Chapter 13: Little Lies

~Rukia~

Bird-boned and fragile- he had called her. With his unfathomable blue grey eyes appraising her and the sense of dread that marked her initiation into Society, he had nicknamed her Bluebird- inspiring, iridescent, a summer fledgling who was better suited for warmer climates, a better world than this.

She wouldn't last in their world or so he had solemnly declared.

She spent years trying to outlive his prophecy. The name stuck but eventually its association with that of a hungry child, who begged, lied and stole her way into the Society stopped. In their place came a girl who wore as many faces as she needed to, who held secrets within her haunted eyes, who tucked knives into velvet hand gloves, kept an armoire of poison hidden within the Good Book, made misery her business and where she went, a body count soon followed.

She had defied everything her wizened tutor had declared her to be, jumped through all the hoops they set before her and proved her worth time and time again.

Bluebirds were fair weather creatures with hope on their wings- Yuki Aomori was neither. She was feared, a Legend and she was here to stay.

But the old man was right about one thing- she hated the cold.

The rain weighted her down- soaking through her layers of clothes until a puddle formed under her and chilled her to her very bones until her lips were blue and her teeth chattering from the cold but colder still was the feeling of dread that coiled inside of her- flooding her senses with their poison and dulled them.

The voices in her head that she had been suppressing, the feelings that she had been bottling up for so long; those emotions came to a head and suddenly there was nowhere else to run.

Yuki's hand shook. The feel of metal in her hand was foreign and heavy- was there ever a time when pulling the trigger came as easily as breathing to her? Could she ever get rid of the stain of blood coating her hands?

Why was she even doing this?

What was she even trying to accomplish here?

Foolish girl! Surely she must know- nothing; absolutely nothing can make it right now. The things that she had done- the wrongs she was trying to right; they are insurmountable.

Who was this girl holding the gun- no; who was this person before her- her enemy or the friend she once knew?

She winced as the pounding in her head got worse.

Nothing made sense anymore. The whole thing was wrong. Everything was wrong to begin with.

The weapon dropped to the floor with a loud clatter as she lost her grip and sank to her knees. The sh-

XXX

"Hey!"

She yelped as the laptop was ruthlessly plucked away from her lap and the earphones yanked off. She glared at her housemate from her perch. Sitting cross-legged on her bed, she hadn't move from her comfy position since she woke up. The need for food, for breakfast barely registered as the peach slices that Ichigo had so graciously cut for her sat untouched on the ceramic plate by her side.

For the past three hours she had been toiling away in front of her laptop, earphones blasting away to the tunes of Lana Del Rey and Joji while her fingers were viciously pounding on the keyboard, trying to put the words to the outline of the latest chapter of her novel.

But that was all before the idiot decided to butt in and make his presence known.

She made a shooing motion at him.

"Ichigo, go bother someone else. I'm finally getting somewhere with Yuki!" she told him tersely. Yuki, the protagonist of her still untitled work- was proving to be a more challenging character than expected. As a villainess who lost her memories, the woman was slowly coming to terms with how her past ruthlessness, her sheer conviction of how the end justifies the means had led to this- the inner conflict of self-hate and regret within her that peaked with her confrontation with an ex-associate- the very embodiment of someone she used to be.

The sight of him wagging his finger at her made her grit her teeth hard, especially when he kept the laptop within an arm's length of himself but completely out of reach for her.

"Uh uh, no can do you sadistic little workaholic!"

The way she works honestly scared him at times. The way her dedication pushed her to the brink of forgetting breakfast in her quest for perfection- he was both a little proud and annoyed at her focus.

He frowned at the untouched platter of peach slices. What would his little workaholic do without him?

"Doctor's orders," he told her. He smirked as he settled down next to her on the bed and rested the silver MacBook behind him. "No more work until you eat something."

She pouted and he fought the urge to smile at her petulant expression.

"Come on, Ichigo. Just one more paragraph."

He was being unreasonable. She was even asking so nicely, would probably throw in a 'please' since she was in a particularly generous mood.

"Hah! Nice try but the answer's still no," he insisted in a tone that brooked no arguments especially considering the fact that he was still holding her laptop hostage.

"Now open wide and say 'ah'."

