the reviews you guys gave me. I'm truly sorry! I've been so busy and every spare minute I have, I'm busy typing away on this story hoping that I will be able to update in time for christmas. I promise I will make some time to reply this time round so do drop me a review okay?
"Taichou, are you sure you don't want me to stay and help? She seems to be losing quite a lot of blood on her arm." asked Renji as he opened the car door for Byakuya to step out.
"You should go home, Renji. I can handle her. You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow." replied Byakuya as he carried the girl in his arms, out of the car.
Renji cast a worried look at Byakuya. "Taichou, you can leave her to me, you know. You don't have to tend to her personally. Ikkaku and I can -"
"Enough, Renji." interrupted Byakuya. "Go home. The business I need you to attend to tomorrow is much more important than this girl and I need you to concentrate on that."
"H-Hai, Taichou!" replied Renji as he watched Byakuya walk safely back into the mansion before getting back into the driver's seat and speeding away.
As soon as Byakuya stepped into the empty mansion, he headed straight to the guest room immediately and laid the girl on the giant king sized bed. He contemplated on calling Unohana but finally decided not to. He didn't want Unohana to bombard him with questions about how he met this girl and such. Byakuya was in no mood to deal with questions right now.
The girl on the bed was still unconscious but Byakuya heard a sudden whimper from her. He hurried to her side and felt her forehead. She was running a fever! Feeling a slight tinge of guilt, Byakuya went to the bathroom next to the guest room and filled a small bucket of water. He threw a clean cloth in and went back to the girl, who seemed to be mumbling in her sleep.
Byakuya sighed mentally as he wrung the cloth, folded it and placed it on top of the girl's forehead. Sweat was rolling off her face and Byakuya could hear her something which sounded like the word 'Ichigo'. Was she hungry?
Byakuya heard the clock from the hall chime five times as he took the girl's thick coat off. It was dirty with blood and Byakuya laid it on the chair. The cut on her arm seemed deep and blood was still dripping from the wound. Byakuya made his way to the bathroom again and grabbed bandages. After bandaging her arm, Byakuya checked on her forehead again. She still seemed to be burning. He took the cloth from her forehead, dipped it into the water, wrung it dry and placed it on her forehead again.
Flashes of images invaded Rukia's mind. There were lots of blood, someone was dead and then there was more blood.
And then Rukia saw herself protecting someone… a man. The man was about to be attacked. He seemed defenseless. But the next moment, another image flashed through Rukia's mind. She saw the man shooting his attacker. Why? Wasn't this man supposed to be defenceless? The man turned around and faced Rukia and without a word, the man pointed his gun at her and pulled the trigger.
Rukia screamed and that was when she opened her eyes. The first thing Rukia saw was a face looming over hers and she screamed again as she pushed the face away.
She bolted upright and came to realise that she was in an unfamiliar room. The face she had just pushed away was now staring at her in a rather impatient sort of way and Rukia recognised that it was the man she had saved earlier, who was also the man whom had killed another in front of her.
"W-Where am I?" asked Rukia as she got out of the bed. Her head throbbed violently as she tried to take a step. She decided to give up and sat back down on the bed.
"My residence." the man replied simply.
"Why?" asked Rukia.
"You fainted and I brought you back. Your wound needed to be patched up." he replied again in a matter-of-fact tone which seemed to irritate Rukia slightly.
Rukia glanced at her arm which was now bandaged up. "T-Thanks."
There was a moment of silence as the first ray of sunlight streamed through the windows. Rukia took the moment to glance around the room. It was simple but elegantly decorated.
Suddenly remembering that she was now in the residence of a murderer, Rukia got up quickly and avoided the man's eyes.
"I just remembered I have something to attend to. I-I should get g-going." she mumbled.
"Are you sure?" the man asked, not moving from where he was standing. "I can assign my men to fetch you home."
"T-There's no need." replied Rukia as she picked up her bag that was on the chair. "I can manage."
She was about to make her way out of the bedroom door when the man stopped her.
"Wait." He said as he took out his wallet and brought out a wad of cash. "Take these money."
