A/N: Hi there! I know, I know, I haven't updated in ages but there's just been too much school work and exams so I had to put most of my activities on hold. Well, it's been so long that I guess most of you probably have drifted elsewhere and well, I don't blame anyone. I know how annoying to wait for months for an update. So sorry. :(
Anyway, thanks for the reviews and DMs I still receive here and there! Enough of me rambling. This chapter is for you guys who has been with me since the very start of the story. You know who you are! And if no one's reading this anymore, well, then this chapter is just posted for my own amusement. Hahahaha. Onward with the story!

The trees whizzed past as Byakuya drove his way towards Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez's club. He had received a call from Grimmjow to meet him at his club just after hours to receive the first shipment of cocaine that Byakuya had ordered.

He soon arrived and frowned. Why was Jaegerjaquez's car parked right in the middle of the road instead of the club's carpark? Byakuya pulled to a stop behind Jaegerjaquez's car and got out. Had something happen to him or the shipment? Byakuya was walking towards the vehicle when he spotted Grimmjow's chauffer rushing towards him from a distance.

"Kuchiki-sama," the chauffer greeted as he stopped in front of Byakuya. "Grimmjow-sama is busy at the moment."

Feeling irritated, Byakuya glared at the man who seemed to be terrified.

"I want my goods now." Byakuya said.

The chauffer seemed to be in a dilemma as he looked worriedly from Byakuya to the vehicle.

"I w-will try, Kuchiki-sama." stuttered the chauffer as he walked towards the vehicle and knocked on the tinted window pane softly.

Byakuya followed him and stood behind him feeling annoyed. He doesn't give a damn what Grimmjow is doing. He just needs to take the stuff and leave. He has a flight to catch in five hours.

There was no answer from the vehicle and for a second, Byakuya thought he heard muffled screaming coming from the inside. The chauffer knocked louder against the window this time as he spotted the look of irritation on Byakuya's face.

The window was soon scrolled down and Grimmjow's annoyed face emerged.

"Figured it was you, Kuchiki," he said hurriedly then looked at his chauffer. "Stuff is in the boot. Bring it to Kuchiki."

The window was going back up when Byakuya saw a familiar face inside. It was Rukia! Her face was drenched with tears, her eyes widened with panic as she gazed out at him, her eyes pleading. It was as though she was pleading him for help.

The chauffer had retrieved the briefcase and was now handing it to Byakuya.

"Kuchiki-sama, here it is." he said politely.

Byakuya took the briefcase from him and was about to leave when the image of Rukia's helpless face flashed though his mind.

He cursed under his breath as he pulled the car door open to reveal a very surprised Grimmjow.

Byakuya knew that his actions would soon cause him a lot of trouble with Jaegerjaquez but at that moment, all he could think about was Rukia's pleading face.

He pulled Grimmjow out and quickly grabbed Rukia's hands and pulled her out of the car. He noticed that she was naked and all that was left was her underpants. Grimmjow had landed on the pavement and had now stood up as Byakuya dragged a stumbling Rukia and pushed her into the passenger's seat of his car. Byakuya headed into the driver's seat and sped away just when he saw Grimmjow retrieving a gun out of his breast pocket.

Byakuya increased the pressure on his accelerator as his car sped off at an alarming speed. He was livid with himself. If Rukia had turned out to be someone else, he would have just walked away. But no, he just could not forget that she had saved his life before and those terrified eyes of hers. Because of these, he had risked his partnership with Grimmjow and it is going to cost him quite a sum of money to make things right again. And if Grimmjow really gets mad, things were going to get really ugly and Byakuya could find himself an additional enemy.

Byakuya snapped out of his reverie to realize that he had driven back to his mansion. He pulled to a stop and turned around to find Rukia huddled in the seat, sobbing as she bit on her knuckle trying to smother the noise.

Byakuya whipped off his blazer and laid it on her gently. She flinched slightly as the fabric of his blazer made contact with her skin. Byakuya turned away from her and stared out of the window. He did not know what he should say at this moment. It seemed like ten minutes had crawled past as she continued sobbing.

"We should head inside and get you some clothes." Byakuya said finally.