He stabbed at the fruit slices with a fork and held it against her lips.

"Open up," he told her, "you know you want to."

The slice of peach on the end of the fork stared at her temptingly- cut into perfect mouthful sizes and its pale pink flesh gleamed with a coat of freshness. The promise of sweet sustenance had her mouth watering and she swallowed thickly at the sight. Faced with no other alternatives, she grudgingly opened her mouth and allowed him to feed her.

As she sank her teeth into the tender flesh, her initial hesitance morphed into delight as each bite brought forth an explosion of sweet, delicious juices inside her mouth. The corners of her lips twitched upwards at the tingling on the tip of her tongue as she chewed and swallowed. The hunger pang that she kept at bay since morning came back with a vengeance as she felt her stomach rumbling in response.

The moan of pleasure that she heaved as Ichigo fed her yet another slice was entirely reflexive as her eyes fluttered close- its sweet aftertaste still lingering on her palate.

Her toes curled as she hummed happily, thoroughly enjoying the experience of being waited on hand and foot.

Ichigo chuckled- low and throaty, causing her heart to clench over the sound; a trigger of something that hit her deep where she least expected it and left her wanting for more. Would it be so bad if she admitted that she liked the sound of it, that she's half in love with the idea of making him happy and that the other half would willingly follow suit if she w-

"That looks really juicy," he teased- interrupting her train of thought, "Mind if I take a bite?"

She made the mistake of looking at him. The dying streaks of the day filtering through the window had cast a golden sheen to him, those serious, typically frowning features of his softened by the lazy smile tugging at his lips and the warmth in his eyes as he looked at her-

Ba-thump!

Ba-thump!

Ba-thump!

XXX

Those butterscotch eyes of his found hers and she knew she was a lost cause. When he looked at her like that, she was woman enough to concede that there was a part of her that would go to the very ends of the world for him and if he were to tell her lies like she was the most beautiful creature that he had ever laid eyes upon, stupid and untrue as it was; she could be persuaded to believe him too.

"S-S-Sure," Rukia stuttered, her mouth still half full and chewing. There was more than enough Shimizu White Peaches to share between the two of them and absolutely no reason why her heavy tongue and her face feeling as though on the very verge of combustion couldn't be blamed on global warming.

She took the fork and offered to feed him just as he had done for her. This was a friendly gesture she felt and nothing she couldn't handle.

Her eyes narrowed when she noticed his gaze lowering to her lips.

"Ichig-"

Clang!

XXX

The metal cutlery dropped with a loud clang onto the plate.

His lips pressed against hers, so soft and chaste but sent her heart racing nonetheless. Her lips had looked so inviting to him- smeared with the decadent richness of peaches that he relished as he gently slid his tongue across her bottom lip and sucked.

She gasped. From those rose petal lips and with a shaky breath that had him on his knees before her, she breathed his name with such broken longing and with that condemned them to an ache both wretched and divine.

Suddenly they were sharing more than mere peach slices, more than delightful sunset kisses that incinerated the boundaries of simple friendship- the very parameters that she had fought nail and tooth to maintain-

More, more, more.

XXX

This was the contented sigh of warm bodies pressed against each other, a furtive whisper heard in the dead of the night as nameless hands glided across heated skin, the hiss of displeasure brought on by the hindrance of pesky clothing-

Lover.

XXX

Yes, she thought to herself- this was what lovers did.

From these wretched lips to my lover divine-

XXX

She shivered as lightning coursed through her veins, igniting her senses and making it harder to breathe. His kisses were the honeyed temptations that led her astray from the path of platonic friendship, worse still they ripped apart her nonchalance- her white lies and feigned indifference.

These secrets that she held tight and wrapped tighter still within her heart of hearts came tumbling out when he cradled her to his chest and made her believe.

Peach juices- succulent, sweet, sticky; remnants of the slice that she had hurriedly swallowed dripped down her chin. Butterfly kisses marked the trail of the trickling liquid- from the corners of her gasping mouth, down the length of her throat, lingering about her collar bone languidly. A helpless sigh and breathless moan of his name had her clamp a hand to her mouth and she could scarcely face herself- embarrassed with this wanton woman she had turned into but he growled at her to do it again and so she did, louder even as he grounded his hips to hers.

