Chapter 7: The Edge of Seventeen Part II

All eyes were on Ichigo when he returned to the room in the Urahara residence that held his birthday party. The look on his own face betrayed his guilt to the group, but after a brief moment of awkwardness, most of the guests looked away to resume their own conversations. Renji quietly decided to go outside and keep tabs on Orihime.

One guest was not so inclined to let the birthday boy off the hook, though. Rukia had a lot riding on tonight, and she wasn't going to let Ichigo's self-destructive inclinations spoil it. She narrowed her eyes on him while he slinked back to his seat and sat looking down at his lap morosely. 'No way is he going to sit here and mope while Orihime is out god-knows-where, probably alone with Ishida,' she thought to herself before getting up and making her way around to where Ichigo sat at the opposite side of the long table.

"So, you pissed off Ishida, huh?" she asked, feigning mild interest.

"You could say that…" Ichigo trailed off.

"Go fix it then." Rukia prodded more gently than she wanted to.

"Nah, I'd only make it worse. I sent Inoue after him to smooth things over."

Rukia couldn't believe what she was hearing. Frustration started to creep over her as she tried her hardest to not become enraged by the fact that Ichigo was really so dense, not only about the feelings of others, but about his own. She decided to illuminate the situation for him a bit.

"Oh, I see. So you wanted to use Ishida's feelings for Orihime in your favor. Clever," she said, raising her eyebrows and nodding in apparent approval.

"Yeah," Ichigo answered before he really processed the content of Rukia's words. She watched, savoring every millisecond, as his expression slowly changed from one of being pleased with himself to one of horror as it dawned on him what she meant. "What?!" he hissed.

Rukia couldn't help but enjoy herself. "What do you mean, 'what'?" she answered innocently.

"Why would you say Ishida has feelings for Inoue?"

"Because he does. You mean you didn't know?"

"No he doesn't," Ichigo said with a smirk, fully believing Rukia was teasing him.

Tatsuki, who was sitting directly across the table from Rukia, had overheard the conversation. She, being much more perceptive than her childhood friend, and having had enough with his ignorance of her best friend's feelings, chimed in with a straight face, "Yes, he does. Idiot."

Rukia and Tatsuki watched with satisfaction as the truth of their words reveled itself to Ichigo. He couldn't hide his reaction as well as he thought he could. His breathing sped up and his face began to pinken. He looked between the two black-haired females and tried to play it cool as he asked, "Well, does she have feelings for him?" as nonchalantly as he could.

As much as Rukia and Tatsuki would have loved to make Ichigo suffer more, neither of them wanted to lie about Orihime or potentially start rumors about her. "Orihime cares for Ishida as a friend, but that's all," Tatsuki began reluctantly, before quickly adding, "but I wouldn't be surprised if she eventually became interested in him. He is athletic and tall; kinda handsome I guess… And he shares her interest in sewing, and he is very sweet to her."

"What do you mean, 'sweet to her'?"

"I mean, he is very attentive. He is usually observant of her feelings and tries to make her happy."

Ichigo looked at Tatsuki as if she had been speaking a foreign language. She rolled her eyes and said, "He makes it very clear to her that she is important to him," as if it was obvious and Ichigo was a moron.

It was all too much for Ichigo, who was starting to feel sick, and the look of disgust on his face was amusing Rukia. Just then, Renji entered the room and announced, "I found Inoue-chan!" Rukia's face fell at the triumphant look Renji was wearing. His eyes locked on hers and gave her an evil smirk.

'Inoue-chan?' Ichigo thought to himself, mildly irritated, until he watched Renji move out of the doorway to reveal Orihime smiling serenely while being led by the elbow by 'Uryuu-fucking-Ishida', he swore to himself, observing the relaxed look on his rival's face. Ichigo's ire only increased as he saw the pair exchange a knowing look as Uryuu released Orihime so she could take her seat between Tatsuki and Chizuru. Ichigo huffed in irritation and got up. He ended up getting pulled into conversation by Ikkaku and Yumichika several seats away, and seeing that as an opportunity to think about something else, he took a seat there.