"What?" asked Rukia, shocked, as she stared at the money. There must be at least two hundered thousand Yen in there.
"As a reward for saving my life." the man said.
Rukia shook her head. "No, I won't. It's my duty to protect…"
"Your duty?" The man narrowed his eyes as he stared at her.
"I mean… I just can't take it. I have to go." Rukia brushed him off as she opened the bedroom door, saw the staircase leading down to the first floor and walked down straight towards the big double door and dashed off.
Byakuya stepped out of the room as he watched her hurrying away. She was definitely a weird person to have refused his money. He hadn't met anyone like that. Everyone around him were always happy to receive rewards from him. Even Renji, Ikkaku and the rest of his men. Everybody likes money. But why doesn't she?
Shrugging the thought off, Byakuya returned back to the room. His eyes fell upon the girl's bloody coat immediately. Did she just leave his mansion and was now walking in the snow in just her polo tee shirt and jeans? Byakuya felt the corner of his lips lift a little as he picked up the coat. Something fell out of the pocket and Byakuya picked up.
It seemed to be her identity card. So her name was Hitoshi Rukia. She was four years younger than him. Byakuya noticed that her apartment was not far from his place. It seemed as though she was living in a decent apartment so why was she working in Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez's club? Feeling a little too tired to think about it, Byakuya tucked the identity card into his pocket and headed back to his bedroom to sleep.
Blowing puffs of warm air onto her hands, Rukia hurried along the snowy street. The entire street was deserted. She cursed herself as she looked at the time on her mobile phone. It was almost six and she was not familiar with where she is and she was freezing. How could she have forgot to take her coat? Rukia took a backward glance at the residence she just left and still could not believe her eyes. The mansion that she had just left was so big, Rukia needed ten minutes to run from the front door to the main gate. Who was the man and why does she keep bumping into him? And most importantly, why was he carrying a gun? Could he be a member of the Yakuza too?
A buzzing noise came from Rukia's mobile phone as it vibrated. The name 'Ichigo' flashed on her screen and Rukia quickly answered it.
"Rukia, where are you?" the sound of Ichigo's worried voice boomed into her ear. "Where have you been? I called you so many times and there was no answer. I was so worried I even called Matsumoto to ask her. Are you alright, Rukia? What happened?"
Rukia's head throbbed as she struggled to answer Ichigo's questions.
"I'm okay but my head is hurting and I don't know where am I." replied Rukia. "Some things happened last night and I think I need to report it."
"What happened? Why is your head hurting? How do you not know where you are?" asked Ichigo getting panicked all over again as Rukia tried to calm him down.
"It's alright, Ichigo. I will tell you about it. I'm not hurt or drunk."
There was a worried sigh from the other end of the line. "Fine, I'll come pick you up. Just walk around for a bit and let me know when you spot a street sign."
"But we're not supposed to meet." replied Rukia.
"I can't be bothered about it right now, Rukia. It's still really early right now so I don't think anyone will spot us plus you'll just hop in my car. I just want you to be home, safe and sound."
"O-Okay. Thanks, Ichigo." said Rukia as she continued walking hoping to bump into a street sign.
Rukia could not help as a small smile graced her lips. She knew she could always count on Ichigo. He had always been there for her. From bumping into her at the railway station when she was feeling so helpless to standing up for her when there were nasty boys picking on her in school. And now, this.
The snow on the pavements was starting to melt a little as the sun crept up into the sky little by little. This area seemed to be the residence of wealthy people as all Rukia could see were mansions with huge majestic gates.
It wasn't be long before Rukia found a street sign at the end of the road.
"Setagara. I'm in Setagara, Ichigo!" she exclaimed, relieved to have finally found it.
"Okay, stay there right beside the sign, Rukia. I'm on my way now." replied Ichigo.
Rukia flipped her phone shut as she sighed. She was so lucky to have Jaegerjaquez's in the club yet she had accomplished nothing. Not only she had accomplished nothing, she had also witnessed a brutal murder.
It wasn't before long before she spotted Ichigo's car turning around the corner and stopped in front of her. Rukia got in hurriedly and shut the door.
