"So, despite the circumstances, Teresa and I started dating. I know it might not have been a good idea since she lost her husband, but we found a way to make it work. It went on for months and we both rather enjoyed it." Ichigo and Teresa started dating and they both had a lot of fun and enjoying themselves. They appeared to have great chemistry and was always happy with each other.

"I can't believe you and Teresa are still going." Renji said as he and Ichigo got themselves ready for the day. "I thought this whole thing with you and she was going to be some sort of rebound, but it looks like I was wrong."

"What can I say? She and I really seem to get along. We really like each other, and she's a lot of fun to be around." Ichigo said. "By the way, there's something else I want to run by you."

"Shoot." Renji said.

"We've lived here for almost a year, I've been getting paid a lot lately, and things seem to be going well for you at the academy." Ichigo said. "Don't you think it's time we start looking for a place that's better than this."

"Come on. The place isn't that bad." Renji said, but Ichigo wasn't so sure. "It really isn't that bad, but maybe you're right. You really think we can find some other place?"

"I think so." Ichigo said. "I have been doing some saving. I've got a meeting happening at a hotel. If that goes well, and we save some money for just a little longer, we just might be able to."

"You really seem to have it all figured out. Go have fun." Renji said and Ichigo was off.

"The reason I mentioned that to Renji was because I thought my life was getting better and better. I had a stable job, a great girlfriend, and I thought I had it all figured out. That's not really how life works." Things have been going well for Ichigo lately and he thinks things can only go up. Sadly, what comes up must come down eventually.

...

Ichigo

Ichigo had a meeting in a fancy hotel lobby and it seems to have gone well. As things finished up, they gave each other a friendly handshake and called it a day. Ichigo got up from his seat and was getting ready to go. Suddenly, his phone went off and it was a blocked number.

"That's weird." Ichigo said. Curious as to what this could be, he decided to answer. "Hello?"

"Mr. Kurosaki, we've been watching you." It already got weird because a scratchy voice was on the other end saying people have been watching him.

"Who is this?" Ichigo asked.

"We're in the building. Don't make it look too suspicious. Just start moving." Ichigo didn't understand what was going on. He looked around, but couldn't tell where this call was coming from.

"Who the hell is this? What is going on?" Ichigo said as he wasn't amused at all.

"Just start walking." Ichigo didn't get what was going on. He just started walking. "You're getting colder." Ichigo found this really weird, but kept going as he changed directions. "Warmer. Warmer." This guy was playing the hot and cold game with him and all he could do was keep it going. "Warmer. Hot. Hot. You are so hot. You are so hot!" The voice changed and he knew it. He looked up a set of stairs and spotted who it was that called him. It was someone he was hoping to see again: Emma. Knowing it was her, he just had to laugh. Once the two saw each other, the two of them hit the streets and were catching up.

"When did you get back?" Ichigo asked.

"Just today." Emma said. "I called Renji so I know where you were. I wanted to surprise you. He told me you had a meeting, but once he told me what hotel you were at, I just headed straight there and waited until you were available."

"Wait a minute. You mean you've just been hanging around the lobby the whole time and just waited for me?" Ichigo questioned.

"Yeah. I just had to see you again." Emma said. "During the whole time I was away, I really missed you. I always thought about you."

"I'm glad you're back, but you are unlike any girl I've met." Ichigo said. "Only you would do something like that weird phone call instead of just coming up to me." Things appeared to be going great. It was like nothing really changed between them.

"I'm glad to be back because there's something I want to say." Emma said. Just before she could say anything, Ichigo's phone went off and alerted him about something.

"Oh, hold on." Ichigo said as he answered his phone. "Teresa is going to be on her way soon. This is perfect. You two can meet. She's something incredible too. I have a feeling you would like her."

"Teresa? Who is that?" Emma said as she seemed a little anxious about something.

"My girlfriend." Ichigo said like it was no big deal. Emma was a little shocked to hear that he has a girlfriend. "She's only a couple minutes away. Wait until you meet her. She's a lot of fun and she has quite the imagination."

"Sounds great." Emma said, but she didn't sound like she meant it. Ichigo could see that there was something bothering her.

"Are you okay?" Ichigo asked, but she wasn't really sure how to answer that. Before they could talk anymore, Teresa came by.

