A/N: Biggest chapter so far and done in two weeks since my last update! Sorry I had no time to reply reviews this time round but rest assured, I read every one of them and I love it! Thanks guys, for the lovely reviews and I'm so touched. Actions speak louder than words and may I present to you, this new chapter! I had a really really fun time writing the later half of it and maybe you'll know why after reading it. Go ahead!
The sound of people talking the next morning made Rukia's eyes shoot open as she found herself staring at an expensive looking chandelier. Realising that she was in the hotel suite in Hong Kong, she sat up slowly and turned towards the voices. She couldn't see anyone and realised that the voices came from upstairs. She could recognise Kuchiki Byakuya's voice and he was talking to someone else. Yawning, she glanced at the clock and gasped when she realised it was already twelve-thirty. She had wasted a perfectly good morning sleeping in!
Irritated with herself, she made her way to the bathroom beside the kitchen. After she had brushed her teeth and had a quick shower, Rukia stepped out of the bathroom wearing a dress she had bought the night before.
She spotted Byakuya and a heavily tattooed man with red hair coming down the stairs. The red haired man gave her a friendly smile as he walked over.
"Hi, I'm Abarai Renji and I'm your babysitter for the day." He said.
Babysitter? What was he talking about?
"Hitoshi Rukia." replied Rukia and gave a quick smile. "What are you talking about? What babysitter?"
"Taichou has assigned me to tag along with you for today. You're ready, right? Come on, let's go then." Renji said jovially.
"Hold on a second," said Rukia and she turned to Byakuya. "Why do I need Abarai-san to follow me around? I'm capable of doing shopping on my own."
Byakuya was staring at his phone, frowning as he replied, "Do not ask so much. Just let him tag along."
Glaring at him, Rukia crossed her arms. "So, now I'm not allowed to ask questions? Whatever happened to the deal?"
Byakuya decided to ignore her as he stepped out of the suite and left without another word.
Before she could start cursing, Renji stepped forward. "Actually, Taichou-"
"Let's go." interrupted Rukia as she grabbed her bag and headed out of the door.
The afternoon with Renji didn't turn out to be as bad as Rukia thought it would be. Renji turned out to be very familiar with Hong Kong and even knew basic Cantonese. Rukia was secretly grateful. He had brought her to the most popular malls and they were now sitting in a café sipping on their beverage.
"You didn't turn out to be as bad as I thought." said Rukia as she sipped her tea.
Renji raised his eyebrows. "Really?"
Rukia nodded. "I thought you would be just like that stupid Kuchiki Byakuya."
Renji threw back his head in laughter. "Awfully brave of you to say that about him, Rukia. I've never heard anyone who dared to say that out loud."
Rukia shrugged. "It's the truth."
Finally coming down from his laughter, Renji looked at Rukia seriously. "Actually, Taichou isn't that bad. He wanted me to tag along because he knew you would be unfamiliar with the place and couldn't speak the language."
His words stunned Rukia as she stared at Renji. "R-Really?"
Renji nodded.
"W-Well, then why didn't he say so?" retorted Rukia, feeling a little guilty now for assuming the worst of Byakuya.
"Taichou is just like that." replied Renji as he drank the last bit of his coffee.
Rukia quickly downed the last bit of her tea too and the both of them continued shopping.
By the time both Rukia and Renji reached the hotel, it was already seven. Rukia didn't go crazy like most girls usually do during shopping. She only bought a couple more clothes for her stay here and some gifts for the gang back home. The rest of the shopping trip with Renji was basically window shopping.
Renji then brought her to have some street food which he had insisted she tried. Taking a bite of the roasted duck, Rukia almost swooned. Renji was right. It was absolutely delicious. Delighted with her reaction, Renji had scurried off to buy more of the local food back for Rukia. Rukia never imagined food from the street vendors could taste so good.
Renji had promised to take her sightseeing the next day and Rukia was excited. She had gotten along well with him and was actually glad he would be accompanying her tomorrow.
Rukia put her shopping bags down as Renji went to the kitchen to pour himself a drink. She noticed that Byakuya was still not back yet.
"Where's Kuchiki Byakuya?" she asked.
Renji shrugged. "Out doing business."
Rukia nodded as Renji checked his phone.
"I have to go, Rukia. I have some stuff to attend to." said Renji.
