Orihime sighed at herself. I really should just add caller ID to my phone plan. I can't keep having a panic attack every time I get a message from an unknown contact.
Thinking back to a couple of hours ago, it had taken her half an hour to open her phone to see the text, and then another hour for her to listen to the voicemail, and only with coaching from Tatsuki and assurances that if it was him she would kick his ass.
Unknown: Come join your floormates for our Welcome to Himawari Hall Floor 5 social at 8pm! Snacks, drinks, and new friends! Love from one of your RA's Rangiku Matsumoto (you better save my number~ ;P)
Orihime's unknown voicemail, it turned out, was also Rangiku, seemingly a bit buzzed:
Inoue-chaaaan. It's Matsumoto-senpai here! You're the only one of your floormates who hasn't dropped by and Byakuya and I miss you, at a slightly quieter volume, Byakuya! Come tell Inoue-chan that you miss her. Stubborn silence followed, and Orihime imagined the stoic RA pointedly ignoring the bubbly Rangiku. Anyways, Inoue-chan, Rangiku continued on the voicemail, come by when you get a chance! See you soon!
Orihime looked at her clock. 11 p.m. She was definitely too late to join the social, but sent a quick text apologizing to Rangiku and another text to Tatsuki confirming that the unknown contact wasn't her ex. She logged onto her cellphone service provider's website and added the caller ID functionality for $8 a month. It seemed a bit costly, but her peace of mind was worth it. Looking at the phone bill total, she inwardly cringed. Thank goodness for that scholarship I won!
After moving in with Tatsuki, it had taken Orihime some time to see the value in finishing her high school degree and applying to university. She knew she could never afford a higher education on her own. But Tatsuki had encouraged her and had helped Orihime apply to what felt like hundreds of scholarships. Orihime only heard back from a single one – and thankfully, it was the only one she needed. The Unohana Foundation gave full-ride scholarships for tuition and student residence, plus a stipend, to promising students in the healthcare field who either had no family or were estranged for whatever reason. It was the financial net Orihime needed to pursue becoming a doctor without any reservations. And now she was finally starting that journey!
Orihime went to bed that night, dreaming of evil phone bill monsters that terrorized the university campus. Alongside Tatsuki, the two girls created this monstrous paper shredder that successfully tore up the phone bill monsters, and all was safe and sound.
In the morning, Orihime was up earlier than her alarm. She picked up some breakfast and a coffee from the cafeteria and set out to find her class. The previous day when she and Ichigo had walked around campus, she hadn't quite been paying enough attention to where they were going, and so she figured going earlier would reduce the chances of her being late in case she got lost. However, after half an hour of walking around and not finding the right building, Orihime was getting flustered. She ended up pacing around the medical buildings' quad, mumbling to herself about which way was the right way, when Ishida saw her as he headed to his own class.
He smiled at seeing her, entranced at the way her long hair swayed in the wind as she paced and amused at the way her eyebrows crunched together in thought.
"Inoue-san?" Ishida asked as he approached her.
Orihime stopped pacing and turned around in surprise. "Oh! Good morning, Ishida-kun."
"Is anything the matter?" Ishida asked.
Orihime smiled sheepishly. "I can't find my first class."
Ishida had figured as much and offered to escort her to class. "Oh no! I couldn't ask you to do that Ishida-kun," Orihime replied, "I'm sure you have your own class to get to."
Ishida looked down at his watch. She wasn't wrong, he had his own class in 7 minutes, but looking at the young woman, he imagined that if he only gave her verbal instructions, she might still get lost. After assuring her he would make it to his own class on time, he looked at Orihime's class schedule. The class after this one is shared with the pre-med students, he thought, pleased that he would get to see more of Orihime. Recognizing the building name of her first class, he brought her quickly to the door of her first class.
"I'll meet you here after your class, Inoue-san." Ishida stated.
"Oh no, Ishida-kun, I'm sure that'd be inconvenient for you!" Orihime objected.
"It's no problem. We have the same class afterwards, and I wouldn't want you to get lost." Ishida smiled. "You should get inside, class is starting."
"Ah! Okay, Ishida-kun." Orihime gave him a small wave as she slipped into the room.
Ishida looked down at his watch again. 2 minutes to class. He cursed under his breath about first impressions and then took off running.