Rukia nodded and with trembling hands, she opened the car door and stepped out. Byakuya followed suit. She was clutching on to his blazer around her very tightly as they made their way in. Byakuya noticed that her sobs had died down as he scanned the card key to the door. The big double doors opened immediately without a creak as the both of them stepped in. They were alone and Byakuya was glad that Renji or any of his men were not present. It was an awkward situation and he felt that the lesser strangers there are to gawk at Rukia, the better it would be as she probably needed some time to calm herself down.

"Follow me." instructed Byakuya as he made his way up the stairs and to his bedroom.

He opened his closet and his gaze fell immediately to a stack of neatly folded clothes at the corner. They belonged to Sakuya. Byakuya was hesitant at first but decided that Rukia needed clothes to wear. After contemplating for almost ten seconds, Byakuya handed Rukia a dress.

"Change into these." said Byakuya. "They might be a little big but they are the best I can find right now."

Rukia nodded and went into the bathroom immediately.

Is she going to be alright? Byakuya could not help but feel a little worried. Byakuya noticed that after her sobbing had died down, she seemed to have gone all silent and her gaze was distant.

"If you want to take a shower, there are fresh towels inside." Byakuya called out.

There was no answer but soon, he heard the sound of the bath running. There was a sudden buzzing from Byakuya's phone and he flipped it open immediately.

"Taichou!" Renji's worried voice called out. "Did something happen? I received a call from Grimmjow's men demanding to know where you were. Did something go wrong during the transaction? Did they swap the goods?"

"I have not checked the goods." replied Byakuya. "It was Rukia."

"Rukia? Isn't she the girl who saved you the other night from Ichimaru's men? What has this got to do with her?" asked Renji.

"It is a long story, Renji. I need you and some of our men to stand guard outside the mansion in case Jaegerjaquez decides to come over. Prevent anything from happening as I have a plane to catch soon."

"Hai, Taichou!" replied Renji and the line was disconnected.

Byakuya flipped his phone shut and threw it on his bed. He was very annoyed at this point. He was certain that Jaegerjaquez will be coming back for Rukia and she would not be safe to return back to her apartment now. He has to catch a flight to Hong Kong in less than four hours and now, he was stuck in this situation. Byakuya was tempted to ditch the whole Rukia situation. Perhaps he could ask her to return home? But another part of Byakuya knew that Jaegerjaquez would still get his hands on her. Byakuya found that thought particularly disturbing.
From the other night when he saw how Jaegerjaquez had tried to violate Rukia in the room of the club, Byakuya had a feeling that Rukia was different from the other hostesses. Byakuya had been in and out of the clubs so many times he knew all the hostesses were willing to throw themselves on to Jaegerjaquez. And of course, not to mention the fact that she had saved his life.

It was about twenty minutes later and Rukia emerged from the bathroom. The dress did not fit her as they hung loosely on her shoulders but it was passable. Her hair was wet and her eyes were red but Byakuya thought she looked slightly better.

"Thank you." she muttered.

Byakuya gave a slight nod as he gazed out of the window. There was no choice, he had to do this.

"Do you have your passport with you now?" Byakuya asked finally.

"P-Passport?" repeated Rukia. "Why?"

"I will be bringing you to Hong Kong with me for five days." replied Byakuya simply as Rukia gaped at him.

"Why?" she repeated again. "I need to get home."

"Because Jaegerjaquez will be looking for you and it is not safe for you to go back to your apartment for the time being. It will be safer if you stick with me. Trust me, I do not want this too but it is for your own safety. I do not have time to deal with him now but rest assured, I will deal with him after we are back in Tokyo."

Byakuya noticed that she looked uncomfortable and worried.

"Will he let me go after we are back in Tokyo?" she asked hesitantly.

"Perhaps so if I offer him enough money." replied Byakuya as he took his luggage out and started packing.

There was a moment of silence as Byakuya continued to pack. He glanced at Rukia who was staring out of the window, a frown on her face. She seemed to be deep in thought as though she was deeply troubled but Byakuya did not blame her. Which woman would agree to get whisked off to a foreign land with a complete stranger?

"Why are you helping me?" asked Rukia.

"Because you saved my life once. I do not like to owe anyone anything so take it that this is my repayment to you. Rest assured, we will have nothing to do with each other once we are back in Tokyo." Byakuya replied.

She finally nodded before turning to look at him and replied, "I don't have a passport. I have never gotten out of Japan before."

It was a major problem but Byakuya was not frazzled.

"There is nothing to worry about. Hand me your identity card and I can get my men to have your passport done in an hour." He replied simply as he shut his luggage.