"Oh okay! Thanks for today, Renji." smiled Rukia as Renji waved goodbye and left.
Rukia's mobile phone had already gone dead and she decided to spend the night watching the TV. She flipped through the channels and finally landed on the Japanese news channel. She settled herself comfortably on the sofa and grabbed the blanket to cover her knees when she stilled.
Why was there a blanket here? Come to think of it, it was with her when she woke up but it certainly wasn't with her when she fell asleep. Curious and intrigued, she leapt up and proceeded upstairs to find the gigantic bed missing a blanket. She felt a small smile on her lips as she went back downstairs. It seemed as though Kuchiki Byakuya isn't all that bad after all.
The news was now talking about Japan's economy and Rukia let her mind slowly drift off to her friends back in Tokyo. She figured Matsumoto must have also known about her disappearance by now. She was hoping she would keep it to herself or at least consult Ichigo first before telling anyone else. She had been missing from work for two days now and she prayed Soifon Taichou would never get the news of it.
A sudden image from the TV caught Rukia's attention and she quickly increased the volume. Byakuya could be seen on the screen and Rukia realised that it was a photo someone had taken when they were at the airport foyer in Hong Kong when they were walking towards the car Mr Chang had sent for them. Rukia spotted herself standing a few feet away from Byakuya in the background. She looked just like a normal person who didn't seem to have any connection to Byakuya.
"Yakuza leader, Kuchiki Byakuya was spotted in Hong Kong one hour after one of his club was being set fire to. Police are still investigating on who had started the fire. It is believed that another member of a Yakuza group had started it and police are worried that this might start off a war between the two groups."
Rukia stared at the screen in horror as the TV now flashed a photo of Byakuya's burnt club. The news had now moved on to other random news but Rukia's mind was still filled with the photo of Byakuya's club. Could Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez have done that?
Rukia turned off the TV as she sat there in silence. It was about twenty minutes later when Rukia heard the soft click of the door and she turned around to see Byakuya stepping in.
"Y-You're back." Rukia squeaked as she jumped up from the sofa without knowing why she was feeling guilty.
Byakuya ignored her as he closed the door behind him.
"I just saw the news," continued Rukia as she followed him to the kitchen. "Is it Jaegerjaquez?"
There was still no reply from him as he opened the fridge and stared inside.
"I'm sorry." Rukia said meekly as she watched him shut the fridge door without retrieving anything.
Byakuya finally turned around and Rukia was surprised to see how tired he looks.
"There is nothing to be sorry about," he said. "What's done is done."
Rukia bit her lip. "How much did the fire cost you?"
"About one hundred and sixty million yen." Byakuya replied as he sat down at the counter.
Rukia stood opposite him as she gaped in shock. "So much?"
Byakuya nodded. "But I have insurance for it so it would not turn out to be so bad."
Rukia fell silent. There was no way she could pay him back all that money. Feeling terribly guilty, she apologised again.
Byakuya did not reply but just stood up and proceeded upstairs. Sighing, Rukia went back to the sofa letting the guilt consume her. It was only Tuesday night and it sucked already.
The following morning, Rukia was awakened by an apologetic Renji.
"I'm sorry to wake you up, Rukia. But I can't accompany you today. Taichou sent me to deal with some stuff." said Renji.
Rukia yawned and sat up. She finally registered what Renji was saying and she nodded immediately.
"Okay, sure, go ahead. It's okay." smiled Rukia.
Rukia was disappointed that Renji had something else to attend to but she knew Byakuya must have a lot to deal with right now.
Rukia decided to spend the day in as she was still feeling guilty of what happened. She drew herself a bath and ordered room service. After her bath, brunch and watching a few Hong Kong movies from the TV which she couldn't understand, Rukia realised that it was five in the evening. Finally deciding that it's silly to waste a day in, she decided to stroll around the streets that were near the hotel. Grabbing her bag, she headed out.
Rukia smiled as she sat outside the ice cream shop. The weather was turning colder and people were hurrying around. Rukia took another bite of her ice cream just when she noticed a black Mercedes Benz pulling up by the side of the road. The passenger stepped out and Rukia stared at him in surprise.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
Byakuya raised his eyebrow as he stood in front of her. "I should be asking you that."
"I was bored so I decided to talk a walk." replied Rukia.