Orihime turned to look at the lecture hall that was already near full. She spotted an empty seat next to a raven-haired girl and hurried to sit down before class started. Orihime took a deep breath and turned to smile at the girl sitting next to her. When Orihime had confided in Tatsuki about being nervous about making friends in class, Tatsuki had told her that everyone was new and would be open to making friends. "Just sit next to someone, say hello and introduce yourself," Tatsuki had told her.
"Hi there!" Orihime started, causing the raven-haired girl to turn to look at her. "I'm Inoue Orihime. What's your name?"
The girl beside her eyed Orihime, not in an unfriendly way, but seemingly surprised. "Kuchiki Rukia." She stated plainly.
Orihime's eyes widened. "Is Kuchiki a common last name? One of the RA's on my floor is named Kuchiki, Kuchiki Byakuya!"
Rukia's eyes shone with surprise and she smiled. "That's my brother."
"Oh really?" Orihime asked, trying to find some visual similarities between the two. Orihime started recounting to Rukia how Byakuya had heard her throwing up in the bathroom and then had later helped her get into her room after locking herself out. Rukia couldn't help but giggle at Orihime's stories and impressions of her brother.
The two quieted down as the professor started to lecture on human anatomy, but as class ended Rukia turned to Orihime. "Can we exchange numbers Inoue-san?" Rukia asked.
Orihime's eyes lit up. "Of course, Kuchiki-san!" She smiled and took out her phone. They exchanged numbers and said goodbye. As the two parted ways at the door to the lecture hall, Orihime spotted Ishida and ran up to him.
"Hi, Ishida-kun. How was your class?" Orihime asked.
Ishida pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. He had arrived a couple minutes late and earned a rude stare from the lecturer, but he wouldn't admit that to Orihime. "It was fine, Inoue-san. How was yours?"
"Fun!" Orihime shared some anatomy facts that she had learned in class as they walked to the next lecture. As they walked into Psych 101, Ishida reminded her that both Tatsuki and Ichigo would be in this class and said that they should try and sit together, at least with Tatsuki. Orihime smiled at that and kept an eye out for Tatsuki and/or Ichigo. Orihime sent a quick text to Tatsuki asking where she was sitting, and a quick reply came from Tatsuki saying she and Ichigo were up at the front.
Orihime and Ishida made their way to the front of the expansive lecture hall and saw Tatsuki waving next to Ichigo and two empty seats. As they approached, Tatsuki smiled at her friends. "What are you two doing together?" She asked.
"Ishida-kun met me at my last class and we walked together." Orihime replied.
At this news, Tatsuki raised an eyebrow and Ichigo narrowed his gaze at Ishida. "I wondered where you ran off to after our last class," Ichigo stated and then turned away grumbling, "If I had known you were picking up Inoue, I would've come too."
"Right," Ishida said as he rolled his eyes, "but it's not like we wanted you there, did we Inoue-san?"
As the two bickered about escorting Orihime to class, two pairs of eyes at the front of the class were drawn towards the group, seemingly focusing on the bright auburn haired girl, one in surprise and one in amusement.
The owner of the amused eyes stepped up to the microphone at the front of the room.
"Ahem." The man said to get everyone's attention. Behind a pair of thick-rimmed glasses, brown eyes shone clear and a pleasant smile was plastered onto the man's face. As soon as all the students in the massive hall had quieted, he began. "Welcome to Psych 101. My name is Aizen Sosuke."
As he talked about the course outline and the expectations for the class, not a single student got distracted. Aizen's clear voice held each and every student captivated in the large lecture hall.
"Tutorials are a mandatory component of this course and will begin next week," Aizen continued after explaining the major course topics, "These are an opportunity for you to really dive deep into the material and also into the human psyche with your fellow students. To explain the tutorials further, I've asked your Head Teaching Assistant to explain. Tsukishima-san."
As Aizen stepped back from the podium and the Head TA stepped forward, Orihime's eyes widened. Ichigo and Tatsuki hadn't yet seemed to notice, and Ishida thought the man looked familiar, but couldn't place him. Orihime alone recognized their Head TA as the man who had had a drink sent over to her the night she met everyone. She had quickly rebuffed the man, not even allowing him to introduce himself fully. She paled at the thought that her actions towards this man could impact her grade in this course and perhaps even affect her being able to successfully transfer into pre-med. She forced herself to pay attention to what he said instead of the sinking sensation she felt in the pit of her stomach.