Forsake not the plea of this desperate mortal-

XXX

Rukia's surprise at the sudden action allowed him entrance as he sensually swept his tongue against hers. Her eyes fluttered shut as his tongue pressed against hers, coaxing hers out to play, to explore, to fall deep. He settled himself between her thighs- a slow, tortuous pace set to punish her as he rubbed himself against her and in the haze of delicious friction, her only response was to wrap her arms around his neck and draw him in further.

I vow to tell you no lies-

XXX

These kisses were a message coded in a language that only lovers spoke and with them he composed a sonnet when mere words have failed.

What do you say to a woman who has bewitched you- body and soul, who has become your meaning of existence, who made a habit of stealing pieces of your heart until it became hers in entirety- yet still denied her claim to it?

His fingers entangled themselves in her hair as he tried to reason with her. She must see- surely she must; he will make her see if there is no other way- it was her and him all along.

With every brush of his tongue against hers it was a plea, a soulful lament and a confession of one's deepest darkest wants- the desperation for more that grew from countless sleepless nights.

Can you see- see what you have reduced this proud man to?

XXX

Ichigo melded his body to hers, coiling his good arm around her and breathed her in deeper. There is no end to this longing and if she let him, he would spend this lifetime and the next proving his worthiness and devotion to her. Nothing existed beyond this moment in time- just them, the sound of their heartbeats, breaths mingling, bodies wrapped around each other.

So please. Say 'yes'.

XXX

What was oxygen to lovers when the need for more outweighs that of to breathe, if this was what it meant to die by asphyxiation- how was it that she had never felt more alive than now?

Her heart was pounding when they finally broke apart for air. Their eyes met and Rukia absentmindedly ran her tongue over her swollen lips, feeling breathless and satiated all at once.

Grinning, Ichigo rested his forehead to hers- the steady thrum of his heartbeat beating in sync to hers. Her eyes darted across his face, carefully cataloguing his wolfish smirk, the nervous bob of his Adam's apple, the hazy, almost contented look in his eyes as he held on to her. Hot breath fanned her warm face and almost instinctively she could feel her body stiffening in anticipation. Her damp sex and erratic pulse made her acutely aware of their non-existent distance.

She was entirely at his mercy and she wasn't sure she had the resolve to push him away, especially as she spied the entirely predatory gleam in his eyes- ready to pounce and continue exactly where they left off should she so much as breathe in his direction.

Rukia gulped. Her fists clenched as she realized with horror that the question that she was dying to ask Ichigo was not why did you do it?

It was why did you stop?

His presence was suddenly suffocating and his embrace became a chokehold that she couldn't wait to get out of. It all became a little too much- the truth that she was trying to deny, the writing on the wall that she was trying to ignore and the feelings she was trying to outrun.

Even if she managed to withstand the temptation of him during the 2.5 months, how could they go back to just being platonic friends now when he had just offered her a glimpse into a future filled with lazy Sunday brunches in bed and searing kisses against bleeding skies?

Of a lover's touch so gentle it melted away the years of her self-imposed isolation and of a love so constant and sincere that dared her to believe that she is enough.

That unlike Kaien, Ichigo is different- he'll stay and he loves her, almost as fiercely as she does.

She couldn't breathe.

He's much too close- the hope in his eyes, the soft smile playing on his lips, the bronze gild of the sun on his face. She willed her eyes shut when it became too painful to stare into his eyes.

Please don't hate me.

XXX

"Leave," she told him.

Rukia didn't have to look at him to see the devastation left in the wake. She heard it in the way he spluttered in disbelief, his jaw muscles clenched as he remained torn between the want to grab her by the shoulders and reason with her or finally throwing in the towel and give up on her- on this.

The cynic in her felt vindicated. She knew all along- it was going to turn out this way because people don't stay- not for her at least, because she's not enough- could never be enough and Ichigo deserved someone better.

"Why?"

She hated how broken he sounded- hated how she was the person who made him this way, but you have to be cruel to be kind and at the end of the day, she realized that she loved herself more. What happened then- with Kaien, once was more than enough.

"Because you deserve better."