Rukia groaned in irritation as Renji took Ichigo's spot. Still pleased with himself, he didn't stop smiling until he saw the look of concern on Orihime's face. "What's wrong, Inoue-chan?" he asked her.

"Is something the matter with Kurosaki-kun?"

"Oh, he's just grumpy at us because we were giving him a hard time," Tatsuki answered.

"Oh," Orihime replied in a small, somewhat relieved, voice.

"By the way, Orihime-chan, did we tell you that we will be gone for a few days?" Rukia asked, checking to make sure Chizuru wasn't paying attention. "We're off to Soul Society, starting Monday."

"No! Why are you going back?" Orihime asked, worried.

"Just to make routine reports and check in with our divisions, and there is nothing new to report, really. But that's why Madarame and Ayasegawa are here." Renji answered. "We were planning to be gone for only two days, but we requested a bit longer because we would rather miss midterm exams," he laughed. "We'll be back when summer vacation starts."

Orihime relaxed and smiled, looking around the room. She was so happy to see everyone together, enjoying the evening. Keigo, Mizuiro, and Chad crowded the end of the table near the door with Mizuiro's girlfriends, each of whom had chosen one of the boys to fuss over, and were presently trying to feed each of them some of the snacks spread over the table. She watched for a while and laughed in amusement at their antics. The woman with Keigo seemed the least amused, and paying more attention to Chad, making Keigo jealous.

Her attention then drifted to Tessai, Jinta, and Ururu. Tessai was scolding Jinta, who had just hit Ururu over the back of the head for taking a nearby bottle of orange juice that he apparently had his eye on. Orihime observed with slight wistfulness as the three acted as if they were actual blood relatives, instead of the make-shift family they had become.

She then saw Uruhara and Yoruichi, who had clearly been pre-partying, flirting with each other, thinking they were being discreet. Orihime giggled as she saw Yoruichi push Urahara's hand off of her shoulder and him exaggeratingly lamenting the loss of contact in response, before begging her to accept his attentions, giving her bedroom eyes from below the brim of his ever-present hat.

Ikkaku started shouting then about needing more sake, and Orihime's eyes trailed to him and his companions. Her eyes landed on Ichigo's, and saw that he had been looking at her. He held her gaze for a second and then quickly looked away, scowling in apparent disgust.

She felt like she had been punched in the gut.

She took a moment to really feel the excruciating rejection. She then turned her face down and whispered to Tatsuki, "I think Kurosaki-kun is angry with me. Maybe I should leave…"

Tatsuki looked into her best friend's misty eyes and frowned. "No way, Orihime. No. If he is giving you a hard time, I will personally see to it that his attitude is adjusted," she growled.

"No, Tatsuki-chan, this is his birthday party. Could you please just make sure he gets the cake I brought?"

"What? You bought that jerk a cake and he is making you feel bad?!"

"It's not his fault, Tatsuki-chan…" Orihime started, but didn't know how to finish. What he could possibly be mad about, she didn't know either. Then she looked down at her lap and remembered his expression when she saw him looking at her before he had argued with Uryuu.

"It's my fault, Tatsuki-chan. I upset him somehow and I don't want to ruin his mood anymore. I'll see you on Monday," she said firmly and got up, dashing toward the exit, face red with mortification.

Uryuu noticed immediately and stood to go after her. Tatsuki stopped him before he could get past her, though. "Don't, Ishida. She'll just smile and pretend everything's fine so you won't worry about her-"

Rukia was on the same page as Tatsuki and interrupted, saying, "Ichigo is the one who upset her, he will be the one to fix it." She got up and marched over to Ichigo, grabbing an ear and pulling up painfully.

"What the hell, Rukia!?"

"Less talking, more walking," she said, dragging him out of the room by the ear.

When they exited the shoten, she finally released his ear and shoved him forward. "Find her and fix this. She bought you a cake, for gods' sakes," Rukia scolded.

Ichigo wasn't exactly sure what Rukia was talking about, or who she was talking about. He turned around to ask, but Rukia was nearly back inside. She looked over her shoulder to make sure Ichigo was following orders, and upon seeing him standing there, lost, she huffed exasperatedly and turned around, putting her fists on her hips.