Rukia seemed slightly taken aback with his response but did not reply any further as she handed the card over.

"Stay in my room. I need to make a few calls." said Byakuya as he left the room leaving Rukia alone in his room with her thoughts.

As soon as Byakuya had left the room, Rukia panicked. What should she do? She had not expected him to be able to produce a passport for him in such a short amount of time. Will the passport even be an authentic one? But if she actually stays here in Tokyo, there really is a big possibility that Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez might be able to track her down and she might even be in greater danger. Furthermore, Byakuya had assured her that he will help her deal with this mess. Another thought entered her mind and Rukia's heart sank. Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez was her target. She will still have to face him even after she returns. Unless… Kuchiki Byakuya is able to find a way for her to continue working there and Jaegerjaquez keeping his hands to himself.

She sighed as she sank down onto the expensive looking chair and glanced around. This was her second time in the room and Rukia had noticed it before that it was elegantly decorated but now that she had a closer look, everything looked very expensive. From the silk bed sheets to his king sized bed to his closet and even the chandeliers overhead looked frighteningly expensive. He does have very good taste, she decided. Her gaze fell onto the white grand piano at the corner and she walked over as a photo frame on top of it caught her attention.

It was a photo of a very beautiful girl who looked slightly younger than twenty. Was she perhaps, Byakuya's sister or a girlfriend? She finally decided that it must be the latter. If not, why would he have women's clothing in his closet?

Returning back to the armchair, Rukia went back to her problem on hand. Should she leave for Hong Kong with this complete stranger? She could not deny that she was still shaken by what happened earlier with Jaegerjaquez but Rukia did not want to discontinue her task. She was stronger than this and she wanted to prove it to Soifon Taichou, her friends and even herself. She finally decided to go, believing that once she returned with a clear state of mind, she can continue her task on hand. She didn't want to go running to Soifon Taichou or even Ichigo whenever she bumps into a problem and since Kuchiki Byakuya has offered to help, why not? Rukia knew it might be silly to even trust Kuchiki Byakuya but who else could she go to right now? If she were to inform Soifon Taichou or Ichigo about what happened, they would definitely make her drop her task and she would be back to issuing parking tickets again.

The door of the bedroom opened and Byakuya stepped in. Rukia leapt up from the armchair immediately looking guilty as she turned back to look at the chair. Had she dirtied it? She hoped not. She didn't want to pay him another chair if she happens to dirty it.

He was now staring at her, one of his eyebrows raised as though questioning her behaviour until he saw her looking back at the chair. He seemed to be able to read her thoughts as he said, "Go ahead and sit. It does not matter."

Rukia was surprised. Was she that obvious? She sat back down anyway as she watched him fiddling with his phone. There was a sudden music and Rukia recognised it immediately as her ringtone. Jumping up from the chair, she made her way to her coat and stuck her hands into the pocket. She soon retrieved her mobile phone and the name 'Ichigo' flashed on her screen.

Why is Ichigo calling? She froze as her eyes turned to Byakuya who was still fiddling with his phone. Finally deciding that she was acting silly, Rukia answered the phone. Why was she terrified, she wasn't even sure.

"Hey, what's up?" answered Rukia quietly.

"Rukia, you're up early!" bellowed Ichigo over the phone. "Did I wake you up?"

"Um, yes, but it's alright. What's going on?" replied Rukia.

"Oh, I heard some great news from Soifon Taichou. She said that-"

"Rukia, we can leave once you are done with your call." Byakuya's voice suddenly interrupted and Rukia jerked up in surprise.

Byakuya was standing in front of her, his face impassive as usual and Rukia quickly gave a nod and he walked away.

"Sorry, what were you saying?" Rukia asked Ichigo.

There was a moment of silence and Rukia looked at her phone screen. The call was still connected.

"Are you still there?" she called out.

"Oh yea, sorry." came Ichigo's reply.

Rukia could sense something in his voice but couldn't put her finger to it.

"Rukia," continued Ichigo. "Who is that man with you?"

At that moment, Rukia's throat went dry. She hadn't expected that Ichigo would hear that. Byakuya had not been loud at all. How was she to explain that she was with a guy at six in the morning?

"U-Uh, it was just…" she trailed off as her desperate eyes roamed around the room in panic.

She immediately regretted looking up as soon as her eyes met the eyes of Kuchiki Byakuyas'. He was now looking at her face and walking over.