"Bring me to the police department, Ichigo. I have to report a murder to Soifon Taichou." said Rukia as Ichigo drove.
"What? What murder?" exclaimed Ichigo as he turned to look at her, astonished but quickly turn his view back to the road.
"It happened yesterday outside the club. This man killed another man in front of me. He had a gun. Might be a member of the Yakuza." replied Rukia.
She deliberately left out the part where she had actually just exited from the murderer's house because knowing Ichigo, he would make such a huge fuss over how and why did Rukia land herself in the house of a murderer. And before she knows it, her undercover days would be over and she will be back to issuing tickets on the road.
Ichigo frowned. "If that is the case, Rukia, I will speak to Soifon Taichou about this after I send you home. She will most probably send some guys down to your house and do the normal procedures. It's not too safe for you to appear at the station. If one of Grimmjow's men saw you and tell him about it, you'll be over."
Rukia nodded and glanced at Ichigo. "Will you be in trouble for sending me home like this?"
"Well, maybe, a little…" Ichigo trailed off as he stared at the road ahead of him. "Don't worry, Rukia."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause you any trouble." apologised Rukia as she stared out of the car window.
"Ah, come on, you know you don't have to apologise for anything. I'll gladly take the trouble for you." replied Ichigo jovially.
"Thanks." muttered Rukia as she continued to stare out of the window.
She appreciated how much Ichigo has been there for her but Rukia felt as though she was too weak. She can't continue like this. If she keeps on depending on Ichigo, she can never make it far. She love Ichigo like a brother but sometimes she felt as though she needed to venture out on her own; to make her own mark on her career and of course, she needed time alone to find out more about the Yakuzas and which one of them murdered her parents. With Ichigo constantly around, it felt as though she couldn't grow. It was just like how she was brought back to being the little girl she used to be waiting at the train station for nobody in particular until Ichigo showed up. Ever since then, Rukia had always depended on Ichigo on everything.
The car finally pulled to a stop and Rukia jerked out of her thoughts.
"I'll pop by the station later and tell Soifon Taichou about what you said later. Take some rest, Rukia. I'll call you later." said Ichigo.
"Thanks. I'm really alright. You don't have to check on me. I'm fine." replied Rukia as she struggled with a smile.
"W-Well, okay. Anyway, why were you at the Setagara district just now?"
"It's nothing. Thanks for the ride, Ichigo."
Rukia opened the door and was about to put her foot out when Ichigo grabbed on to her arm.
"Are you okay, Rukia? What's going on? What happened?" Worry was written all over Ichigo's face as he stared at her, confused.
Rukia stared at the helpless face of Ichigo as she gave a sigh.
"I just feel as though you're always there, Ichigo. I think I'm too dependent on you and it doesn't give me a chance to grow…"
"Grow?" repeated Ichigo as he stared at Rukia as though she had gone mad. "What type of growing do you need? You mean growing taller? Come on, I know I always make fun of your height but I was only joking. I find your height really cute and the other day Kira said that-"
"Not about my height, dummy!" snapped Rukia as she rolled her eyes. "I mean internally… It's like I need to see more of the world, to experience more things!"
Ichigo seemed dumbfounded for a moment as he tried to register what Rukia was talking about.
"But Rukia, don't you want me to care for you?" he finally asked, his expression a little hurt.
Rukia softened a little as she patted his hand. "Of course not, you know I don't mean it that way. I just need to stop calling you every time I make a mistake. And I think that sometimes you should let me have the chance of solving my own problems."
"Alright, I understand, Rukia. But I just want you to know that you're still allowed to call me anytime you want about anything, okay? I wouldn't want anything to happen to you." Ichigo said softly.
Rukia nodded, leaned over and gave Ichigo a peck on the cheek.
"Thanks, Ichigo, you're the best!"
Rukia was about to get off the car when she heard Ichigo calling out to her again.
"Rukia, wait! What's with the bandage on your arm? Are you alright?"
Rukia turned back to Ichigo and raised her eyebrow. "Didn't we just talk about this?"