"Hello. My name is Tsukishima Shukoro and I am the Head TA for Psych 101. As Aizen-sensei has mentioned, these tutorials are mandatory, and missing even a single one will have consequences. You will be expected to participate fully and have completed the assigned readings each and every week. Myself and a team of TA's will conduct the tutorials. The tutorials are split up at random and you should have just received an email telling you which tutorial you are in."
At these words, Orihime quickly pulled out her phone to check her email. Anyone but him, she thought to herself. Opening up the email, her stomach dropped even further. "Inoue Orihime," the email read, "You are in Tutorial section 01, led by Tsukishima Shukoro." When she looked back up from her phone, her eyes locked with the man in question. She could not read his expression, but when he looked at her, he saw that her expression was laced with apprehension and nervousness.
As the class wrapped up, Orihime wanted nothing more than to run out of the lecture hall, but seeing Tsukishima linger at the front of the room with the rest of the teaching team made her think twice. Maybe if she talked to him, he would consider switching her to another tutorial section. Surely, he would also feel more comfortable that way, right? Convincing herself it was best to meet this development head-on, she told her friends to go ahead of her to lunch and that she just needed to ask a question.
She approached the front of the lecture hall hesitantly, trying to catch Tsukishima's eye. When he noticed her, he turned to face her.
"Hello again," he began.
"H-hello! Tsukishima-san." Orihime replied.
"The last time we spoke, you didn't allow me the pleasure of hearing your name." He replied.
"R-right. I am Inoue Orihime." Orihime felt herself getting flushed in her face.
"Nice to finally meet you, Inoue-san." Tsukishima replied coolly. "What can I do for you?"
"I-I was wondering, Tsukishima-san. That is, I wanted to apologize for my behaviour the other night, and thought that it might be a good idea, since I am currently in your tutorial, to be reassigned to a different tutorial." Orihime managed to get out.
Tsukishima considered her words and eyed her flushed cheeks. "You don't have anything to apologize for Inoue-san."
Orihime looked up at him, "I'm sorry?"
"You were perfectly reasonable the other night to refuse my advances." He sighed. "It was rude of me, and if anyone should be apologizing it should be me."
Orihime was silent in her surprise.
"I'm afraid that at this point, all the tutorials are at their maximum and it won't be possible to switch you to another tutorial." Tsukishima said. Raising one eyebrow at her, he continued, "To be honest, the university has no rules regarding TA's dating their students. If you would consider it, I would like a chance to take you out on a proper date."
Yet again, Orihime was stunned. Huh? So he won't switch me to another tutorial… and he still wants to date me?
Tsukishima was intrigued by the way her pink lips were parted when she was in shock. "I can see that you are surprised, so I will give you some time to think about it. Let me know either way," He said as he smoothly handed her a slip of paper with his phone number scrawled on it. "If there's nothing else Inoue-san, I do have a meeting with the rest of the teaching team now."
Orihime nodded her head slowly and turned to leave, still processing their conversation. Did she have Tsukishima-san's phone number in her hand? When had that happened?
As Tsukishima walked to the rest of the teaching team, Aizen smiled at him. "What was that about Tsukishima-san?"
"Oh nothing," he replied, "Just a question about the tutorial format."
"I see." Aizen said.
Orihime left the lecture hall in a daze, and just outside the door was met with the sight of her three friends waiting for her. This was enough to pull her out of a daze and put a smile on her face.
"Tatsuki-chan, Kurosaki-kun, Ishida-kun! You didn't have to wait for me!" She said as she met them.
Tatsuki made a face. "You think I want to have lunch with these guys? No thank you."
As Ichigo and Tatsuki fought, Ishida smiled sheepishly at Orihime. "I wasn't sure you'd know how to get back to the cafeteria, so I wanted to wait for you."
Orihime blushed slightly at this. "That's very considerate of you Ishida-kun. Thank you."
The four friends went to the cafeteria closest to Himawari Hall and sat down for lunch. As they ate, a lightbulb went off for Ishida.