"What is the matter?" he asked quietly. "Is that Jaegerjaquez?"

Rukia couldn't decide if she hated herself more or Kuchiki Byakuya more at that moment. Why, oh why, couldn't she stay calm and answer Ichigo? Why does she have to panic and let Byakuya see it? And why did he come over to talk to her again?

Rukia quickly plastered a smile that was a little too sweet as she quickly shook her head and waved him away. She could see Byakuya raise an eyebrow but he walked away nonetheless.

"Rukia," came Ichigo's voice over the phone. "I just heard him again. Who is he?"

"He… It was just the repairman." Rukia said finally.

"Repairman? At six in the morning?" echoed Ichigo in disbelief. "And he was in your apartment while you were sleeping?"

Rukia stilled. He was right. She glanced up at Byakuya who was now tapping on the face of his watch, indicating that it was soon time to leave.

"Yes, the repairman," she replied hurriedly. "He had been my repairman for years and I trust him."

"Rukia, what are you talking about? We were living together just until a week ago! We don't have any repairman coming to our house at all."

"L-Look, I got to go. I'll call you again." Rukia said hurriedly as she flipped her phone shut.

She exhaled loudly as she slipped her phone into her pocket. It was never easy dealing with Ichigo when she was lying.

"Are you ready to go?" asked Byakuya.

Rukia nodded as she put on her coat. "Yes, I'm ready."

Byakuya glanced at Rukia who was sipping her cup of green tea as they sat in the private lounge while waiting to board the plane. She seemed slightly anxious and uncomfortable and he noticed that her eyes could not stop roaming around. Byakuya was regretting his decision already. She didn't seem bright; clumsy in fact, and Byakuya was going to Hong Kong for an important meeting with one of the top Yakuza leaders from there and he was hoping that Rukia would be of no trouble and preferably 'invisible'. He had planned it out. He would go about doing his business there while she would stay in the hotel all day long. She could go for all the spa treatments or have room service whenever she wants as long as she stayed within the hotel's premises.

She was quite a bother, really. Renji and Ikkaku would be flying over in the evening and now he had to assign one of them to 'babysit' her. Byakuya noticed that someone seemed to keep calling her and leaving her texts as every once in a while, Rukia would look at her phone, irritated, and then snap it shut again.

"I don't have enough clothes for the trip." said Rukia suddenly.

"I will get the hotel staff to buy you some." replied Byakuya.

"Hotel staff? Can't I get them myself?" she asked, a frown on her face. "I have never been to Hong Kong and it would be nice if I could explore around."

Byakuya smirked. "Explore? You don't even know how to speak their language."

Rukia huffed as she glared at him. "I could always get a translation book."

"I doubt you have the money to do so." retorted Byakuya. "You now owe me sixty thousand yen."

"What?" yelled Rukia as she leapt off her seat which resulted to some of her hot tea sloshing out from the cup.

Byakuya raised his eyebrow. "For the first class air ticket and the hotel room."

"But I thought you were-" she stopped in mid-sentence as her face turned scarlet.

"Paying for you?" continued Byakuya as he pretended to read his newspaper. "Why should I?"

"Fine!" she replied, her face flushed from embarrassment and anger. "I will pay you back every single cent that I owe you, Kuchiki Byakuya. You are such a… a…"

"Yes?" replied Byakuya lazily as he flipped to the next page of the paper.

"A pig!" she managed to splutter out.

He glanced at her and she was practically seething with rage now. Byakuya raised his newspaper to hide the smile that was threatening to form. He didn't want to admit it but he was amused with her. Byakuya had never met anyone like her before. Nobody had ever called him a pig or reacted to him in such a rude manner. He actually found her refreshing. She was fun to tease and entertaining.

She was now sitting back on the chair and throwing him dirty looks as she drank the last of her green tea in a huge gulp.

There was a sudden knock and the door opened to reveal a pretty air hostess.

"Kuchiki-sama, you are able to board the plane now." she informed and was soon gone again.

Byakuya stood up and left the room, followed by a reluctant Rukia who seemed to be muttering under her breath as she continued to throw dirty looks at him.

They were soon on the plane without any hiccups as Byakuya had hoped. He knew that the authorities were always keeping an eye on him but it seemed as though he had an easier time this round. Perhaps he was travelling with a female companion and the authorities thought that he might be going on a holiday with his girlfriend. Whatever it was, Byakuya didn't care. There was nothing illegal on him now that they could hold him. Even Rukia's last minute passport was a legal one. Being loaded with money and having some of the useless officers in the force who kowtow to money truly have helped Byakuya a lot in his life.