Yes, better than this stoic, socially-awkward heiress- forever chasing after the things she had no business yearning for, forever left behind in the shadows, never learning from her mistakes.

"Well I don't want better. I want you!"

XXX

Rukia winced when she saw the broken look in his eyes- the hurt he carefully masked and hid behind a stony expression as he got up wordlessly. Unbidden her hand reached out, his name on the tip of her tongue but just as quickly retracted.

She chided herself- hadn't she done enough, hurt him enough?

The door shut with a soft click as he exited the room and she finally let her defenses crumble. How stupid she was- to think that it would be different this time?

It was always going to end this way except this time she would rather be the first one to cast the stone than the one left behind to pick up the pieces.

XXX

Rukia didn't know how she ended up like this but one thing led to another and what started out as an attempt to take her mind off Ichigo and the hopelessness of her romantic entanglement turned into a girls' night out with all the girls from Meow!Meow! at Yoruichi's favourite bar.

"Never have I ever shared a living space with a guy."

Drink.

XXX

The poison of choice for tonight was vodka and the liquor made her eyes water as she gulped down the contents of the shot glass.

"Never have I ever had a guy as my best friend."

Drink.

XXX

The sharpness of the alcohol burnt as she tossed her drink back but even that was nothing compared to the ache in her heart.

"Never have I ever kissed said best friend."

Rukia got up, pushing the chair back noisily as she glared at the woman.

Seated opposite her, Yoruichi merely smirked at that and then teased, "What's the matter Rukia-chan? The night's still young or are you in a hurry to get back home to your boyfriend?"

That was a low blow and she knew it. She didn't know how Yoruichi found out about the kiss but the fact that she knew mortified the authoress. Here she was thinking that she was in safe company- away from Ran's insistent meddling, Orihime, Ishida-san, and anyone who thinks that they've got the relationship between her and the orange-haired surgeon figured out.

Rukia's face coloured- a potent mix of alcohol and embarrassment did not help her in the slightest when it came to denying the other woman's sly insinuations. Her only consolation in this situation was the fact that Ran was not there to add fuel to the fire.

"He is NOT my boyfriend!"

Yoruichi scoffed. Momo who was seated next to her stifled her giggles in response and Rukia was rendered speechless by their antics. More so when she noticed the sniggers from her other colleagues seated further down the table.

Kill me now.

XXX

She spluttered, "Does everyone here know about Ichigo?"

A careful scan down the table and the fact that all her colleagues were either carefully avoiding her gaze or pointedly looking away from her confirmed her worst suspicions. She groaned in frustration.

She should have known stupid Ichigo and his stupid mouth was trouble.

And now the whole office knew when really all she wanted was some anonymity and female company to laugh along with as she drank her sorrow away.

"Well, go on," said Yoruichi, "don't leave the audience in suspense. Tell us! I came here- lured by the sweet promise of alcohol and female bonding for some gossip and girl talk. So how goes you and your man? Trouble in paradise?"

Rukia growled, "There's nothing to tell and he's NOT my man."

Momo shot her a sheepish smile- she was the reason why the whole office knew about Ichigo a.k.a. Rukia's hot live-in boyfriend. She really thought the two were a lot closer than what Rukia let on, especially with the way the man had looked at Rukia when she wasn't looking and how utterly relaxed the other woman's stance was when he stood next to her.

Rukia had always seemed so cool and to a certain degree almost unapproachable with how professional she was at work- from her immaculately ironed blazers and the spotless starch white blouses she seemed to favour right down to the perfectionist attitude she had with her articles. Ichigo was actually the first instance that she caught a glimpse of her colleague's private life and saw a different side to Rukia- a Rukia who will shout, stomp her feet and curse; a human Rukia that Momo could actually relate to and be friends with.

The brunette had thought that the whole thing with Ichigo was a good way to break the ice between her colleague and the rest of the group, to let them see that the raven-haired woman isn't as cold as they thought she was and hopefully Rukia would see that the girls are as genuine as they come by and would like nothing more than to be her friends- if she would let them.

The last thing she wanted to do was to cause Rukia any distress.

"Did you two break up?" Momo asked quietly.