"Ichigo! What are you waiting for? Go after her! She could be halfway home by now!" she exaggerated. "Plus, she has to walk through some questionable areas on the way, and dressed as cute as she is, she could attract the wrong attention."

Ichigo remembered Orihime's outfit and the reaction he had to it, and suddenly understood what Rukia was talking about. He forgot all about Uryuu and his earlier embarrassment and turned around and took off running without another word, knowing Orihime likely would need his protection.

Rukia rolled her eyes and went back to the party. When she got back inside, she plopped herself down next to Yoruichi, who watched with eyes the size of saucers as Rukia grabbed the sake bottle from her and took a long pull on it, exhaling loudly when she took the bottle away from her lips and wiped them with the back of one hand while handing the bottle back to Yoruichi with the other. She looked around the room and saw the anxiety on Uryuu, Tatsuki, and Chizuru's faces, and assured them, "It is all taken care of now, don't worry," before locating Renji and smirking victoriously.

Renji sighed, defeated.

Ichigo had slowed down to a jog, following the route he expected Orihime would have taken to go home. When he thought she couldn't have gotten this far already, he stopped to double back. He took a few steps and heard some noisy sniffling down a narrow side street. He turned into it, and there she was, only just a bit away from the main road but cloaked in shadow. She was clearly crying; crouched down with her arms on her knees, with her head resting on her arms. If she knew Ichigo was there, she gave no indication.

"Inoue," Ichigo called out softly, tentatively. When she didn't respond, he took a step toward her and crouched down beside her. "Inoue."

"Hmmm?" she answered between sniffles without looking up from her arms.

"Inoue, could you look at me?"

"Mmm-mm," she answered in the negative.

"Please, Inoue? I'm not sure why you are so upset, but I can't fix it if you don't talk to me."

"I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun," Orihime choked out in a thick voice, still refusing to lift her head. "You should go back to your party! I didn't want you to feel like you had to follow me out here. It's not your fault…"

He was confused now. If it hadn't been his fault, why was he being blamed by everyone at the party? Regardless, he was glad to have escaped for the moment, and was feeling pretty sorry for Inoue, so he sat down on the pavement beside her.

"Well, I don't know about that, but I am in no hurry to go back there, so don't worry about it. What has you so upset, Inoue?"

She was surprised and comforted by the gentleness in Ichigo's tone and lifted her head, turning it away, careful not to let Ichigo see her face as she dug through her purse. Finding a tissue, she did her best to make sure she had no smeared mascara and adequately dried cheeks. After sniffing a few more times, she took a deep breath and turned to face him.

"You mean, (sniff) you aren't angry with me?"

"Why would I be angry with you, Inoue?"

"Well, when you were sitting with Madarame-san and Ayasegawa-san, I looked at you and you turned away like you were disgusted. (sniff) And when I brought Ishida-kun back in from outside and sat down you left right away like you didn't want to sit near us. And earlier when I poured tea for you, you seemed really upset. I thought I must be embarrassing you somehow, like, maybe you didn't like my dress or something…"

"What would make you think that!? Your dress is really nice. Really nice…" Ichigo blushed slightly and looked away for a moment before looking back to gauge her reaction.

Orihime was trying to suppress a smile and was sporting a blush of her own. "You mean, you don't think I look cheap or ugly or something?"

"Inoue! I would never think that about you, no matter what you are wearing. First of all, you are anything but ugly. Do you remember how many guys were lined up to get their picture taking with you at Tanabata?" Orihime looked away, not particularly pleased with his answer. "Second, cheap? Inoue, what are you thinking?"

"I am thinking (sniff) that of all those guys lined up to take their pictures with me, many, (sniff) if not most, probably think I am cheap. Some certainly talked to me like I am." She started to cry again.

Ichigo was torn between panic at the sight of her tears and rage at the memory of the guys from that day. He took a deep breath and decided he had to do something. He considered it quickly: It's not like he had no experience talking to girls; he had two younger sisters at home who frequently solicited his advice and required reassurance. He decided to take the older brother approach.