Byakuya have chosen a private compartment for the both of them at the end of the first class cabin. The air hostess led him to their private cabin and bowed.

"What would you like to have, Kuchiki-sama. Will it be the usual, a glass of red wine?" she asked.

Byakuya nodded as he sat down and opened up the newspaper.

"And what would your guest like to have?"

The air hostess was now turning to Rukia who was staring back at the air hostess blankly as she took her seat beside Byakuya. Byakuya refused to assist Rukia. It is much more fun to see her getting all embarrassed and fidgety.

"Um, I will have the cheapest." Byakuya heard her say and he resisted the urge to grin.

The air hostess smiled at Rukia kindly. "All the drinks are complimentary."

Byakuya deliberately lowered his newspaper down to see Rukia's face turning red as she quickly muttered, "Some juice would be nice."

"What juice would you like to have? We have apple, orange, mango and-"

"Apple, thank you very much." replied Rukia quickly as soon as she spotted Byakuya looking at her, his expression thoroughly amused.

The hostess bowed and left the two of them as Rukia continued to glower at him.

"What's so funny?" she snapped.

Byakuya smirked. "Nothing."

"I can't believe I actually came with you. What was I thinking?" muttered Rukia.

Byakuya hid behind his newpaper again as he ignored her. In less than a minute, the air hostess arrived and brought their drinks to them.

"The plane is taking off soon." said the hostess after she handed them their drinks. "Please buckle your seat belts until the captain has said that it is safe for you to unbuckle them."

Byakuya gave a curt nod and the hostess left their cabin. He buckled his seat belt and noticed that Rukia had already done so. She seemed to be staring out of the window, her eyes worried.

"Is there a flying pony out there?" asked Byakuya.

Rukia turned around and glared at him. "None of your business."

Byakuya raised his eyebrows as his face remained impassive. "Are you scared?"

"No." came her immediate reply as she looked away.

"I see."

There was no more interaction between the both of them as the plane started moving backwards. Byakuya noticed that she was now clutching on to the armrest, her fingers turning white from her intense gripping. She had turned her head away from Byakuya, probably afraid that he was going to tease her again and Byakuya felt a little guilty.

"You have to relax." said Byakuya. "Everything will be fine."

She turned back to face him, eyes wide with something that looks like fear to Byakuya but she tried to remain calm.

"I am relaxing." She retorted. "I am perfectly fiiiiii-!"

That very moment, the plane was accelerating at an intense speed as it suddenly lifted itself into the air. Rukia's right hand was now gripping on to Byakuya's hand as her eyes flew shut.

"Calm down." Byakuya said as her grip on his hand tightened.

"I-I'm trying." She stammered.

She was now hyperventilating and Byakuya was getting worried. The plane was still heading up and her face was turning pale. The first thought flickered into Byakuya's mind was that he didn't want anything to happen to Rukia because it would delay his meeting with Chang Sun Yuan, the top Hong Kong mafia leader.

He quickly turned to Rukia, his face merely a few inches away from her.

"Look at me." He commanded and she slowly opened her eyes. "Try to take a deep breath now."

The second his face loomed in front of her, Rukia felt her heart rate quicken. This was the first time he was so close to her. She could see how perfect his skin was and the shape of his nose and then his lips. His lips were moving and Rukia tried to listen but she could not concentrate with his face just inches apart from hers. Rukia turned away from him and finally managed to gulp down a mouthful of air and not before long, her breathing was stable again.

"Drink." He commanded as he handed her the glass of juice.

Rukia was about to reach for the glass when she realised her hand was still on Byakuyas'. She quickly released her hold and accepted it with shaky hands and sipped on her juice slowly. It seemed as though the plane was stable again.

"Sorry." She quickly mumbled.

"You have a strong grip for a girl." Byakuya replied and Rukia felt her face redden.

"We were trained that way." She retorted. "It can't be helped."

"Trained?" he asked and Rukia could feel the colour drain from her face again.

How could she have forgotten?

"W-Well, I mean we were trained to have a strong grip from… the club!" she answered quickly as Byakuya gazed at her, puzzled.