"Oh! Inoue-san." He began.
"Yes, Ishida-kun?" Orihime inquired.
"Our Head TA for Psych 101. I thought that he looked familiar and it just dawned on me. Isn't he the man from the bar the other night?" Ishida asked.
Orihime paled slightly as Ichigo and Tatsuki responded with loud exclamations. "That guy is our TA?" "Ehhh?"
"Did you stay after class to talk to him?" Ishida asked.
Orihime nodded. "I was hoping that he'd agree to switching me out of his tutorial, but he said that all the tutorials are full."
Again, Ichigo and Tatsuki were flabbergasted. "YOU'RE in HIS tutorial?" "There's no way that's allowed!"
Orihime noted their strong reactions and decided not to tell them about Tsukishima giving her his phone number. I don't want to worry them even more.
Ishida thought about it calmly and offered to switch tutorials with her, which the other two also began offering. She assured them that everything was okay. She didn't want to make a big deal of it and didn't want to make her friends change their schedules to switch tutorials with her.
After she assured them that she was okay and Tsukishima hadn't been creepy in their interaction, the four continued to eat their lunch and went about their day.
The next few days passed more or less the same. The four friends met for their shared class and for lunch nearly every day, and the remainder of classes Orihime had were shared with her new friend Rukia. After a few panicked calls to Ishida that she was lost, Orihime had more or less gotten her bearings and was able to navigate campus.
At the end of their anatomy lecture on Friday, Rukia turned to Orihime. "Inoue-san, do you have any plans for tonight?" Rukia asked.
Orihime shook her head. "Nope!"
"My boyfriend, a few of our friends and I are going dancing tonight and I was wondering if you wanted to come." Rukia stated. "It's mostly students that frequent this club, and the drinks are pretty cheap too."
Orihime's lips turned into a little pout as she thought. It had been a long time since she had been out dancing, and while she missed it, she couldn't help but be reminded of a certain someone. She shook herself from her dark thoughts and decided that this was her opportunity to make new memories with new friends.
She smiled at Rukia. "That sounds like fun! Where should I meet you?"
A couple hours later, Orihime stood waiting a block away from the busy club for Rukia and her boyfriend. She tightened her grip around herself and her faux leather jacket to keep warm. It wasn't a particularly cold night, but her outfit choices had left her legs exposed. Underneath the faux leather jacket, Orihime wore a black glittery minidress that hugged her from her hips all the way to the top of her chest where it folded onto itself into a halter cowl. The back of the dress was basically non-existent, coming up to about where her waist was. Her hair fell straight down her back, with her signature hairpins keeping her hair out of her face.
Behind her, she heard Rukia calling out to her. Orihime turned around to see Rukia accompanied by a very tall and intimidating man with long dark red hair up in a ponytail and intense black tattoos covering his face, neck, and arms, wearing a distressed jean vest and leather pants. Normally, Orihime thought of her petite friend as looking regal and proper, but next to this man and with her own distressed jeans, cropped tank, and choker necklace, Orihime felt like the couple looked like an edgy rebellious punk rock duo.
"Sorry we're late Orihime," Rukia said, "this numbskull needed a snack on our way here."
"Hey, if you hadn't taken so long to get ready, we could've gotten dinner somewhere." He replied.
Rukia glared at the man and then elbowed him in the side. "Renji, be nice. This is my friend Inoue Orihime. Inoue-san, this idiot is my boyfriend, Abarai Renji."
Orihime giggled as he elbowed Rukia back. "Nice to meet you Abarai-kun!"
Renji smiled at her. "Likewise!"
Rukia smiled at her friend and started walking toward the club. "A friend of Renji's is coming too, but he's running late. We might see Rangiku too, but my guess is that she's already in there."
"Ah, Matsumoto-senpai is coming too?" Orihime asked.
Renji laughed at hearing his friend's name called so formally, as the three were ushered into the club.
They dropped their jackets off at coat check and headed into the club. The first person they saw was Rangiku, dressed in a jean miniskirt and red tank top, dancing with a couple of guys in the middle of the dance floor. It seemed like she had drawn a crowd of spectators on the dance floor and in the entire club. The dance floor was a couple steps lower than the rest of the club, making it ideal for people watching. When Rangiku spotted her three friends, she quickly left the men she was dancing with, to the disappointment of the men and her spectators, to meet them and greet them each with an enthusiastic hug.
