Cc (Guest) - That seems to be a constant flaw of Ichigo. His old habits of a playboy and I am actually proud that he hadn't just fucked Setsuna this time round. :3

Disclaimer: I neither own Bleach nor its characters. :3

"It's not what it looks like!" Even though the words had left Ichigo's lips as soon as he saw Rukia, he had known how cliche and ridiculous they sounded but he simply couldn't help himself. Rukia was staring at Setsuna and he just knew that she was going to think that he had been sleeping around again. After all the progress they had been making lately, this was the last thing he had needed. For the first time, Ichigo wasn't actively cheating on her, just honestly trying to be nice and Rukia misunderstanding his intention was what he had gotten in return. He had wanted to swear at Setsuna and call her a worthless bitch for making his life so goddamn complicated and for what? For her pendant that her ex-boyfriend gave which nobody cared anyway. Before Ichigo could have yelled at Setsuna or even try to excuse himself from this awkward situation which wasn't even his fault to begin with in the first place, something even more surprising happened.

Setsuna had grabbed Rukia's hands, causing Rukia to gaze at Setsuna in surprise. "It's true." Setsuna said to Rukia. "My name's Setsuna. I was just here looking for something. We weren't..."

Rukia's gaze stayed on Setsuna, Ichigo detecting a hint of relief crossing her gaze. So, she had cared after all! Almost a second later, Rukia shook her head. "It's none of my business anyway. You two can do whatever you want, really."

"No, please... Try to understand." Setsuna insisted. "Ichigo and I... We used to be close. But, not anymore since we broke it off. He cares about you more than he cares about me." Rukia shifted her gaze from Setsuna to Ichigo. He couldn't read the expression on Rukia's face, his breath catching in his throat. This was a make-or-break moment. If Rukia believed Setsuna, they could still have a chance, Ichigo could still have a chance to win her over and show Rukia how much he had changed. But, if she hadn't believed Setsuna... Setsuna looked visibly hurt from what Ichigo had told her earlier on but still turned and gazed at Ichigo before smiling gently. "Ichigo... He was actually just trying to be nice, to help me find something I left here."

Ichigo couldn't believe Setsuna's grace and kindness. Don't get him wrong, he had known that Setsuna had always been nice but he had never seen Setsuna as anything more than the cute business student that was good in bed. Clearly, by this incident, there was a real person in there. A person he had been unnecessarily ugly to. Rukia was alike Setsuna in so many ways. Rukia, on the other hand, frowned. "What did you leave?"

"A necklace. A pendant from..." A moment of hesitation was heard. "From someone very special to me. It has my name on it. Setsuna."

Realization dawned on Rukia before she gazed at Ichigo as she blushed. Looks like she had misunderstood Ichigo for his choice in gifts after all... "I know where it is, Setsuna. One second."

With that, she stepped inside, passing them and walking into her bedroom. Ichigo turned to Setsuna, feeling embarrassed before averting his gaze. "You didn't have to do that. To stick up for me."

Setsuna sighed, regarding Ichigo with a soft look. "I didn't do it for you, Ichigo. I did it for her. She clearly cares for you a lot and I could see it in her eyes."

"Setsuna..." Ichigo had wanted to apologize but the words couldn't come out no matter how much he had wished to. Ichigo shook his head, disgusted with himself. "I shouldn't have yelled at you... Called you..." Ichigo sighed. "I don't know what's wrong with me."

Setsuna took a step towards Ichigo. "I know that you are still angry at the world and at everyone. Probably you are angry at yourself too. But... For the first time, I could sense something else."

"What?"

Setsuna smiled. "Isn't it obvious, Ichigo? Love." Was Setsuna saying what Ichigo thought she was saying? She was saying that he was in love with Rukia and that had sounded like a stretch. Sure, he had been developing feelings towards Rukia but was there a need to drop the L-Bomb to his feelings? Before he could have defended himself, Setsuna placed a hand on Ichigo's shoulder. "You don't need to be in a defensive mode, Ichigo. It's obvious in the way you look at her, the way you are trying, if not always succeeding, to be more decent. Whether you can see it or not yet, Ichigo, you are in love with her and I can tell that much." Was Setsuna right? Was that what the weird and uncomfortable feeling was? It certainly hadn't felt like anything Ichigo felt before. With Inoue, it had been this gushing fountain of giddiness followed by the deepest sorrow he had ever known. It was these crazy ups and downs and Ichigo had thought that was what real love felt like. With Rukia, it had been a slow burn, driven by confusion and misunderstanding then a quiet development of trust and then... "Ichigo." Setsuna called out, snapping Ichigo out of his thoughts. "Don't fight the change, I can see that Rukia brings out the best in you. Try to give in to it, okay?"