Rukia hated how her heart clenched at the question, hated how bitter she sounded when she told her, "We were never together to begin with. It was all just some stupid bet and stupid Ichigo should have just kept his mouth shut."

She pursed her lips- feeling as though she had said too much when she had already willed herself not to think about him anymore. Three more shots of vodka now seemed like a surprisingly good way to end the discussion and a perfectly good way to end the night.

Of course the girls were having none of it.

Sensing that there was more to the story, Yachiru- spunky, boisterously curious to the point of being nosy and seated at furthest end of the table dived in for the kill and Rukia could feel the stares on her while the young girl pried for details.

Fending off the barrage of questions thrown at her by the younger woman, Rukia shook her head, motioning to the bartender for another shot of vodka. She had always been a private person and talking about the problem never really solved it.

"There's nothing to tell. Ichigo is just a guy who I happen to be best friends wit-"

"Who also happens to be the guy you've been living together with for the past month," interrupted Momo, which earned her a heated glare from Rukia.

"Who is also the guy you kissed and been vehemently denying your feelings for since college."

Yoruichi's pointed quip made her choke mid-drink. Liquid fire went up her nose and she was in pure agony as her eyes watered and she spluttered- thumping at her chest and coughing loudly, much to the concern of Momo.

"YORUICHI!" Rukia screeched as soon as she regained her voice. She clambered over to clamp a hand to the woman's mouth but she could tell it was too late when she noticed how the other women's ears pricked up at the statement and began none-too subtly crowding towards her.

"I-I-I don't have feelings for him," she finished weakly as her mind raced. How did Yoruichi know about this? Was she a friend of Ran's- another so-called staunch Ichiruki shipper or did she know –

Ichigo!

XXX

She facepalmed.

How could she have forgotten that Ichigo was the one who had essentially handed her the introductions to Yoruichi in the guise of returning a missing jacket and with that, the chance to work at Meow!Meow!? Through some mysterious six degrees of separation the older woman must be connected to Ichigo's social circle in the hospital and someone somewhere must have blabbed about what happened the night he broke his arm.

At this point even Rukia was beginning to see how futile her denial was. His presence was entirely too saturated and entrenched in her world that running away was impossible.

Everything eventually came back to him.

The bubblegum-pink-haired Yachiru though seemed to take the exasperated gesture as an affirmation. She tsked and tutted, a sympathetic glance in Rukia's direction as she said, "Oh you poor thing! It must be hard- pining after a man, especially since college-" she handed the raven-haired woman another shot glass- "Drink up! We'll take care of you."

Rukia's eye twitched as she mumbled her thanks. While the offer was nice and almost touching, a surge of annoyance was bubbling within her. Rukia Kuchiki did not pine- not since Kaien at least and if anything Ichigo was the one pining after her; not the other way round!

Still she bore the sympathetic gazes well and rigidly held the smile in place. If that's what it took for the girls to leave her alone she would gladly play the role of the pining woman and shed tears of silent agony while they ply her with drinks.

Of course, things rarely go according to plan.

"It's hard I know, Rukia-san," said Isane. Rukia turned her gaze to the tall woman seated to her right. Isane-san had always been quiet and rarely had anything to add in the boardroom meetings but here even Rukia was moved by the compassionate tone.

"The good ones are always either taken or playing for the other team. Yumichika said-"

Rukia did a double take here. What a small world they live in- never mind how Isane-san knew the crazy fashionista to begin with; but what role could the effeminate man possibly play in this?

"-He's always suspected that Ichigo was too pretty to be straight," Isane added, almost apologetically and Rukia promptly choked on her spit.

They thought that Ichigo's gay?!

Stupidly, all she could conjure in her mind were the images of a thoroughly sated Ichigo greeting her with nuzzling Eskimo kisses and a lazy, slow smile in the kitchen during the wee hours of dawn, of warm gooey honey on pancakes with crispy bacon, of his silent companionship on Sunday afternoons, of a deep sense of belonging when he held her in his arms, of delicious hot kisses that would have turned a weaker woman into mush-

Oh dear Lord, her face was on fire but suffice to say Ichigo is not gay and can the girls please change the topic to something else?