"Inoue," he said, putting an arm around her shoulder and pulling her closer to him. "You are not cheap. You are beautiful. And any guy who sees anything other than that is not worth your time or attention."

He was rather pleased with himself. If he had said that to Yuzu, she would have given him a huge smile and a hug and skipped along her merry way. As he mentally patted himself on the back, he slowly came to the realization that Orihime had not responded to his statement at all. His anxiety grew as looked at Orihime with an uncertain expression.

Her eyes, although swollen and red from crying, were impossibly large and staring straight into his. She looked like a deer in the headlights. Despite her somewhat comical expression, Ichigo was quickly reminded that Orihime was not one of his sisters. She looked like a woman, not a little girl. With their current proximity, he could smell the almond scent of her shampoo and feel the warmth and softness of her exposed shoulders and back under his arm. He was suddenly hyperaware of every sensation. He had to escape her gaze. He looked down to her mouth. He realized that was a big mistake when he was faced with two swollen, glistening lips that seemed to draw him closer. He looked further down and was thwarted yet again when he realized that he was dangerously close to what Kon referred to as the 'Valley of the Gods'. His mouth ran dry. He slowly removed his arm from around Orihime's shoulders and returned it to his own side, trying unsuccessfully to make it seem casual.

"Kurosaki-kun," Orihime started.

"Inoue," Ichigo croaked out through his parched throat, "Do you like Ishida?" What am I saying?! He asked himself, not exactly sure where the question came from.

Orihime looked at him with an expression that reflected his inner monologue. "What do you mean, Kurosaki-kun? Isn't Ishida-kun our friend? We both like him, right?"

Ichigo put his own head in his hands. He had never felt more confused in his life. "Yes, he is. Thanks for setting things straight with him before," he said, muffled, through his hands.

"You're welcome, Kurosaki-kun, I'm glad I could help!"

Ichigo could hear the smile in her voice and felt some relief. He looked back to her and smiled in return. He nudged her shoulder with his. "Come on, let's get back to the party."

"That's exactly what I said to Ishida-kun!" she laughed.

Ichigo laughed too, and standing, offered a hand to Orihime to help her up. She took it and offered him her sunniest, most sincere smile. He felt his heart speed up and his chest constrict as he basked in her warmth. He had always known she was worth protecting – he had gone to hell and back for her, after all – but seeing her now, smiling up at him so radiantly, having forgiven and forgotten his earlier affronts so effortlessly, he knew deep inside that even though he had no means to protect her from the likes of Aizen, or even just everyday hollows, he would die a thousand times before he allowed her light to go out.

He pulled her up and helped to steady her. "Now, I heard a rumor that you bought me a cake." he said with a smirk and a gleam in his eye. She laughed and nodded, as he led the way back to the party.

He didn't let go of her hand until they had returned to the shoten.

July 13, 12:44 a.m.

The party was just breaking up. Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Yoruichi were passed out on the floor. Jinta and Ururu had gone up to bed a couple hours ago. Tessai was cleaning up. Urahara was still drinking, deep in conversation with Chizuru about how women just don't understand their charms. Chad, Keigo, Mizuiro and his entourage had just finished saying goodbye and were walking out. Renji and Rukia had left about an hour and a half ago – hollows, or so they said.

"Will you and Inoue-san be fine walking back on your own? I could go with you, if you'd like. It's awfully late," Uryuu asked Tatsuki, as she was waiting in the doorway for Orihime to get Chizuru up and going.

"No, we'll be fine. But thanks, Ishida. We'll see you on Monday." She answered appreciatively through a yawn.

Uryuu suppressed a yawn as well, said his goodbyes to the room, and went home.

"Thank you so much, Urahara-san. We will see you soon. Come on, Chizuru-chan, everyone is going home now…" Orihime pleaded as Chizuru tried to ignore her. She had clearly imbibed in more than a bit of sake.

"Hime-chan!" Chizuru whined, "You don't know how hard it is to find a kindred spirit. Kisuke gets how hard it is to be as sensual as me." Urahara laid back and nodded in agreement before covering his face with his hat. He was spent.