Was he supposed to agree? Since when had some girl he used to fuck have any right to tell him how to conduct his life? Since when had Setsuna become some goddamn sage? Even though he was thinking that, his body certainly had other ideas because he found himself nodding to Setsuna's words, causing Setsuna to smile in response. "Is this it, Setsuna?" Rukia asked before handing the necklace over. "I found it in my room the other day, Momo must have thought that it was mine."

Setsuna looked at it, turning such that her name was visible before holding the necklace to her chest, looking beyond grateful. "That's it. Thank you so much, Rukia."

"May I ask..." Rukia lowered her gaze. "...What it means to you?"

Setsuna gazed at Rukia before smiling. "It's from someone whom I care about very much. Something I'm sure you understand." Rukia blushed and nodded. "Once again, Thank You and best of luck with everything."

With that, Setsuna turned and walked out of the door, leaving them both speechless. Ichigo gazed at Rukia, briefly wondering whether he had still owed her any explanation. To his surprise, she turned to him. "That was kinda weird, don't you think so?"

Ichigo laughed in response. "I agree."

"See you at dinner? I was hoping to go for a run."

"Of course."

Nodding and heading for her room, Ichigo briefly wondered whether Rukia was going out for a run just to get away from him but decided against overthinking things. Before he could have stopped himself, he called out. "Rukia!"

She turned back. "Yes?"

"I'm... Uh..." Ichigo averted his gaze. "Counting the minutes until dinner."

What the fuck? Was that what Ichigo Kurosaki's made of? He had used to be so smooth. Seriously, what happened to the Ichigo Kurosaki that would make girls weak at their fucking knees? To his surprise, Rukia smiled. "Same here, Ichigo."

I don't know what you said to Shuuhei but thank you SO much, Rukia! He's back to himself again!

Of course, Ino. I knew it would all work out.

How is everything with Ichigo?

Um... Good, I think? I'm not sure. It's confusing.

Well, I'm here if you need to talk about it, okay?

Thanks.

It was so hard trying to keep secrets from Ino. Of course she had been happy that Shuuhei was being sweet with her again but she had wished that Ino had known what she did, that Shuuhei was going to propose to her. With Ichigo, she could have probably told Ino about the strange Setsuna incident but it had seemed like too much of words to text. Ino would probably have misinterpreted it anyway, if it was up to her. Running had helped clear Rukia's mind such that by the time that they had sat down for dinner, she was able to look back at the day with some clarity and fresh insight. They were eating quietly with some Spanish music playing in the background when Rukia had decided to spring a question upon Ichigo. "So, are you nervous?"

Ichigo was confused. "About today? Like you said, it was weird but..."

Rukia giggled. "Not about today but this weekend. The Silver Jubilee is finally here!"

"Oh shit, you are right." Both of them laughed, realizing they were out of their depth. "There's no way we are gonna win, is there?"

Rukia frowned, feigning offense. "Maybe that's how you feel but I am a Kurosaki and Kurosaki wins competitions, don't they?"

Ichigo grinned. "I like it when you talk like that."

Rukia tilted her head. "Like what?"

"Like a capitalist, it's sexy."

Rukia blushed. Okay, a change of topic is needed. "It has been a while since our last lesson, though. I hope I remember all the steps."

"Well..." He said with a shrug, placing his utensils on the table. "Why don't we practice right now?"

"You mean here?"

"Why not! The apartment's big enough to feel like a dance floor, isn't it?"

Rukia, in response, lowered her utensils as well and accepted the challenge. "Okay, I'm in."

They swayed in tune to the beat in the middle of the apartment, their bare feet sliding across the hardwood floor. Their hands delicately touching one another, make sure not to gold on too tight so that they could easily complete their movements. Rukia had found herself enjoying the dance for the first time, the rhythm of the bolero in a space as comfortable and familiar as this apartment had felt intimate to her. "I don't think we needed to practice, Rukia." Ichigo said in between turns. "We are practically Masters at this point."

"Don't you dare jinx it, Ichigo~" Rukia chided him playfully.

Ichigo dipped Rukia back, continuing. "I'm only saying, even if we don't win, we are good at this."

"You think so?"

"I know so."

Rukia smiled, never having felt so safe in anyone's arms before. She and wanted the song to continue, to give them an excuse to be this close but as always, it had ended. "Kurosaki-San." Rukia took a step back while nodding and curtseying politely.

"Kurosaki-San." Ichigo responded in kind.

Both turning, they had walked their separate ways by then and Rukia had felt the nape of her neck tingling, as if someone's eyes were on her. Turning back, she caught Ichigo staring at her before Ichigo turned away and ducked into a hallway. Rukia giggled at the image of Ichigo acting like a schoolboy with a crush, being adorable in his own way.

