Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach. It's property of Tite Kubo.

Author's Note: Hey, everyone! So first things first I'm just happy nobody had an issue with last chapter. I'm always nervous to post things where Orihime is not being just a nice, pure girl and that she is actually held accountable for her actions. She was treated harshly, I will admit, but in this story she has also been treating Rukia harshly and without reason, honestly. So I'm glad yo guys understood where I was coming from and that my intention wasn't to bash her.

Now, the past couple of one-shots have been heavy and, in fact, most of the one-shots in this collection have had their fair share of angst and drama, so today we have a funnier one. It's not a comedy, per se, but it's still not heavy or anything. But it is certainly more domestic and kinda ironic. And of course you'll find some fluff in here as well.

Hope you guys like it!

See ya!

i'll be there to hold you in the dark

Prompt: supernatural

Summary: Ichigo and Rukia watch a horror movie. What could go wrong?

There are many things that Rukia adores about the human world.

From juice boxes to video games to, very recently, social media.

And Ichigo enjoys showing her every single one of them.

He particularly delights in watching her face light up each time she discovers something new.

But, of course, there are some human things that Rukia likes more than others.

Movies are one of them.

With Yuzu she has watched several animated and romantic movies.

He and Karin tend to prefer action films or comedies, and Rukia sits and watches them too.

They have tried to watch several genres.

Even dramas and tear jerkers.

But there is one genre that they haven't explored yet.

Horror films.

And it is not that Ichigo dislikes them.

He just doesn't care for them.

Honestly, when you've been able to see spirits from a young age and when you've fought several battles against Hollows, Quincy and other Shinigami, they just aren't very scary.

He never would have thought Rukia would enjoy them anyway.

After all, as a spirit herself, she'd probably find them unrealistic or insulting even.

So, he's never showed them to her.

That is, until now.

It is a Saturday and it is sunny outside.

They've been out all day.

First they strolled in the park, then they ate burgers in the mall.

Somehow they ended up in front of the cinema.

"Ichigo! Let's watch a movie!" She says as she scans the posters for the current films.

Ichigo chuckles and nods to her.

"Sure. Choose one."

It's not like they've got any plans and watching a movie does sound nice.

Besides, there are a couple of good ones out there.

An action movie, a drama based on a book Ichigo's read, an animated film that seems interesting.

Hell, he'd even watch the newest rom com if Rukia wanted.

However, she doesn't choose any of these options.

Instead, she stands directly in front of a black and white poster and grins at it.

"That's it! I wanna watch this one, Ichigo!"

His gaze moves over to the poster in question and he actively gapes at it.

There is a woman ─ or at least he assumes that's a woman ─ with long, black hair, dark eyes, inhumanly pale skin, an open mouth and her hand reaching out.

The rest of the poster is black with red letters announcing the film.

It is definitely a poster for a horror film.

He believes it is that movie people have been hyping all summer.

The one that has made grown men leave the theater crying.

And that's the one Rukia had chosen.

"Sure you wanna watch that?"

He asks her, just in case.

"Of course! It looks fun!"

Her answer comes off as strange until Ichigo remembers Rukia is an avid horror manga reader.

Remembering her taste in books, the film is right up her alley.

Because, instead of finding them frightening, she finds this genre funny for some reason.

"Alright, but you better not grab me in the scary scenes."

He jests as Rukia rolls her eyes.

"Please. As if I'd get scared over something like that."

So, that's the end of the discussion.

Two tickets, one large popcorn box and two large sodas later, they are sitting down on their respective seats, waiting for the movie to start.

Rukia is positively excited.

She can't stay still as she waits in anticipation.

Ichigo is much calmer.

Although he has no interest in the film, he enjoys observing Rukia.

Seeing her so happy makes him happy in return.

So he relaxes and prepares himself for two and a half hours of comedy.

Rukia follows suit and, as the lights go down, she positively beams.

The movie starts with the death of a woman and her child and then the suicide of the husband.

It is grotesque.

And it is as cliché as Ichigo expected it to be.

There's a curse, an abandoned house, two spirits, and lots of killing.

The gore is not excessive and the jump scares are fine, he supposes.

It's not groundbreaking or anything, though.

He doesn't scream or jump, although the rest of the audience certainly does.

What it is really surprising is that Rukia is one of the ones to scream.

At one point, she grabs his arm and starts digging her nails into his flesh hard.

He would have teased her about it if it hadn't been for the fact she was clearly scared.

And, that is something he has never seen.

Rukia.

Frightened.

Well, that is not true.

He has seen her scared before.