"You see, we need to have a strong grip on trays, jugs and stuff like that." explained Rukia and she heaved a sigh of relief when Byakuya nodded and turned to his newspaper.

Their food was served soon and Rukia had to stop herself from salivating from the sight. There were Chinese spring rolls, rice dumplings and some other dishes Rukia couldn't recognise and a bowl of Chinese ramen.

"Ooh, ramen!" she clapped her hands in delight. "And rice dumplings, my favourite!"

Rukia glanced over at Byakuya's tray and noticed that the food in his tray were similar to hers. An item in Byakuya's ramen caught her eye and she quickly looked in her bowl.

"They forgot to put an egg in my ramen." she said finally, disappointment in her voice.

"Will you even be able to finish all these?" questioned Byakuya as he picked up his chopsticks.

"I won't but still, I would really like an egg." she replied as she stared at his egg wistfully.

Byakuya seemed to be ignoring her as he started on his food.

"Hey, I know!" exclaimed Rukia excitedly. "Why don't we exchange? You can pick something from my tray in exchange for that egg!"

Byakuya's chopstick was in mid-air as he suddenly stared at Rukia as though she had gone mad.

"I do not share my food." he said as Rukia frowned.

"Did you not hear what I just said? I said exchange, not share." Rukia repeated.

"No." he repeated.

Glaring at him, Rukia picked a spring roll and munched it. She cannot believe that she would be stuck with this jerk for five days. If only this trip can pass by in a breeze.

Almost five hours had past and the plane was now pulling to a stop. After their trays had been cleared earlier, Byakuya had finished his newspaper, replied several e-mails, read another newspaper as Rukia slept through out.

Byakuya glanced at her as she slowly stirred awake.

"Have we reached?" she asked and Byakuya nodded.

They left the plane and checked out of the airport and Byakuya noticed one of the airport staff hurrying towards them with their luggage.

"Kuchiki-sama," the man said in fluent Japanese. "Mr Chang had arranged a car to pick you up outside. He is waiting in the hotel for you."

Byakuya nodded and followed the man towards the car with Rukia behind him.

They stopped in front of a silver Mercedes Benz and the man opened the door to let Byakuya and Rukia in. As soon as the door closed, Rukia gave a happy laugh as Byakuya stared at her.

"I can't believe I'm in Hong Kong!" she whispered excitedly as she stared out of the window. "I love the weather here! It's cold but not too cold like Tokyo! And can you believe there is no snow here at all? How fascinating!"

Byakuya did not reply her but watched as she pressed her nose against the window as the car zoomed along the streets.

They soon arrived at a lavish hotel and a hotel staff hurried over towards Byakuya and led them towards the lift which brought them to the top floor.

"Stay here and wait for me." ordered Byakuya and Rukia nodded as she sank down into one of the expensive looking sofas.

Byakuya then followed the hotel staff down a corridor. They soon reached an expensive looking set of doors and the staff knocked.

"Mr Chang, Kuchiki-sama is here." the man spoke in Cantonese as he knocked and pushed open the doors.

Byakuya stepped in and bowed. A man in his sixties smiled and walked over to Byakuya. He waved the staff away and beckoned Byakuya to take a sit.

"I haven't seen you in a long time, Byakuya." Chang Sun Yuen said as he took a sit next to Byakuya.

A hotel staff hurried over and poured Byakuya a drink as Byakuya sat down.

"I have been busy." replied Byakuya politely.

The older man nodded. "Indeed, ever since Ginrei passed away, you have been busy every day."

"It is my duty to bring the Kuchiki organization into greater heights." said Byakuya as he took a sip of his whisky.

"Yes," agreed the older man. "Ginrei would want that. Too bad my dear old friend passed away before he could witness what a fine man you have grown into, Byakuya."

"So, what brings you back to Hong Kong after so many years?" asked Chang Sun Yuen.

Byakuya opened an envelope and handed him a piece of paper.

The older man glanced through the paper and nodded. "I see. So you want me to be your partner in this."

"It would benefit both the Chang and Kuchiki organization if Mr Chang would agree to this partnership." replied Byakua.

"It is good, Byakuya. But you know how cautious I am lately."

Byakuya nodded. "I have heard of the unfortunate incident regarding your son."

"Ah, yes." replied Chang Sun Yuen. "He made me lose faith in the younger generation. Spending all the unnecessary money on entertainment and women after I made him owner of one of my hotels. And now, I have to throw in so much money to bring the hotel back to what it was before. I believe that men will only fully mature after they have settled down."