Byakuya seemed to be in the way of several passerbys as they jostled past him. He finally took a seat beside Rukia and stared at her ice cream.
"Ice cream in this weather?"
Rukia shrugged. "I like having ice cream in winter."
They lapsed into silence as the both of them stared ahead at nothing in particular.
"Are you done for the day?" Rukia asked finally.
Byakuya nodded.
"Do you want to have dinner together?" Rukia asked suddenly, very much to her own surprise.
She didn't know why she had asked him but her mind had just wandered off to dinner and what she should eat and she just blurted the question out suddenly.
Trying to cover up her embarrassment, she quickly said, "I didn't know what I was thinking, you must have dinner plans and I-
"Why not." Interrupted Byakuya.
Rukia looked up in surprise. "Huh?"
"I said, why not." repeated Byakuya.
"Y-You mean you agree to have dinner together?"
She could see that Byakuya was trying very hard not to roll his eyes as he gave a nod.
Rukia blinked in surprise but remained silent as she quickly finished her ice cream as Byakuya sat there patiently.
"Done! Let's go." said Rukia. "Yesterday, Renji took me for dinner and we had the best roasted duck!"
"Where is that place?" asked Byakuya.
"I think it's located around Yen Chow Street." replied Rukia.
Byakuya seemed to ponder for a moment and then replied, "We could go back if you want to."
"Really?" asked Rukia, her eyes lighting up immediately.
Byakuya nodded and Rukia rambled on excitedly. "I know how we can walk from here. It's actually very near!"
"So you want to walk?" asked Byakuya and his eyes swept across the crowd and Rukia could see a flash of hesitation in them.
"W-Well, we can take the car too." replied Rukia hastily.
Byakuya gave a quick nod as they climbed into the waiting car. In less than ten minutes, the chauffer dropped them at Yen Chow Street and Rukia smiled gleefully.
"Hurry, it was really crowded yesterday and we had such a difficult time getting a seat!"
Byakuya frowned. "That is not a problem. I am sure the manager could get us a private room."
Rukia gave a laugh. "What are you talking about? There are no private rooms when you're eating from the food stalls!"
Her reply seemed to have thrown Byakuya off as he stood still on the pavement, staring at her.
"Are we not dining in a hotel?" he asked.
Rukia shook her head. "Of course not! Look, you can actually see the stalls from here!"
She started to tip toe and point towards the left but Byakuya was not even looking.
"I am not going." said Byakuya as he turned and started walking in the opposite direction.
"What? Why?" Rukia asked, alarmed as she followed him.
"I do not eat food from the streets." Byakuya replied simply.
"What? That's it?"
Byakuya nodded and slowed down as Rukia stopped walking completely. She was now just standing there, glaring at him.
"So, that's your stupid reason for not going?" asked Rukia, her tone accusing.
"Yes. Could we now go and have dinner someplace else instead?" replied Byakuya impatiently.
"I'm not going. I'm going to the food stall." replied Rukia stubbornly.
"Fine by me."
Before she had a chance to retort, Byakuya was already back in the car and was now zooming off.
Fuming, Rukia turned back and then realised that a man was actually staring at her from a distance. The man appeared unfamiliar to Rukia and Rukia noticed a camera was looped around his neck. A tourist, perhaps? Deciding to ignore him, she made her way to the stall, still feeling angry with Byakuya.
It was two hours later and Rukia had finished dinner alone. The food was delicious but Rukia couldn't help but still feel annoyed with Byakuya. She rode the elevator back to their suite and when she opened the doors, she found Byakuya sitting on the sofa reading the Chinese newspaper.
He did not acknowledge her presence and she deliberately cleared her throat loudly. There was still no response from him.
"So how was your dinner?" she asked stiffly.
"It went very well." Byakuya replied, his eyes never once leaving the papers.
"Mine went really well too. It's too bad you didn't get to enjoy it." replied Rukia as she went to the sofa and sat down.
There was no response from him but instead, he took the papers and went upstairs.
Rolling her eyes, Rukia huffed in exasperation as she switched on the TV. There was nothing good on and she was considering sleeping early when she heard Byakuya coming back downstairs. She turned around to see him approaching her with a card in hand.
"Be at this place at two tomorrow afternoon. They will arrange everything for you." said Byakuya as he handed her the card.
It was a name card with an address.