Ichigo smiled sheepishly. "W-Well, I'm just curious! I promise I won't get all anxious about it!"
"It's nothing, Ichigo." smiled Rukia. "Honest, I can take care of myself."
Throwing another smile at Ichigo who seemed slightly exasperated, Rukia leapt out of his car, shut the door and waved goodbye before heading up to her apartment.
Byakuya's phone vibrated and he opened his eyes and got out of bed. The sun seemed to have gone down as the whole room was plunged in darkness. Byakuya walked over to his phone and flipped it open. A text message from Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez flashed on his screen and he clicked open to read.
'Kuchiki, if possible, come down to my club at 2a.m later. There is still another contract I need you to sign.'
Byakuya noticed that it was already seven-thirty and realised that he had just slept the day away. He called Renji immediately and it wasn't long before Renji picked up.
"Renji, I will be at Jaegerjaquez's club at two later. You do not have to pick me up. I need you and Ikkaku to fly to Shanghai once you are finished with the meeting."
There was a moment of silence as Byakuya listened to Renji over the phone.
"Yes, I will join the two of you on the fourth day. I have to settle the deal with Jaegerjaquez first."
And with that, Byakuya flipped his phone shut, threw it on his bed before heading to the bathroom.
After bidding Ichigo goodbye, Rukia had slept in until it was time to leave for work. She had woken up with a splitting headache and guessed that it was perhaps due to the lack of sleep and the weather. It was past midnight now and Rukia felt herself getting dizzier and weaker by the hour. She had arrived at the club at eight sharp and was bombarded with questions on how she got hurt by a very worried Miyo. Rukia had lied to Miyo saying that she had fell down the stairs. Miyo seemed sceptical but did not retort.
"Rukia-san, that table over there needs another jug of beer." said Miyo as she bustled into the kitchen, holding a mop and tray.
"Got it." replied Rukia immediately as she grabbed a jug of beer and proceeded out of the kitchen.
Rukia was immediately engulfed by the pounding of the music and flashing of lights as she weaved through the dancing bodies trying to get to the table. It was Friday and the club was busier than ever. Rukia had received a text from Matsumoto earlier saying that she will reach at one and Rukia was looking forward to it. She wondered if Ichigo had told Soifon Taichou about the incident as there were no calls from the station until now. Finally reaching her destination, Rukia quickly deposited the jug of beer and scurried back to the kitchen again.
As she swing open the kitchen door, she spotted Matsumoto putting on an apron and Rukia hurried over to her. Miyo seemed to be busily slicing up some fruits and Rukia took the opportunity to drag Matsumoto out of the kitchen.
"Have Ichigo told Soifon Taichou yet?" hissed Rukia as she looked around nervously.
Matsumoto widened her eyes. "About what? Did you run into any trouble already? Today is only your second day!"
"No! I mean, my identity is safe. Just that… I ran into some stuff yesterday night." whispered Rukia.
"What happened? Are you okay?" asked Matsumoto as she spotted the bandage on Rukia's arm.
Rukia leaned into Matsumoto's ear and whispered, "I saw someone got killed last night. I think the killer from last night is a member of the yakuza!"
"Do you know his name? If you know, I can help you do a check." replied Matsumoto. "Did he see you, Rukia? Oh my god, he saw you and attacked you, didn't he? That's how you got injured!"
"Shh! Keep it down!" whispered Rukia furiously as she tried to calm Matsumoto down. "I saw someone trying to attack him at first, without knowing that he was from the yakuza and I saved him. He then shot his attacker in front of me and…"
"And?" probed Matsumoto impatiently. "Don't stop here! Then, what happened?"
"Promise not to tell Ichigo or anyone about this. If he knows, he'll get all freaked out, okay?"
"I promise!" replied Matsumoto. "Just spill already!"
"Alright, after seeing him shoot his attacker, I passed out and this morning I woke up at his place."
"And he tried to attack you? Is that how you get your wound?" asked Matsumoto, horrified.