"WHAT?! No way!" said Kiyone as she rose to her feet. Despite being a younger sister to the demure Isane, the two girls couldn't have set themselves further apart. Aside from their obvious physical differences, the younger Kotetsu was a talker with a sense of enthusiasm that rivaled that of Ran's when it came to gossips.

"I heard that Ichigo is actually secretly in love with another doctor in Seattle Grace Mercy West. Can't remember her name but apparently she's got gorgeous red hair and get this-" the blonde motioned the girls to come closer as she mock whispered- "the girl broke his heart when she ditched him for a well-connected heart surgeon in the same hospital."

Now that's just rude, Rukia thought. Orihime may be bubbly, ditzy, a bit of a klutz and continuously mystified with her culinary skills and exotic taste buds but gold-digger and backstabber she was not. If anything the voluptuous woman had a heart of gold and the patience of a saint- even Ichigo admitted to feeling jealous about how quickly she connected with her patients and put them at ease.

How could people even spread such malicious lies about her?

Enough was enough. The petite woman was now filled with righteous fury and had half a mind to question the girls on their sources because their version of events was quite possibly the furthest thing from the truth.

XXX

"You guys have got it all wrong!"

All five pairs of eyes turned towards her and she could feel herself faltering under the weight of their heavy gaze.

"Well then by all means, enlighten us Rukia," purred the previously silent Yoruichi. Her trademark Cheshire grin was now fully directed at her and every fibre of Rukia's being was screaming at her about the impending danger.

"Set the record straight for once, why don't you?" the older woman carelessly suggested as she twirled a stray lock of her hair, "It's what we came here for."

This was bait- a trap that Rukia could see from miles away.

Don't fall for it.

XXX

A sober Rukia would have clamped her mouth shut and let the girls talk. Why should she even care - this had nothing to do with her?

The last thing she wanted was for people to know what was really going on between her and Ichigo- that things were changing between her and her platonic best friend, that there might be some truth hidden in the rumours after all and that secretly Rukia Kuchiki- ice cold and the very picture of aloof elegance on the outside had inevitably fallen for her best friend.

People spin enough versions of what goes on between them so what was a few more to add to the collection. She's done a fine job of ignoring them up till now, hadn't she?

Sit down and shut up.

XXX

Her brain was always the one giving sound advice. Pity alcohol and liquid courage never went hand in hand with sound logic. And maybe because deep down inside the turmoil was eating her alive and even if talking about the problem didn't solve it; it felt good to have support.

So she folded- just this once.

Bit by bit, she found her voice. Wasn't it funny that though she made a living out of publicizing parts of her private life as a columnist- the hardest thing she struggled with was coming clean about her own feelings?

She told the girls all about her deal with Ichigo, the 2.5 month bet of whether or not Ichigo can make her fall, her changing feelings, of what actually happened in the hospital, of what happened that morning, of how she was shaking just thinking about how things were going to be between them now.

Ultimately though, it came to her dilemma of not wanting to hurt Ichigo but at the same time not wanting to be hurt by him; about loving a person so much that life became unbearable without them but at the same time the importance of maintaining distance because life became too difficult when your happiness became hinged upon theirs. Liquid courage loosened her tongue and she gave a no-holds barred expose on her love life, her past experience with Kaien- a subject she had sworn an oath of silence to, and what she was hoping to avoid with Ichigo.

Since Kaien, Rukia had always maintained a philosophy that romantic love made you stupid and seeing the dumbfounded look on the girls after she had divulged her tale- she resisted the urge to facepalm. She reached for a shot glass.

She really should have just kept her mouth shut.

After a good few minutes of pregnant pause, the girls finally came round.

"So you're saying that Ichigo's actually the one who's pining after you and you actually like him too?" asked Yachiru- disbelief was coating her tone and Rukia wasn't sure if she preferred this accusatory tone to that of the earlier sympathy-filled one.

"When you put it like that," she mused.

"That the gorgeous man has been seducing you for the past month and you have been doing everything you can to push him away?" added Momo.

Rukia gulped as she saw the glare thrown in her direction.

"I-I-I have my reasons."

"Not good enough, Rukia," drawled Yoruichi, "I didn't know Byakubo raised such a coward in the place of his sister."