"There you are." Teresa said as she pulled him towards her and gave him a kiss until she noticed Emma. "Oh! Hi there. Who's this?"

"Teresa, this is Emma, an old friend I worked with." Ichigo said. "She just surprised me because she just got back from school."

"Oh! Ichigo has mentioned you!" Teresa said.

"Yeah... He just now mentioned you to me." Emma said as she was feeling like a third wheel in this scenario.

...

Present Day

"Are you an idiot?" Rukia said.

"Rukia!" Renji said with him not approving of the kids hearing that.

"Sorry, I should have said that." Rukia said as she tried setting a better example for the kids. "I just mean that you didn't see something that was pretty important."

"Mom is right. Did you not see what was going on then?" Ichika said. "She missed you, thought about you, and waited for you... She was clearly in love with you."

"Yeah... Looking back, I couldn't believe I couldn't see that Emma was in love with me." Ichigo said as he did feel bad about that time. Looking back at one's past mistakes can cause you to feel regret about it. "However, it didn't really mattered because I was already with someone. Just because she was in love with me didn't mean I was going to end up with her. Love isn't like what you kids hear in those fairy tales. In the real world, it's a lot more complicated."

"I'll say." Kazui said as he was getting understanding on how real life really works. "Emily cheated on you, but still loved you. Teresa was married, but you started dating her when her husband died. Now Emma is in love with you, but you're dating Teresa. That does seem pretty complicated."

"Luckily, it all works in the end." Orihime said as she placed her hands on his shoulders.

"So, Emma came back, but I still want to know if Emily ever did." Ichika said. "She has to come back if she's the one that's actually Mrs. Kurosaki."

"She will. We're getting there. Just try and be a little patient." Ichigo said.

"What happened after Emma came back?" Kazui asked with the story continuing.

...

The Story

"Emma may have came back, but I could tell there was something bothering her. Still, she put on a brave face and acted like she was happy for me whenever Teresa was mentioned. I even acted like a big jerk and thought Emma didn't really mind whenever Teresa and I were together." Ichigo and Emma still acted like friends, but he saw that something was always on her mind. Whenever Teresa and Ichigo acted like a couple, it made Emma uncomfortable since she was in love with him, but Ichigo never noticed.

"Did you ever find out the truth?" Kazui asked.

"Not for a long time. Emma never said anything and I really thought it wasn't a big deal. If I had known before, maybe things could have gone different. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew there was something wrong, but I never knew what. Since I didn't know a thing, I didn't pry or forced anything out of her." Ichigo just let the whole thing go, but he kept thinking about it when he had the chance. Currently in the story, Ichigo and Teresa are in her bed with her resting against his chest. They tried relaxing, but Ichigo still felt off.

"You okay?" Teresa asked.

"That's my question for Emma." Ichigo said.

"What do you mean?" Teresa asked.

"Ever since she came back, it seems like there's something bothering her, but she won't talk about it." Ichigo said. "I just hope she's doing okay."

"You seem really concerned. You trying to make me jealous?" Teresa teased.

"Cute, but I'm being serious. She's a good friend. If she's having a problem, I want to help her out." Ichigo said.

"I'm sure it's nothing. When she's ready to talk to you about it, I'm sure she will." Teresa said.

"Yeah, you might be right. I'm probably just worrying over nothing." Ichigo said as he was just putting the whole thing behind him.

"You know, if you do try making me jealous, I might have to show you what you could be loosing." Teresa said as she slid her hand against his muscles and tried getting frisky with him. Before they could do anything, her phone alerted her. She moved over to get her phone and saw what it was about.

"Is everything okay?" Ichigo asked.

"Yeah. It's just a friend of mine." Teresa said. "She's just letting me know something I can use for work."

"More conspiracy theories?" Ichigo teased.

"Watch it, buddy." Teresa playfully said. Once she put her phone down, she gave Ichigo a quick peck and cozied up against him again with Ichigo having his arm around her. Ichigo didn't even question her about the message. At the time, Ichigo enjoyed being around Teresa. He thought there was nothing to worry about and still thought life was only going to go up from there.

"There was actually more to that text message than I thought. A mistake was ignoring it considering who I was with at the time. I thought things in my life were going to go well, but what I didn't know was that it was just the opposite."