Byakuya could fully understand the older man's words but did not reply.

"So, does Byakuya-san have a special woman in his life right now?"

"No." replied Byakuya. "I am too busy for that."

The older man chuckled. "There is always time for romance, Byakuya. And having a family truly makes a man much more responsible. I prefer to do business with responsible men, Byakuya."

Byakuya took another sip of his whisky as the older man excused himself to go to answer a call. Byakuya did not expect this. He knew that Chang Sun Yuen was a family man but did not expect that because of his lack in a life partner, he might not be able to clinch the deal.

Rukia sighed as she swung her legs. She had been waiting for almost half an hour and she was extremely bored and hungry. She was annoyed that the straps of the dress keep falling off her shoulders and she was cold. The sudden sound of footsteps attracted Rukia's attention as she leapt up from the seat.

"You're finally done!" she exclaimed.

To Rukia's surprise, a man who clearly isn't Byakuya appeared in front of her. He looked very wealthy and stared at her, puzzled.

"Who are you?" he asked in fluent Japanese and Rukia bowed.

"I'm sorry. I'm waiting for Kuchiki Byakuya." replied Rukia.

"What's your name?"

"Hitoshi Rukia." answered Rukia as the old man nodded.

"Follow me." The man smiled kindly and Rukia followed.

He led her into a room and Byakuya's eyes widened slightly as soon as he saw Rukia.

"Did I not ask you to wait there for me?" asked Byakuya.

Before Rukia could retort, the old man laughed.

"Don't be so harsh, Byakuya. I brought her in. You didn't tell me you have a female guest with you on this trip."

Rukia could see that Byakuya was displeased with her. Should she have insisted on sitting there instead of following this man? Who is this man?

"Maybe I should wait outside." said Rukia meekly as she gave an apologetic bow.

"It's quite alright, Rukia-san." replied the older man and turned to Byakuya. "Who is this special someone of yours, Byakuya?"

Special? Rukia glanced at Byakuya surprised and he seemed to be a little surprised himself.

"She is not anyone special." came Byakuya's reply.

The older man chuckled. "Are you sure, Byakuya? I know she must mean a great deal to you if you bring her along with you on business trips. You can be frank with me, Byakuya. Is she your girlfriend?"

Rukia sighed. Of course, Byakuya would be displeased with her. He was on a business trip and now his business partner is interested in their "relationship" instead.

"Actually, I'm not his girlfriend." said Rukia. "Please do not be mistaken."

The older man seemed taken aback by his mistake and looked at Byakuya sternly. "So is she one of those ladies whom you pay to entertain you while you are on business trips?"

Rukia could see Byakuya stiffen. So this old man now thinks that she is a prostitute? Rukia was about to retort when Byakuya spoke.

"Do not be mistaken, Mr Chang. Rukia is my fiancée." he replied smoothly.

The frown on the older man's face cleared as he stared at Byakuya. "Fiancee? Why didn't you say sooner? And here I was thinking about something else entirely."

He turned to Rukia and patted her on the back. "I apologise for my rudeness, Rukia-san."

"I-It's fine." replied Rukia as she gave him an awkward smile.

Why in the world did Byakuya say that she was his fiancée? Rukia darted a questioning look at Byakuya but his face remained impassive.

"Well, how about you two join me for some tea down at the restaurant with me and my wife while Byakuya and I can discuss the details of the contract?"

"We would be glad to." replied Byakuya.

A/N: I actually had all these typed out in my laptop for 3 months but hadn't had time to post as I still needed some time to read through again and edit. I hope my performance hasn't decreased but even if it has, there's no surprise there, since I hadn't typed my story in soooo long. And not to mention that I have stopped Bleach recently. No worries, it's just a temporary thing!
By the way, heard that Bleach's anime is going to stop for a while right? Or has it already stopped airing? Haven't been in touch with Bleach related stuff for quite a while so I'm pretty confused.
And I almost forgot this! Attention!
If some of you noticed, I had changed the rating of this story to T. Reason is, I heard this site is gonna delete a whole chunk of M stories and some authors have said that their stories are already blacklisted! I'm not sure how they see it but I'm so afraid that this story will be deleted too. So I changed it to T for now since there's no explicit content yet.
Anyway, review, review, review! Thanks so much!