Hello again, beautiful lady. It has been too long.

Who is this?! Aizen?!

Wrong! Try again, sweet Rukia.

I told you to leave me alone! WHAT DO YOU WANT?!

You, of course. I want you. I will have you.

NO!!! YOU WON'T!

Don't you ever learn? No one says no to me...

Abandoning the fact that the content had really sounded like Aizen, Rukia had doubted Aizen would deny when he was being called out. Her smile vanished as she clenched her fists. She could think of one other person, a person who wanted her the same way Aizen did but... Could it really be him? Why the fuck had he wanted her? How the fuck had he even gotten her number? It made zero sense to Rukia at all.

Lights flashing, crowds shouting and smiles dazzling. They were in the middle of a red carpet for Silver Jubilee and she could hardly see straight, there were so many members of the press here. Everywhere Rukia turned, somebody was yelling at her.

"Kurosaki-San! Who designed that dress?!"

"Kurosaki-San! Can you pose with your husband?!

"Kurosaki-San! What do you have to say to your fans?!"

Fans? Huh? What fans? Ichigo was dressed in a snazzy tux, smiling and waving, clearly used to this. Rukia, on the other hand, wore a chiffon cocktail dress with a glamorous gold accent which she had known would sparkle on the dance floor. Even though Ichigo had insisted that she had looked like "A million bucks", she still felt out of place and extremely nervous. It wasn't simply just because she was about to dance in front of a massive crowd of important people. It was also because of those weird texts that she had been receiving. She had an idea about who might be sending her those texts but could it really be him? Why the hell would he be texting her out of all people...? Was it really him...? There had seemed to be a hidden threat in his words, a promise that something terrible was about to happen. For some reasons, she couldn't get the last line out of her head.

"No one says no to me..."

Aizen had said that line before as well. The threats had permeated her whole being, making her feel like her hands were made of ice and her legs of jelly. How was she supposed to be coordinated tonight after receiving texts like that? "Hey." She heard a gruff voice whisper beside her, successfully snapping her out of her own thoughts. "You okay?"

Rukia turned to see Ichigo frowning and being concerned for her. Looks like she wasn't hiding her nerves very well, after all. She faked a smile. "I'm fine and we probably should smile for a photo."

"Rukia, if you don't want to, we don't have to. There's already enough on our plate today."

Surprisingly, Ichigo was being nice and supportive. She could hardly believe this was the same Ichigo who had once called her a gold-digging slut, among other things. "You are sure?" She had asked to be sure. "It seems like it's expected of us."

"Come on." Taking Rukia's hand, Ichigo led her inside the massive ballroom without another word and Rukia was extremely grateful to be away from the cameras. The massive ballroom was filled with wealthy guests of the Silver Jubilee which had included members of Kurosaki Enterprise and other important business people. Ichigo had tried to skip most of the pleasantries and get them as quickly to their seats as possible but some small talk was necessary. By the time they reached their table, they were out of breath. "Sit." Ichigo had said. "I will grab us some water."

"When does the competition start?"

Rukia simply wanted to get this dance competition over and done with at this point of time. Ichigo placed a hand on her bare shoulder, the contact making her shiver with excitement. "As soon as everyone's inside, Rukia. Don't worry, we got this."

We got this, huh...? Rukia had wanted to burn those words inside her mind. Those words, so casual and reassuring, was exactly what Rukia had needed. With that, Ichigo turned and walked away. She smiled a little, trying to put those texts behind her seeing that she had a new phrase to fill it. Ichigo was right, they got this.

"Please welcome to the stage... The Kurosakis'!"

The crowd applauded wildly as they stood up and approached the dance floor. Rukia could feel herself sweating in anticipation, she was so scared and excited at the same time. Finally, when they reached the middle of the dance floor, the applause had died down and all was quiet. Ichigo pulled Rukia closer, whispering in her ear. "It's just you and me, Rukia. There's nobody else that matters. Not right now. Okay?"