"What is this for?" asked Rukia.
"For the dinner party the Changs are throwing tomorrow night. This place will get you ready and a car will be sent for you when you are done. I will see you there tomorrow." replied Byakuya.
"What?" groaned Rukia. "Why didn't you say so earlier? I was still thinking of paying a visit to the temple near Flower Street."
"Just be there. And if you are not, you had better pray for your safety as rest assured, I will hunt you down and make sure you pay for it." said Byakuya seriously as he headed back upstairs.
All Rukia could do was to gape at his retreating figure. Was he joking or was that a real threat? Rukia wasn't sure but didn't want to risk her chances. Sighing in defeat, she tucked the card into her bag and proceeded to take a bath.
Rukia fidgeted nervously as she felt the car pulled to a stop. She was "tortured" for almost five hours before the girls from the shop were finally satisfied. They had waxed her legs, washed and dried her hair, did a manicure and pedicure for her and then they had fit her into a gown. One look and Rukia could see that the gown cost a bomb, something she could never afford in this lifetime.
It was baby blue with two thin shoulder straps and diamonds around the waist. The ladies proceeded to do her hair and makeup and finally after several failed attempts of trying to tuck her stubborn bang behind her ear, they decided to give up and that she was good to go. Rukia then stepped into a pair of silver heels and stared at herself in the mirror and was surprised to see the beautiful girl staring back at her. She had never seen herself looked so pretty. It was as though she had just stepped out of a fairy-tale. The ladies then slipped on a pair of white gloves on her and then before she knew what was happening, they had bundled her into the waiting car and off she goes.
Rukia looked out of the window to see that they had arrived at the residence of Mr and Mrs Chang. Luxury cars were coming in and Rukia could see that the people who got off these cars looked extremely wealthy. Her chauffeur stepped out and opened her door and Rukia muttered a word of thanks before walking in slowly. The cold winter air hit her and she hurried up the steps.
A guard standing at the big double doors held the door open for her and Rukia stepped in, welcoming the warmth. People were milling around making small talk with each other and Rukia froze in terror, suddenly realising that she didn't know a single soul. She decided to stand next to the wall as she looked around, very much like a frightened child in search of her mother.
"What's a scared little rabbit like ya, doin' all alone here?"
The voice startled her and Rukia whipped around in surprise. A man with silvery hair and very small eyes was now leaning down, smiling at her.
"Y-You can speak Japanese." came Rukia's first reply as the man chuckled.
Rukia didn't understand why but she immediately felt very uncomfortable as the man continued to gaze at her with what looks like interest.
"Of course I can speak Japanese. I am Japanese." The man said.
Rukia tore her gaze from the man as she nodded politely. She hoped the man would leave her alone already. Although she felt lost and nervous standing alone previously, she would have preferred it over the company of this man.
"Are ya waiting for someone?" continued the man.
Again, Rukia avoided his gaze and simply nodded.
"Who are ya with?" asked the man. "Tell me his name and perhaps I could help you look for him. I know most of the people here."
Finally deciding that standing here alone was a very silly thing to do, Rukia decided to let the strange man help.
"Kuchiki Byakuya. Do you know him?" asked Rukia, turning to face the stranger.
Rukia noticed that the man's face seemed to brightened.
"Of course I know him. Byakuya-san and I go a long way back." He replied.
Rukia gave a polite smile as the man held out his right arm to her.
"Shall we go then, Rukia-san?" he said.
Startled, Rukia stared at him. "How do you know my name?"
The man simply chuckled as he took Rukia's left hand and placed it on the crook of his arm. He steered her away from the crowd and led her down an empty corridor and finally arrived in front of a door.
Rukia shot him a questioning look but the man smiled and knocked on the door.
"Come on in." The voice from inside called out.
Rukia immediately recognised the voice of Mr Chang and certainly, when the door was opened, Mr Chang and Byakuya were inside. They seemed to be in the middle of a conversation but the silver-haired man did not seem to care.
He steered Rukia in and to Rukia's surprise, she saw Byakuya's eyes widened and he stood up from his armchair immediately.
"Ah, relax, Byakuya," The silver-haired man said as he smiled. "I am only here to deliver yer little lost rabbit back to ya."
Rukia noticed that Byakuya's face hardened instantly but Mr Chang didn't seem to have noticed it.