"No, no! Stop interrupting me!" shushed Rukia as Matsumoto quietened down obediently. "He took care of me, actually. I think I was running a fever yesterday night and I noticed that there was water and a wet cloth by the bedside when I woke up. And, I got this wound while trying to save him from his attacker."
"Wow, Rukia, I can't believe it." said Matsumoto as she let out a whoosh of air. "He didn't kill you for witnessing him murdering another man and he even took care of you? Who is this man?"
"I don't know his name." replied Rukia. "But I do know where he lives!"
Matsumoto brightened up. "Tell me so I can run a check on this mystery man!"
"Set-
"What are you two whispering about? Get back to work!" a loud voice interrupted.
Rukia and Matsumoto whirled around in surprise and their manager glared at them through his spectacles.
"I shouldn't have hired your friend, Matsumoto! Now the both of you aren't going to work and you two will just gossip away!" snapped the manager irritably.
Matsumoto immediately plastered on her smile. "Aw, come on, we're sorry and promise it won't happen again."
The manager seemed to simmer down a little. "Fine, I'm giving you face since you're so chummy with the boss' friends. But don't let this happen the next time! Especially when the club's busy!"
Matsumoto nodded and smiled as the manager ducked back into his office.
"Rukia, let's talk later, alright? But just beware of this man you're talking about. I don't believe that he'll let you go after you see him commit a murder."
Rukia was about to reply but Matsumoto had already slipped back into the kitchen, leaving Rukia alone with her thoughts.
Is Matsumoto right? Will the man return and attack her? But if this man wanted to attack her, why didn't he do that last night? Why didn't he attack her when she was in his mansion? Rukia didn't want to believe Matsumoto but another part of Rukia was telling herself that Matsumoto could be right. Perhaps the man didn't kill her last night because he was afraid that murdering two people in one night could draw more attention from the police? Or maybe he ran out of ideas on where to bury another body without being found out?
A chill ran down Rukia's spine as she hurried back into the kitchen. Miyo was still busy while Matsumoto had disappeared.
"Hey, Miyo, where did Matsumoto go?" asked Rukia as she filled the empty jugs with beer.
"Someone had requested her so she's in one of the private rooms right now." replied Miyo. "Matsumoto-san is so lucky. She gets to be a hostess."
"Lucky?" repeated Rukia in disbelief. "Why would you think that?"
"Well, hostesses get tipped really well and I really need the money but I'm just not pretty enough to be one." replied Miyo as she gave a wistful smile.
Rukia stared at her friend. Sure, Miyo wasn't exactly like Matsumoto's type but Rukia thought she was pretty enough. She was taller than Rukia and had a mousy look which Rukia thought it was cute.
"Cheer up, Miyo. I think you're really cute!" said Rukia as she patted Miyo on the back.
Miyo smiled. "But still not pretty enough to be a hostess. Thanks for cheering me up, Rukia-san."
"Do you need money so badly to want to become a hostess?" Rukia asked bluntly.
"I have a very sick mother in the hospital and my brother and I don't have a very high education so we're stuck with jobs like this. Plus, the standard of living in Tokyo is really high." replied Miyo. "What about you? Why are you in this job?"
The question hit Rukia suddenly as she struggled to come up with a reply. Damn! Why hadn't she thought about it? Why was she in this job? Soifon Taichou had not mentioned this part about Hitoshi Rukia to her!
"I… I really like being a waitress…" she answered lamely.
"Huh?"
"No, I mean my wish is to open a café of some sort in the future and I wish to learn more about waitressing."
Miyo stared at Rukia, puzzled. "Then why don't you work in a day time café or restaurant?"
"W-Well, they didn't want to hire me and I'm short of cash right now and I heard from Matsumoto that there was vacancy here so I decided to work here for the moment."
Miyo nodded slowly. "I see… Well, I hope your dream of opening a café will come true soon, Rukia-san!"
Rukia smiled as she took a tray of fruits. "Thanks! Now I have to deliver some fruits before I get fired by the manager!"