Those dark eyes had never looked so full of light, such that Rukia had almost gasped. It was beyond strange to call a man beautiful but at that moment, Ichigo looked beautiful to Rukia. Like some sort of Greek God that had towered above her and offering her his perfectly sculptured hand. Ichigo had wanted to lift her up and show the world that she was his and that in this moment, they were all that mattered. Surprisingly, Rukia realized that she had wanted to say 'Yes' to everything. The bolero began on cue, its soft Spanish guitar strumming, causing them to sway and slink around one another like an inverted mirror image. Vaguely, Rukia could feel hundred of eyes following them yet there was only a pair of eyes that she found herself gazing to. The intensity in Ichigo's gaze was unlike anything she had ever seen. As Ichigo spun her, she could feel the force of his rippling muscles propelling her. As Ichigo pulled Rukia close, she could feel his hot breath against her pale cheek. Ichigo's every move was dominant and powerful. Still, they circled in perfect sync, their dance more than a dance to her. It had felt more like a conversation that they had been having since the first moment they met, the moment he had cursed Rukia. It was frightening and safe, angry and calm, sexy and sweet all at the same time, it was all the opposites in the world rolled up into a single dance. As Ichigo lifted her mid-air, his hands around her waist, she was suddenly reminded of that dream, of how similar this setting was. The spotlight... The feeling that they were totally alone... The sensual music... Gaze staying on Ichigo, Rukia could sense that Ichigo had felt the same thing as her too. The sexual tension, the need for release... But... Could Rukia really give her virginity to Ichigo Kurosaki, out of all people? After what he had done to her? Could she really pretend everything was alright, that their marriage was a normal marriage filled with love, that they were now expected to have sex? After the Silver Jubilee, where would they stand? It was time for the final step and the final pose. Soon after that, the entire room was on its feet, showering them in applause. Rukia gazed at Ichigo whom was grinning and closed her eyes. Knowing that she wouldn't be able to take it any longer, she opened her eyes and headed for the door before anyone saw her tears, inclusive of Ichigo. It was snowing and she hadn't worn a jacket but at that moment, she had hardly cared at all. She had needed to get away from Ichigo Kurosaki... Needed to get away from Rukia Tachibana... Needed to get away from everything.

"Rukia! RUKIA! WAIT!" Ichigo was running after Rukia as fast as he could. It was cold out and she had nothing but a cocktail dress on! "Rukia, please!" Ichigo had finally managed to catch up with Rukia in the middle of a crosswalk and grabbed her arm before she could make it to the other side of the street. On either side of them, cars zoomed by, heightening the intensity of the situation. "What's going on?" Rukia could hear that Ichigo was desperate and tears had fell down her cheeks despite everything. "Rukia, look at me!" Ichigo had tried to force Rukia on his coat but Rukia had pushed him away. Dreading about what would happen if Rukia was deciding to run into oncoming traffic, Ichigo grabbed her shoulders. Harshly. "Rukia, STOP!" Knowing that she wasn't able to run anymore, Rukia gazed back at Ichigo. "What is it?"

More tears fell. The kindness that Ichigo was showing to her, the soft tone that Ichigo had used when he had asked her what was wrong, all of it needed to stop right now. "Everything, Ichigo." Rukia whispered. "It's everything. Everything we are and everything we are not at the same time. I can't keep it straight anymore and I feel like I'm losing my mind."

"I know it's been a confusing few months but -- "

Rukia closed her eyes. "Confusing isn't the right word, Ichigo." Ichigo stayed silent. "I am a stranger who married you out of..." Rukia bit her lips, knowing not to say too much. "I'm Rukia Tachibana who was supposed to hate you for all that you have done to me but... But..." Rukia averted her gaze as she took a deep breath. "I can't seem to recognize myself when I look into the mirror anymore, Ichigo."

"Let's go inside." Ichigo said finally, seeing the little man on a crosswalk flash white. "We can talk about everything."

Rukia gazed at Ichigo with a hard look as she allowed Ichigo to tug on her hand but her foot hadn't moved a single step. "I want to know, Ichigo. What are we? What is any of this to you, Ichigo?"

For a while, he had known he had needed to come clean with the information he had known from Isshin, he had simply been too afraid to instigate it. Now, in the middle of Japan, as snow began to fall, Ichigo's hand was being forced. "I know why you married me, Rukia. My old man told me everything, about the medical bills and the arrangement. I..." He took a deep breath and gazed at Rukia, hoping Rukia could feel the sincerity behind his words. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Rukia. For the things I called you, for the way I treated you... If I had known along that it wasn't about the money, that it was all a selfless act, I..." Ichigo's eyes were stinging and he could feel the tears that wanted to overflow but he also knew that this wasn't the time, he had so much more he wanted to say to Rukia. "I can't forgive how horrible I was to you, Rukia. After all you have done to me, after you saved my life... I understand if you want to end the marriage."

"Ichigo..." Rukia's gaze looked painful. "Isshin and I had an agreement..."

"Screw the agreement. If you want to be free, you should be, Rukia. I will rip up the agreement myself! But..." Ichigo lowered his gaze. He knew that if he had continued gazing upon Rukia's eyes which were filled with a world of pain, he would crack and break in front of her. "I will let you go if I have to, Rukia. That's the last thing I want, though. I want you to stay, Rukia." He hadn't known what Rukia was about to say but he knew that no matter which answer Rukia would choose, it would change everything. "What do you want, Rukia? Will you stay?"