"I see you've found Byakuya's fiancée." The older man said as he smiled.
The silver-haired man seemed genuinely surprised as he looked from Byakuya and then to Rukia.
"So, you are Byakuya's fiancée. Such a pleasure to meet ya." He said as he took her hand and placed a kiss on it.
Rukia gave an awkward smile as she quickly retrieved her hand back. Mr Chang chuckled and excused himself as he went to search for his wife.
"Well, congratulations, Byakuya. She must be someone very special if ya have your eyes on her. But be careful, ya might want not want to leave her standing alone again. Ya know how many wolves out there are waiting for a chance to pounce on a little rabbit like her so keep her close. Yer lucky she ran into me if not who knows what might have happened?" The man said gleefully.
Rukia couldn't understand what the silver-haired man was talking about but apparently, Byakuya seemed to understand.
"Thank you for your advice." Byakuya said finally as he grabbed Rukia's hand and steered her out of the room.
"What was he talking about?" asked Rukia as soon as they were back in the foyer. "And who is he?"
"None of your business." snapped Byakuya as he released his hold on her.
Waiters were going around with champagnes and Byakuya took one. Rukia followed suit. After polishing off his glass of champagne, Byakuya handed a waiter his empty glass and took Rukia's one off her hands.
"Hey, I wasn't finished with that." she protested as he waved the waiter away.
"No more drinking for you. You know you cannot handle it." replied Byakuya.
Rukia knew he was right and fell silent. She didn't want to make a fool out of herself in case she got drunk.
Byakuya seemed to be searching the crowd for someone, and finally after spotting his target, which turned out to be Mrs Chang, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a diamond ring.
"Put it on." He ordered. "She seemed to have noticed there is no engagement ring on your finger."
Quickly slipping the beautiful diamond ring on her fourth finger, Rukia couldn't help but stare at it. She was never the type of women who ogled at diamonds or shiny things but this diamond was by far, the biggest and shiniest she had ever seen.
"It's so beautiful." whispered Rukia.
Ignoring her comment, Byakuya placed his hand on her back and led her towards Mrs Chang who was making idle chit chat with a few ladies who seemed wealthy and terrifying at the same time. The group of women stopped talking immediately as Byakuya appeared.
"Byakuya-sama, how nice to see you again." greeted one of the ladies who seemed to be in her forties.
Byakuya gave a polite smile as the other ladies shot him pleasant smiles. Rukia resisted the urge to roll her eyes. There he was again with the act. Trying to act all nice and civil when there are people watching.
"Rukia-san, I've missed you!" Mrs Chang said as she went forward and gave Rukia a hug.
The diamond ring on Rukia's finger sparkled more than ever under the chandelier and of course, it didn't go unnoticed by the group of women.
"My, that is a huge diamond." one of them said as she lifted Rukia's hand to inspect it.
Mrs Chang laughed. "I noticed you were not wearing it the other day and Byakuya said that you seemed to have misplaced it."
Rukia forced a laugh. "Yes, I am very forgetful. Sometimes I take it off and forgot where I put them."
One of the women from the group seemed baffled. "And why would you take it off?"
Her question stumped Rukia. She was right. Who would take their engagement ring off? Clearing her throat, she struggled to come up with a reply.
"Y-You see, it was because… because it's way too lavish and I didn't want anyone to rob me when I'm shopping…"
Her words seemed reasonable as the women slowly nodded in agreement.
"Byakuya-sama should get a bodyguard for you." one suggested.
"I wanted to but Rukia insisted otherwise." Byakuya interrupted smoothly and then turned to Mrs Chang. "Excuse us, Mrs Chang, we will catch up with you again later."
Byakuya's hand was still firmly on the back of her waist as he steered her away from the crowd.
"I still don't know why I have to be here." grumbled Rukia as Byakuya led her into an empty room and shut the door behind them.
"Just play your part well." replied Byakuya as he sank down onto one of the armchairs.
"You don't seem to like these events, so why don't we just leave?" asked Rukia as she hoisted herself up the table and sat on it.
"It is not that simple." Byakuya said.
It seemed futile in trying to convince him that they should skip the party so Rukia remained silent. It wasn't before long when there was a knock on the door and a waiter came in.
"My apologies, Kuchiki-sama and Rukia-sama, but Mr Chang is about to make a speech." announced the waiter.