"Ok, up you come," Orihime said gently while trying to hoist up her inebriated friend. "How much did you drink, Chizuru-chan?" she asked, without expected a reply. The pair made their way to the door, where they were met with Tatsuki, and the trio proceeded out to the street. Ichigo was waiting for them outside.

"How far do you have to take her?" he asked Tatsuki and Orihime, pointing his thumb at the now passed-out Chizuru.

"She lives close to me, actually," Tatsuki answered. "Were you waiting out here for us?"

"Yeah, I wanted to make sure all three of you were ok getting home. It's late." He watched as Tatsuki sent an amused, questioning look Orihime's way. Orihime missed it, she was too busy smiling at Ichigo.

He sensed an opportunity.

"How about you two help get her onto my back and I'll walk with you? I think it's a bit far for the two of you to take turns propping her up. How did she manage to get so drunk?"

"I don't know. I didn't even know she had been drinking until Orihime tried to get her ready to go. She must have been sneaking it from that hat-n-clogs guy." Tatsuki responded.

"More like he was sneaking it to her," Ichigo said, shaking his head in disapproval.

"Well, I hope she's not too hungover in the morning, she has to study for midterms tomorrow," Orihime worried.

"Well, if she's not, it will have been a learning experience," Ichigo added unsympathetically. Tatsuki nodded in agreement.

The walk to Chizuru's house took about twenty minutes and was rather quiet - Tatsuki was quite tired; she had had karate practice all day up until dinnertime, and Orihime and Ichigo didn't know what to say in front of Tatsuki. When they arrived at Chizuru's house, Tatsuki spoke up.

"Thanks Ichigo. I can take her inside and get to my house alone. Would you mind getting Orihime home? I'm beat." She said, with her eyes mostly closed.

"Of course. I would have offered anyway, your house is so close to here," Ichigo answered.

"Are you sure, Tatsuki-chan? We could wait." Orihime protested weakly.

"Yeah, I'm sure. My house is just five houses down the next street over. I'll be fine. Thanks a lot, Ichigo. Normally I'd be fine to do it myself, but I am so tired tonight."

"No problem, Tatsuki."

"Goodnight, Tatsuki-chan".

Tatsuki took Chizuru's keys out of her purse, unlocked her house, and took her inside.

Ichigo and Orihime started walking.

Silence.

"You don't have to walk me home, Kurosaki-kun, if you are too tired…"

"I'm not tired."

"But it's so late…"

"It almost sounds like you are trying to get rid of me."

"No! No, I just don't want you to have to go out of your way."

"Come on, Inoue. You know that even if I was tired and it was way out of my way, I wouldn't let you walk all that way by yourself at this time of night."

Orihime giggled. "This conversation sounds familiar."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yes. Remember at the beginning of the school year? It was a lot cooler then, though. You were out for a run and I ran into you at the park near my house. I believe you said, 'my old man would kick my ass if I let a nice girl like you walk home alone at this time of night'," she said, trying to mimic Ichigo's tone.

Ichigo chuckled. "You remember that, huh? Then why would you even bother trying to get rid of me?" He grinned down at her.

"I'm not! I just don't want to be a burden."

"Trust me, Inoue, you are never a burden."

Silence.

"Ummmm, are you, um, ready for midterms?" she asked, uncomfortable with what was not being said.

"Yeah. You?"

"Almost, I have a bit more studying to do."

Silence.

They still had about ten more minutes until they would get to her apartment. Orihime was tired and starting to get an upset stomach; she had thought about nothing except the short, handheld walk back from the alleyway to Urahara's for the duration of the party. She was hoping Ichigo would bring it up, or try it again, or something. She wasn't sure what it all meant, and the anticipation was eating at her. It was starting to show on her face.

After walking a minute more or so, Ichigo glanced her way and noticed Orihime's uneasy expression. "What are you thinking about, Inoue? You look like something's on your mind."

"Ummmm, No, I'm not really, I'm just tired," she started unconvincingly. She sighed and looked down at her feet, frustrated with her inability to be bold in this situation.

Ichigo stopped walking and put a hand on Orihime's near shoulder, turning her around to face him. He put his other hand on her opposite shoulder and leaned down to her eye-level.