But only in life or death situations, when it was possible one of them wouldn't make it.

Furthermore, he had seen her scared for him.

For his life.

But never like this.

Who would have known a dumb horror movie would make her react like this?

And, maybe he can understand.

The actress portraying the main ghost makes a good job seeming unnerving.

She crawls and moves around unnaturally.

Then each time she opens her mouth, a terrible guttural sound can be heard.

All in all the film is eerie and it is dark inside the cinema.

So he can understand why Rukia's so scared.

What he doesn't anticipate is that, after the movie is over, she is still frightened.

As they walk home, the sun starts to set.

The darker it gets, the jumpier Rukia becomes.

She grabs his arm and looks at every corner or at bushes, trees, or anything that could remotely conceal something.

It would've been sort of funny to see a ghost frightened of seeing another ghost, but she is trembling.

It's clear the film had an impression on her.

And not a great one.

Yet, Ichigo figures that once they get home, she's going to forget about it.

And for some time it seems like she does.

She has dinner with the family like normal.

She and the twins talk about several topics, with Ichigo and his father chiming in every now and then.

She makes fun of him as they tidy up the kitchen together.

And Rukia even has the time to read one of her manga before going to bed.

He figures she's over the movie.

There is no reason for her to be scared anymore.

And so Ichigo goes to sleep without thinking too much about it.

Until Rukia wakes him up in the middle of the night.

Like around 3 am, she throws his door open and practically sprints towards his bed after closing the door.

She's trembling and, are those tears in her eyes?!

"Rukia! What's wrong?" He asks her once he takes a good look at her. "Are you sick?"

She hurriedly shakes her head as she holds herself.

"Nightmare."

Oh.

Well that explains it all.

"Because of the movie?"

He questions and when she nods, he just sighs.

"Come here. I'll keep you save from ghosts."

He jokes as he scoots over so she can get in bed with him.

"Not funny."

Rukia sniffs before looking around his room.

"I want to sleep close to the wall. The closet's scary. Something could jump out of there."

Ichigo is dying to reply that the only spirit that has ever come out of that closet is Rukia herself, but he bites his tongue.

Now is not the time for that.

He stands up and lets her crawl in bed until her back hits the wall.

Then he follows suit.

She scoots over towards him and presses her face on his chest.

Like a reflex, he holds her tight.

He looks up at the ceiling waiting for her to stop trembling.

And it suddenly dawns on him that they are cuddling.

That Rukia is in his bed with him.

At night.

In a cramped space.

And they are cuddling.

He blushes.

It figures that the first time Rukia is this close to him would be because she's scared and not for any other, far more agreeable reasons.

That's just his luck.

So he pushes any weird thoughts out of his mind and focuses on the girl in his arms.

She hasn't stopped trembling.

Not yet.

"Are you that scared, Rukia?"

Ichigo has to ask her.

She simply nods with her face still pressed on his shirt.

He turns her over.

"Look at me."

He commands.

And when Rukia turns, there are still tears in her eyes.

It is such a pitiful sight.

A lieutenant of the Gotei 13 had been reduced to tears because of a dumb movie.

Ichigo needs to fix this.

"Hey, don't worry. I'm right here and I'll protect you of anything, okay? So don't be afraid anymore."

Rukia gives him a teary smile.

"Okay."

And she closes her eyes, finally relaxing.

He smiles and buries his head on her hair.

Tomorrow she will probably deny any of this.

She might even give him hell for his cheesy lines.

But it doesn't matter.

Because as of right now, he's going to hold her and keep it close for as long as she needs.

(Also, after this incident, horror movies will be banned from the household)

A/N: So the poster of the movie belongs to a Ju-On poster, or The Grudge, as it was renamed for the American version. It's one of the first horror franchises I saw and I remember that I couldn't sleep well for a few nights thinking Kayako was going to appear from underneath my blankets. I thought it was a good movie for them to watch. And I know I've mostly been anachronic here, but if we think that the events of Bleach start back in 2001, it makes sense for them to watch one of the movies in this franchise, as they came out in the early 2000s.

And poor Rukia, I made her suffer.

But I do find it funny that she would be scared of ghosts when she's one herself and she knows no such thing as that type of curse exists. And that spirits either go to the SS, hell or that they become Hollows, which are far scarier than Ju-On in my opinion.

And of course I couldn't help but add some sappy Ichigo scenes because he loves his girl so much.

As for chronology, this is early on, as it is clarified by the fact Rukia has been into Instagram lately, which is a reference to the chapter "inkwell."

Anyway, hope you guys liked it!

See ya!