Byakuya nodded and the waiter led them out of the room and into the ballroom which was just beside the foyer.
A sudden contact on her hand made Rukia flinched and she stared down. Byakuya was now holding her hand just when Mr Chang was making his speech. Rukia wasn't listening but instead, she was now focused on the warmth his hand seemed to be radiating. She looked up at Byakuya to find him staring at Mr Chang, concentrating. She knew this was all a façade but it didn't help the fluttery feeling she was now having at the pit of her stomach.
Rukia didn't know why but she felt her hands grow cold and clammy and Byakuya seemed to have noticed it as well. His eyes turned to her briefly, shooting her a questioning look before they landed back on Mr Chang again.
Rukia knew this wasn't the first time he had held her hand but to her, it felt different. His grasp seemed gentle and assuring and it made her feel… safe.
Realising and feeling shocked with her choice of words, Rukia shook her head and decided that it must be the atmosphere and that sip of champagne earlier that was making her feel this way. She broke out of her reverie by the sound of clapping and noticed that Byakuya's hand was gone. Gulping, she pretended to smooth her gown, trying to busy her hands with something that will take her mind off his hand.
A small band in the corner started playing and Rukia noticed that people were pairing up and swaying along to the music. Flustered, she tried to back herself to the side of the room when suddenly, Byakuya pulled her towards him and started dancing as well. The tempo was slow and Rukia gasped softly when he put a hand on her waist while the other was clasping her right hand.
"I've never danced before. I can't dance." whipered Rukia, unsure of what she was doing as she tried to mimic Byakuya's steps.
"Just follow my lead." replied Byakuya softly.
They lapsed into silence as Rukia tried to relax and let Byakuya take the lead. Of course, with his face only inches away from her, it was an impossible task. Her hands were turning cold again and this time, her heart seemed to be beating faster than usual. She berated herself silently at her own silliness and thankfully, the song soon ended and Rukia sighed with relief.
She was about to pull apart from him but Byakuya seemed to have other plans in mind. He pulled her back in just as the band started playing another slow song.
"Aren't we done?" She hissed.
"Not when we are still being watched." replied Byakuya.
They danced in silence again and Rukia noticed that a few pretty women who seemed to be around her age were shamelessly ogling at Byakuya. Of course, Rukia couldn't blame them. He looked very handsome as usual. Not sure why but feeling slightly annoyed with their staring, she deliberately shifted her left hand that was on Byakuya's shoulder and made sure the diamond ring was in clear view of the ladies. The ladies noticed it as they were now staring at Rukia furiously as they whispered among themselves.
Rukia let out a satisfied giggle and immediately regretted it when Byakuya stared at her puzzled.
"What is so funny?" he asked.
Shaking her head, she bit back a grin and couldn't help but threw a satisfactory smile at the ladies. Never in her life had she seen girls so pretty and wealthy casting her looks of jealousy.
The song ended sooner than Rukia had expected and she found herself not minding dancing with Byakuya again. In fact, a small part of her was slowly enjoying it. Rukia expected Byakuya to continue but was disappointed when he stepped away, telling her that he needed to get a drink.
Rukia nodded as she left the dance floor and stood by the corner as she watched Byakuya disappear from the ballroom. Sighing, she fiddled with the ring on her finger as she watched the other couples danced past her.
It was her first time dancing and Rukia never expected herself to enjoy it with Kuchiki Byakuya. She always thought her first dance would be with her first boyfriend or her first husband but no, it turned out to be her first fake fiancé. She glanced up again and noticed that Byakuya was still not back yet. The group of girls were making their way over and Rukia tried to straighten herself to look more confident.
"Are you in any way related to Kuchiki-sama?" a girl in pink asked bluntly.
Before Rukia could reply, the other girl in green glared at Rukia. "How did you get to know Byakuya-sama? We didn't see you with him the last time he attended."
"I'm his fiancée." replied Rukia.
The four girls seemed all the more angrier and one of them who was in a pretty silver gown glowered at Rukia.
"I wonder why Kuchiki-sama picked a scum like you. You're obviously not from a wealthy family seeing that you can't even dance."
Feeling hurt and offended, Rukia rebuked, "Apparently, Mr and Mrs Chang didn't seem to think so. They enjoy my company very much and they probably won't be very happy with you when they hear of this."