"Inoue. You can tell me. What's wrong?"

Orihime hesitantly looked up into his burning eyes. She was instantly lost. His warm, intense gaze seemed to look straight into her soul. His eyes were all that existed in the world, and she felt like she was being pulled in.

Ichigo was stunned when her eyes met his and instantly relaxed, staring straight back at him. He felt her shoulders lean into the palms of his hands, and saw a blush cross her cheeks, visible in the dim street light. Her chin tilted up toward him slightly, and then…

He panicked.

He quickly stood up to his full height. Keeping one hand on Orihime's shoulder's so she wouldn't fall over, he took his other one and scratched the back of his head, looking up to the sky as if something was really interesting.

"Ahhh, it is really late. You're probably really tired, we have a ways to go, and those are not walking shoes. Come on, hop up," he said to her, offering his back and crouching down a little.

"No, I'm too heavy!"

"No you are not. I remember you saying the same thing in Hueco Mundo. You were lying then, too. Get. On."

As awkward as the situation was, Ichigo was right, she was tired, and her feet where aching in her strappy sandals. His offer was too tempting. "Well, if you insist…"

As Orihime wrapped her arms around Ichigo's neck, he started to second-guess his actions. Not because she was heavy – to the contrary, she was much lighter than Chizuru - but because as he grabbed hold of the insides of her knees, felt her full breasts press against his back, and listened to her whisper "All set," as her breath tickled his ears, he could feel an unwelcome heat flood his loins. A deep blush splashed his face as he cursed his own body. On the other hand, he thought, in her current position, Orihime would be unable to observe the proof of his stimulation. 'Small blessings,' he thought sarcastically.

Orihime was in heaven. She had never believed she would be held in such proximity to Ichigo. From her current position, she was overwhelmed with the scent of laundry detergent and boy. Not just any boy, Kurosaki-kun boy. As discreetly as she could, she turned her nose into his neck a bit, inhaling as deeply as she could. The scent was so warm, so comforting. Before she knew it, she had dozed off.

Ichigo heard her breathing level out and felt her grip around his shoulders loosen. They were only about a block away from her apartment, so he decided that he would just lean forward enough that she wouldn't fall, rather than wake her.

When they arrived, however, he had no other choice. "Inoue," he said softly.

No response.

"Inoue?" a bit louder.

Nothing.

He hoisted her up a bit abruptly and heard a faint murmur from her. "Inoue?"

"Yes?" he heard her muffled voice as her lips pressed against his shoulder. Ichigo was hit with another round of agony in his nether-regions.

"Inoue, we're home. It's time to get down now, alright?"

"Mmmmm," Orihime groaned with dissatisfaction. "But Kurosaki-kun is so comfy and smells so nice…"

She was asleep again.

He decided to try the door. Much to his dismay, it was open. He entered and slipped out of his shoes. He went to her bedroom and sat on her bed, slowly removing her arms from his shoulders and laying her down. He hemmed and hawed for a moment before deciding to take off her shoes, and then swung her legs up onto the bed by the ankles. He found a light blanket at the foot of the bed and covered her up, and then knelt next to her head for a moment. Her hair had fallen over her face and he gently brushed it away. As he did, he took in her delicate features, her long, dark eyelashes, her full, slightly parted lips. As he looked up, he saw how her vibrant hair fanned out behind her bare shoulders, their pale, youthful glow highlighted by her contrasting auburn hair. For the first time, he openly admitted to himself that he found her incredibly beautiful.

He watched her for a few more moments, and then got up to leave her room. As he walked to the door, he spied her purse. Normally he wouldn't dare look inside, but under the circumstances he felt he had no choice. There wasn't much there, just a coin purse, her phone, some lip balm, and – "there it is" – her apartment key. He let himself out, locked the door, and put the key back in through the mail slot.

That night, he dreamed of her.

…

That night, in anticipation of what would undoubtedly occur while they were away in soul society, Renji forfeited their wager and presented Rukia with the limited edition Chappy plushie she had been coveting. "A pleasure doing business with you, Abarai," the sassy shinigami said, smiling at her prize.

"I am never making a bet with you again," Renji replied.