Byakuya parked his Porsche at the back of the club and stepped out into the cold. It was deserted as customers normally enter through the front doors. Byakuya always entered through the back as he preferred to be low key especially tonight when he had just been attacked here last night. It was nearly two in the morning and he could hear the music from the club blaring as one of the staff came out from the back door with a bag of thrash in hand. Focusing his vision through the foggy night, Byakuya realised it was the girl who had saved him the previous night. The girl did not seem to notice him as she threw the bag of thrash into the bin. Her back was facing him as Byakuya hurried towards her.
"Hey."
The girl seemed to jump a little as she turned around, caught by surprise. It seemed to Byakuya that her eyes seemed to have gotten wider after recognising his face.
"D-Don't you dare touch me!" she said, her voice quivering a little. "If not, I… I will shout!"
Byakuya was slightly taken aback by her response. Touch her? She was definitely not his type of woman. Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, he grabbed her on her uninjured arm and dragged her into the club as the back door swung shut behind them.
The girl seemed mortified, her mouth hanging open as Byakuya looked around. The pathway between the kitchen and the manager's office was empty. Good, he doesn't want anyone to overhear his conversation with this girl. Byakuya was quite familiar with this place as he often meet up with Jaegerjaquez to discuss their deals and Byakuya know that the winding stairs beside the back door led down to the storage room and the freezer room. He dragged the girl down and she half stumbled behind him.
"W-Where are you taking me?" she shrieked as they arrived at the basement of the club.
Byakuya ignored her question as he looked up the stairs. This was not good enough. This petite girl in front of him was loud and people might overhear them if they walked past the stairs.
"Come on." he said.
Byakuya held her arm with one hand as he yanked open the large freezer door where all the wine were kept. He pushed her in as he closed the freezer door behind them. There. Cold but at least he could have all the privacy he wants.
The girl was backing into a corner as she stared at him as though he was mad.
"If you try to hurt me, I will… will…" she looked desperately around and her hand finally landed on a wine bottle. "I will hit you with this!"
Byakuya raised his eyebrow. "I am not going to hurt you. I just need to talk to you."
"Liar!" she shouted as she swung the bottle in front of her. "Of course you're not going to say you're going to kill me!"
Byakuya was getting a little impatient. He needed to talk to her and then get back upstairs and sign the contract with Jaegerjaquez but this girl was not making things easy for him.
"Listen," he said softly. "I just need to talk to you about yesterday."
The girl fell silent as she listened to him but her grip on the bottle remained strong.
Finally getting her attention, Byakuya continued, "If it is possible, keep the murder to yourself. Anything you heard or saw remains a secret between us."
"Why?" asked the girl suspiciously.
"Because if word gets leaked out that you know about this, you will be in grave danger. Do you understand?" he asked.
The girl seemed confused. "What are you talking about? If word gets out, you will be in danger. Not me. The police will be arresting you. Not me."
Byakuya's patience was wearing thin. Is this girl really stupid?
"I am not afraid of the police." said Byakya. "I know someone who can be easily bought. But if word gets out, the person who instructed the man from yesterday to kill you will find you as his next target."
"I-Ichimaru?" asked the girl.
Byakuya nodded. "He will be afraid that you can stand as a witness and testify that he ordered someone to have me killed. He cannot risk that. Therefore, he will be after you."
"But I've already told my friend." whispered the girl, horrified as she lowered her hand that was on the bottle.
"Did you mention the name Ichimaru to your friend?" asked Byakuya.
The girl shook her head.
"Tell your friend that she is not to tell anyone about it or inform the police about it." instructed Byakuya as the girl nodded again.
"I-Is that all?" asked the girl who was starting to shiver.
Byakuya nodded as he walked towards the door. He reached out and turned the handle and pulled but nothing happened. He tried it again but nothing happened again.
"We are locked in." he said calmly as he turned towards the girl. "Give me the key."
"Key?" the girl asked, disbelieved. "I don't have the key, you idiot!"
A/N: And how did you like that? *winks* Byakuya and Rukia both got locked in a freezer! That Byakuya sure is an idiot sometimes. -_-
Anyway, remember to drop me a review alright? Consider my christmas present and for all the hard work I did trying to update this in time for christmas! :D