The girls seemed taken aback and the one in the silver gown raised a hand and looked as though she was about to strike Rukia when a voice interrupted them.
"Play nice, ladies."
Rukia whipped around to find the silver-haired man grinning at the girls in a creepy sort of way. The girls seemed to notice that he was not one to be messed with and with a haughty sniff, they flounced off, leaving Rukia with the silver-haired stranger.
"That was brave of ya." The man said.
She didn't know what to say so she smiled awkwardly before looking away, determined not to look in his direction. Where the hell was Byakuya? She scanned through the crowds but there was no sign of him.
"Lookin' for Byakuya?" asked the man. "I saw him talking to a pretty brunette lady at the foyer."
"I'm not looking for him." She replied quickly as she bristled.
The man chuckled. "Fine. How about a dance?"
He was now holding out his hand and Rukia stared at it. What should she do? She didn't know why but she didn't feel comfortable with this man but it would be rude to decline. Furthermore, he had done nothing disrespectful to her so far and she didn't want to anger Byakuya if he realised she had offended someone at this party.
Reluctantly, she took his hand and he led her to the dance floor. Rukia flinched when his hand landed on the back of her waist as they danced. The feeling was nothing like the one she had with Byakuya. With Byakuya, she felt nervous and light-headed plus a little bit of excitement but with this man, all she felt was scared and very uncomfortable.
Sadly for Rukia, the song didn't seem to be a short one. The man was now attempting to make small talk with her as Rukia looked away.
"So how did ya meet Byakuya?" he asked.
"Why is everyone so fascinated with Byakuya?" she replied, still looking away.
The man chuckled. "Fine, we can stop talking about him. Let's talk about you."
Surprised, Rukia turned to him but immediately turned away again when his eyes opened just a crack for her to see his red eyes. Startled by the colour of his eyes, Rukia recoiled but the stranger pulled her back to him.
"Don't be alarmed, Rukia-chan." He said in a sing-song manner which reminded Rukia of the ones she had heard from horror movies.
"I think that is quite enough." A stern voice interrupted them and to Rukia's relief, Byakuya had appeared and was looking calm but Rukia could see his eyes flashing with anger.
"Ah, why so selfish, Byakuya?" chuckled the man. "Why so protective of Rukia-chan? It is just a dance."
"Enough." replied Byakuya, his tone low, so as not to draw any attention.
"I told ya not to leave yer little rabbit all alone and ya did. A pack of female wolves were about to devour her just now, did ya know that? And thankfully, I got here in time."
Of course, this time round, Byakuya had no idea what the man was talking about but Rukia understood. Byakuya didn't seem to be bothered by the man's comment as he offered his hand to Rukia, indicating that he wants to cut in.
To others, it simply looked like Byakuya was cutting in the dance and that was all to it. But Rukia noticed that Byakuya didn't seem to like the man very much and realised that there must be more to it.
Glad that Byakuya was now back, Rukia slipped her hands off the man hastily and backed away from him.
"Ah, too bad yer fiancé had to cut in, Rukia-chan." The man said, smiling. "But it's fine, I'm sure there are plenty more chances to dance with ya."
And in a second, the strange man had left the dance floor and disappeared from sight. Before Rukia had a second to catch her breath, Byakuya was now leading her into a dance.
"Why were you with him?" She heard him ask her.
"W-Well, you left and your group of fan girls almost attacked me and he helped me out." replied Rukia, her tone somewhat reproachful.
"My group of what?" questioned Byakuya.
"Fan girls." repeated Rukia.
Byakuya raised his eyebrows and seemed amused but Rukia was clearly not.
"If you didn't want me to dance with him, you shouldn't have left me alone." continued Rukia.
"I told you I was getting a drink." replied Byakuya impatiently.
Rukia rolled her eyes as they continued swaying along to the music. "Really? Does your drink also come with a pretty brunette lady?"
Rukia couldn't help but notice the spiteful tone in her voice. In fact, it wasn't only her who had noticed it. Byakuya noticed it as well.
He was now staring at her, one of his eyebrows raised, as though questioning her.
"W-Well, if I'm supposed to act like your fiancée," Rukia said quickly. "Then you should act more like my fiancé too."
"Fair enough." Byakuya replied. "And, by the way," He leant towards her and whispered in her ear. "That pretty brunette lady you were talking about, she was just asking me if I had seen her husband around."