July 14th, 8:23 a.m.

The rain came down in a steady drizzle on the morning of the first day of midterm exams at Karakura High, blessing the students with less oppressive weather in which to sit their first round of tests. Orihime dashed up the walk to the school courtyard, head down, dodging puddles and not looking much ahead of her. She bumped umbrellas with someone, called out, "Sorry!," and kept going, until she heard a familiar voice answer.

"Good morning, Inoue. You have to watch where you're going," the voice said, before the speaker grabbed her hand and started pulling her along.

"Kurosaki-kun? What are you still doing out here? You're going to be late!"

"I could say the same thing to you. I've been here for over twenty minutes; I was starting to get worried about you so I came out to check."

Orihime was glad her umbrella covered her blush.

Ichigo was glad for the same reason.

"Yeah, sorry, there was a hollow on my way here. Four came out at once this time; it took Ayasegawa-san almost ten minutes to get to mine," Orihime said quickly as they entered the school. She dashed to her locker to take off her shoes and put her umbrella away without waiting for Ichigo's response. He was waiting for her just past the lockers, shaking his head in irritation.

"Where the hell were Chad and Ishida then?"

"I think Sado-kun was already at school, and I believe Ishida-kun was on the fourth hollow. Madarame-san and Ayasegawa-san can't be everywhere at once, afterall," Orihime replied in their defense.

Orihime couldn't help but issue a small smile when Ichigo growled quietly in discontent at the facts she presented, accepting them but not liking them.

"Don't worry, Kurosaki-kun, everyone is here now and ready for exams!" she said enthusiastically, pumping her fist in the air.

He shook his head, and as they began to ascend the steps toward their second-floor classroom, the warning bell rang. "Shoot, we gotta go!" The pair took the stairs as fast as they could, and Ichigo opened the classroom door for her when he arrived first. Orihime blushed furiously as his hand found the small of her back, guiding her through to doorway before him.

Their unusual entrance did not go unnoticed.

"Good morning, Tatsuki-chan!" Orihime said to her friend in her usual manner, trying to act normal.

"Good morning, Orihime," her friend answered with an amused and incredulous half-grin. "What was that about?" she whispered to her friend after she took her seat.

"What was what?" Orihime answered innocently.

Tatsuki's grin spread across the remainder of her face as she faced the front of the classroom again. Her best friend could play coy all she wanted, Tatsuki knew what she saw.

Ichigo made his way to his seat, making eye contact with Keigo, Mizuiro, and Chad, greeting them with a quick, "G'morning," and then taking his seat. Feeling eyes on him, he looked around the classroom until his eyes found Uryuu's glasses, which obscured any view of his eyes, but the rest of his visage looked pale and stricken for a moment. As soon as Uryuu realized Ichigo was looking at him, he pushed his glasses up further, scowling, and looked to the front of the classroom.

"I wonder what's up with Ishida…" Ichigo started, before leaning toward Chad and asking quietly, "Where those hollows this morning really so bad?"

"I don't think it is the hollows that are troubling him," Chad answered as the bell signaling class rang.

Because of the focus on testing, the rumor mill was slow to get rolling. At lunch, things were relatively peaceful in the hallways and the classroom where Ichigo and friends ate. Even after lunch, nothing seemed amiss to Ichigo.

However, after school let out for the day, he started to notice the extra curious glances and dirty glares being thrown his way. He had a sneaking suspicion relative to the cause of his new fame, but he really wasn't sure. He decided to consult with Chad. He caught up with him at his locker.

"Chad – um, can I ask you a question?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think, maybe, people are staring at me today?"

"Mmm."

"You noticed, huh?"

"Mmm."

"Do I have a sign stuck to my back or something?"

Chad shook his head no.

"Then what is so interesting?"

Chad, not being much for superfluous chatting, got straight to the point. "You and Inoue."

"But everyone knows we are friends..."

Chad rarely laughed. It was a big deal when the big man laughed. Even when he laughed, he rarely laughed loudly. This time, he guffawed.

Ichigo looked at him with a shocked expression.