Rukia's eyes narrowed. There it was again- this sort of casual revelation of some sort of familiar connections among random people in her social circle! And she was the last to know- the only one kept in the dark. Granted the Shihoins are well-connected and members of nobility but no one told her of a close- bordering on familial, judging by the fond nickname being used- relationship between her respectable Nii-sama and the Shihoin heiress before her.

What's next- that Ichigo and Kaien are secretly related and her love life was cursed?

"You guys don't understand," she groaned miserably, "what I have with Ichigo- the friendship- the nakama-hood we share is something I'm not willing to risk for the sake of whatever this short-lived fling is."

"Well whoever said anything about this fling being short-lived?" Yoruichi asked as she fixed the younger woman with a stern gaze. "Do you think Ichigo's not aware of the stakes at play here when he confessed? Be sensible- you must know that he wouldn't just jeopardize what you two have on a whim. He wouldn't have started this whole thing- this bet if he wasn't prepared for things to last."

Rukia was rendered speechless.

"Have some faith," said the older woman and she could see the others nodding in agreement. Momo laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder and Rukia felt something warm and foreign blossoming within her. This was nice- not being judged or gossiped about, not having to push people away, coming clean, having people listen to her; it all just flooded her veins with such a rush of warmth and emotions.

Something wet pricked at her eyes.

"B-But what if he leaves me anyway? What if he pulls a Kaien on me? What if it turns out we're better off as friends after all?"

"And what if he stays? You know him best," countered Yoruichi, "does he make a habit of leading people on, breaking hearts because he can? Does that sound like Ichigo to you?"

Rukia gnawed at her bottom lip. Yoruichi was right- Ichigo didn't make a habit of being cruel and whose heart was he going to break anyway? Most girls wouldn't even come within ten feet of the grumpy doctor and his scowling demeanour was hardly going to earn him a hoard of squealing fangirls.

"Besides, did you think Byakubo was going to just sit by idly if Ichigo breaks your heart?" continued Yoruichi as she cracked her knuckles, "That boy's going to be in a world of pain and after your brother's done with him he's got us to answer to."

The others agreed unanimously with Yoruichi.

"You just say the word, Rukia-chan," said Yachiru as she flashed her colleague an impish grin, "I'll send Ken-chan over for a word and I guarantee your Ichi won't even dare look at another woman."

Rukia laughed at that.

"Don't think too much about it," said gentle Isane as she cast her maternal gaze to her, "He doesn't sound like the type to break your heart." A warm hand grasped hers and Rukia's heart is warmed by the former's soothing voice, "Everything's going to be alright."

"Nee-san's right," added Kiyone, "You're overthinking things. It sounds to me like you're head over heels in love with Ichigo and this dilemma is just stupid. Take the leap. You know he's important in your life and you find him sexy enough to want to make babies with him and more importantly he feels the same way about you?!"

"Rukia, are you trying to make the rest of us jealous, girl? What are you still doing here?" Momo joked as she dragged the heiress to her feet, and Isane wordlessly handing the woman's clutch over. Between the two of them, they managed to get the surprised woman up on her feet and walking towards the exit.

As Momo shut the door to the taxi that they hailed for her, the brunette told Rukia playfully, "Now go and get your man."

XXX

The parting scene of a smiling Momo and the tall Isane gradually disappeared from view and Rukia heaved a sigh of relief as the taxi weaved through the largely empty road.

The heavy weight that had been sitting on her heart was now gone and she felt like a different person. Whatever came after this, she thought to herself, she can face it. She's ready to accept her feelings and take the first step, ready to believe and ready to try.

She might not be enough for Kaien, for the world but Ichigo seemed to think that she is enough for him. And maybe-maybe that was really all that mattered at the end of the day.

Home, she realized with a start and a heart suddenly brimming with a gush of hopelessly rose-tinted longing, a true sense of belonging that she had been denying.

She was going home to Ichigo.

Ready to give whatever this is a try if he would still have her.

Hese's corner:

Edited.

There were so many ways this chapter could have gone. Ideas I have toyed with include killing someone off, roping Isshin and the twins in, throwing Tatsuki and Orihime into the mix, and I was even tempted to end it here at some point but I want closure for my babies so there will be a few more chapters to follow this.

Let me know what you guys think.