Surprised at his sudden closeness, Rukia's eyes widened as she felt his hot breath in her ear. She didn't realise that she was gripping on to his shoulder so hard that her knuckle had turned white. Her other hand that was in his hand had turned cold and clammy once again.
"D-Don't do that." Rukia whispered, as she stared ahead at nothing in particular, as though in a trance.
"What?" asked Byakuya, not catching a word she had just said.
"I said, please, don't do that ever again." whispered Rukia again, this time, her eyes staring into his grey ones.
Slightly surprised at her sudden seriousness, Byakuya drew back and gazed at her with no reply. Rukia didn't know what was happening but she had never felt this way before. The feeling she got when his hand was around hers, when his hand was on the back of her waist, when his face was inches away from her and when he leant in and whispered into her ear. She felt scared all of a sudden. What in the world was happening? She was so deep in thought that she didn't realise she was carrying a dazed expression and that her dancing was slowing down.
"Rukia," she heard him call out to her as she pulled herself back. "What is going on?" he asked.
Flabbergasted, she could only shake her head in reply. Byakuya was about to question her further when Rukia heard a loud pop outside. She turned her head towards the doors the led to the balcony and realised that there were fireworks.
"Fireworks!" Some guests exclaimed and started advancing towards the balcony to enjoy the view.
Forgetting about Byakuya in her excitement, Rukia raced towards the balcony but in her haste, she stumbled and before she knew what was happening, she was sprawled on the marble floor, one of her heels now a foot away from her.
Her fall had caused a small commotion and Rukia raised her head up in embarrassment. The group of four girls were now pointing and laughing as some of the guests stared at her trying their best to contain their laughter. Feeling very humiliated and angry with herself, Rukia drew herself up to her knees and was about to stand up when she noticed Byakuya pushing his way through the crowd towards her.
He was now standing in front of her and held out his hand. Rukia took it and he helped her up. She expected to see anger from him but all he had on his face was just a small smile and his face had an expression that almost seemed tender.
"Be careful, I would not want you to get hurt." Byakuya said endearingly as the laughter subsided and the ladies were now swooning.
Rukia's face was still hot and flushed and she was now standing awkwardly with one foot bare, trying to balance herself. Byakuya noticed immediately and retrieved her heel that was on the floor.
Rukia was about to reach out for her heel from him when suddenly, Byakuya got down on one knee in front of her, placed her hand on his shoulder and lifted her ankle. In less than a few seconds, she was back with two heels and Byakuya was up on his feet again.
The crowd broke into applause and Rukia caught whispers of "He is such a gentleman", "They seem to be so in love" and "She is so lucky. Kuchiki Byakuya must love her very much". She knew what he was doing was all for show but she still felt grateful that he had saved her.
"Thank you." murmured Rukia as the crowd went back to the balcony.
"Be more careful the next time." He replied as the both of them joined the crowd at the balcony.
The fireworks were beautiful but Rukia was now staring at Byakuya instead. He didn't seem to notice her stare as he looked upwards at the sky, his expression stoic. Rukia wasn't thinking straight as she suddenly slipped her small hand into his and of course, her sudden move surprised him. He looked down at her immediately and she whispered, "We're being watched."
Byakuya gave a small nod as he turned back to stare at the sky that was now lighted up with blue, green and red sparks.
Rukia turned her attention back to the sky as she silently prayed that Byakuya would not turn around as there was no one behind them and of course, no one was watching them. She didn't know why but she suddenly didn't want this night to end. Just like this, being next to Byakuya, holding his hand and watching the fireworks in the sky even though it was all just pretence. Yes, for now, she would just let herself feel instead of think.
A/N: How was the chapter? Do you like it? I had a really fun time writing the "silver-haired stranger" which I guess, most of you should know who he is by now. Some parts were a little tough to write but still enjoyable like the parts where Rukia was starting to feel something for Byakuya. But I'm glad I finished this chapter in two days! Anyway, let me know what you think and your favourite part of the chapter please! Reviews make me all warm and fuzzy inside so please send some love after all the hard work I've put in!
And thanks to those who tried to explain about Byakuya's death. And HUGE HUGE thanks to those who left long reviews which I absolutely love! Anyway, thanks for reading and see you soon in my next chapter! ;)