"Ichigo, you have got to be joking, right?" he asked, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. "The way you have been looking at Inoue recently is anything but friendly, and the way you had your hands all over her today cleared up any doubts anyone had on the topic."

"My hands were NOT all over her!" he hissed.

"Ok, whatever, man. I think it's nice," Chad responded, still laughing.

He turned away from Ichigo, silently waved goodbye, and started his walk home.

Ichigo went up to study after dinner that evening, but thoughts of Orihime kept crowding his mind. After about ten minutes, he groaned, tugging on his hair in frustration, as he realized he had to deal with his uncertainties before he would be able to get anything productive done.

He mulled over the idea of Orihime and his relationship with her. 'My friend, Inoue. My FRIEND, Inoue.' It sounded wrong. 'My friend, Inoue-chan.' He shook his head. That sounded even more wrong. 'My friend. My friend who is a girl. My girl friend. My girlfriend, Inoue.'

The sound of that thought in his mind filled him with a sense of inner peace for a moment.

'Shit.'

'Shit shit shit.'

"SHIIIIIIT!" he groaned aloud.

His door opened.

"What's wrong, son?"

"Oh no, not now." Ichigo said into his hands.

"Oh, come on. You can talk to me."

"No, I can't."

"Is it about Orihime-chan?"

"What? How did you –"

"Rukia-chan told me before she left on Sunday."

"I'm going to kill her."

"There is no need for murder, son. And there is no need to be so secretive about your feelings, either. I am a very open-minded man. It wasn't so long ago that I was falling in love with your mother, you know."

"I am not falling in love!"

"That's what you think now. Anyway, why are you so bothered? Can't tell her how you feel? Worried she won't feel the same way?"

"What? No! I don't know…"

"Well, Ichigo, you are going to be seventeen tomorrow. You are nearly a man, and like a lot of men, you keep your feelings hidden pretty well, ...sometimes. Anyway, the only way Orihime-chan is going to know that you like her is if you tell her. So be a man, and tell her."

"I don't! Well, maybe I might…" Ichigo was reeling from all these new revelations. He felt overwhelmed and desperate. So desperate that he decided to ask Isshin for help. "If I do, what should I say to her?"

"Just tell her the truth. No woman can resist the charms of a Kurosaki man," he said, waggling his thick eyebrows.

"Dad…" Ichigo whined, begging to be taken seriously.

"Seriously, though, Ichigo, just tell her. I would normally tell you that either way she responds, at least then you'll know."

"What about this time makes it abnormal?"

"Because Orihime-chan has been in love with you for a long time now. Goodnight, son. Papa loves you too, you know." Isshin walked out, shutting the door behind him.

…

Ichigo felt like he had been hit by a bus with his father's revelation. His mind went blank for a while, then he returned to his studies robotically. He stayed that way while he brushed his teeth. He took his bath and put on his pajamas as if he were sleepwalking. He laid down and closed his eyes and pretended to sleep.

He rolled over and looked at his alarm clock, which read 12:00 a.m.

He heard his cell phone vibrate.

He picked it up.

1 new message.

He opened the message.

Tuesday, July 15th, 12:00 a.m.

From: Inoue Orihime

Happy birthday, Kurosaki-kun! I hope 17 is a great year for you! (smiley face)(cake emoji)(heart)

…

Ichigo read the message three times, smiled and held his phone to his chest. The old man knew a thing or two, afterall. He picked the phone back up, and texted back:

Tuesday, July 15th, 12:02 a.m.

From: Kurosaki Ichigo

Thanks, Inoue. See you at school tomorrow. (smiley face) BTW, go to bed, exams tomorrow!

...

His phone vibrated again.

Tuesday, July 15th, 12:03 a.m.

From: Inoue Orihime

I know, but I wanted to wish you happy birthday first. Good night, Kurosaki-kun. (moon emoji) (zzz emoji) (heart).

...

Tuesday, July 15th, 12:04 a.m.

From: Kurosaki Ichigo

Thanks. (heart) Good night, Inoue. (moon emoji) (zzz emoji)

A/N: Boom! There it is, another monster chapter in the bank. Next week, summer vacation. As always, thanks for reading and let me know your comments in the reviews!