"Inoue-chan!" She exclaimed when she got to Orihime, "You look so good tonight girl! I'm so glad you're here! Thank god I'm not the only single one here, or I'd have to be their third wheel."
The four of them decided to do a couple round of shots to get them started. "Kira-kuuuun." Rangiku called out to the bartender as they neared the bar. "Eight tequila shots please!"
The sombre looking blonde poured them their shots and Rangiku insisted that they'd go on her tab. The four then moved onto the dance floor, feeling the buzz of the alcohol beginning to pulse through them.
They started to dance in a little circle, but a couple songs later, ended up quite close to each other as the club filled up with people. Renji danced with Rukia in front of him and Rangiku moved freely around the group, occasionally grabbing a guy or girl to dance with for a song or two. Orihime smiled at her friends, a small pit of loneliness welling up inside her when she saw how into each other Rukia and Renji were. They weren't being overly raunchy, but Orihime noted the intense eye contact they frequently shared and the possessive hand Renji kept on Rukia's hip. A couple of guys had come up to invite Orihime to dance, but she politely refused each one. She wanted to have some fun, but she didn't know if she was up for being so close to a stranger.
As the club continued to get busier and busier, Orihime found herself getting bumped into more often, sometimes by accident and sometimes on purpose by enthusiastic club-goers trying to get closer to the DJ. A particularly strong group of girls bulldozed past Orihime, causing her to nearly fall on her face, but she was caught by a set of strong arms. A soft smell of coffee and chilies surrounded her, and as she looked up, she was face to face with Sado. He set her upright and stood between her and the crowd, much like how he had done the night they first met. At first perplexed at why Sado was there, things made more sense when Renji and Rukia smiled at the new addition to their group.
"Sado-kun! My man. Glad you could make it." Renji smiled as he nodded at Sado.
Sado offered a nod to the redhead and the petite woman in front of him. Orihime turned her head upwards and back at the tall man, to smile and thank him for catching her. By turning her head so, she also gave Sado a lovely view down the front of her dress and a glimpse of the black satin bra she wore. Recognizing he had been staring, he forced his eyes to focus on Orihime's eyes instead and giving her a smile. She turned back around at something Rukia said but continued to dance directly in front of Sado.
As they continued to dance, Sado couldn't help but notice how good of a dancer Orihime was. Her hips swayed in perfect time with the beat and she looked so free and comfortable on the dance floor. A few times as the group had shifted, Orihime had bumped into Sado behind her, and it felt so pleasant to him to feel her soft body on his. He wondered if she would want to dance even closer to him and maybe even stay this close when they weren't dancing. Orihime could feel Sado's strong and comforting presence behind her. The smell of coffee and chilies (from the café she assumed) were intoxicating to her. As she relaxed, she began imagining what it would feel like to have Sado's arms around her as they danced and his hands on her hips. At that moment, a couple of drunk frat boys went directly through the friends' group and Sado pulled Orihime out of their path, holding her firmly at the waist. After they had passed, Sado left his hands on Orihime for a moment before he loosened his grip on her. Before he could let her go, however, she placed her hands atop his to keep them firmly on her, slid his hands down to her hips, and began grinding on Sado. She started out tentatively, almost waiting to see if Sado would accept, and interpreted him grasping her hips firmly as a clear acceptance.
Sado leaned over slightly to whisper into Orihime's ear. "Inoue-san." He growled lowly, "You are very good at this."
His deep voice caused a shiver to run down her spine and she bit down on her lip to stifle a gasp. "Mhm, th-thank you Sado-kun."
"No, thank you." He replied as Orihime continued to grind on him, reaching her arms up and overhead to caress his face and run her other hand through his thick hair.
Sado then turned Orihime around to face him, holding her hips as she slid her arms down his chest. They were both flushed in the face, sweating from the heat of the club and from the warmth radiating off of the other person. Orihime saw a hunger in Sado's dark brown eyes as he stared down at her. Orihime wondered if her own eyes reflected her own lustful desires at that moment. Their faces inched closer and closer together, Orihime wondering who would give in first and what her first kiss in almost a year would feel like, when all of a sudden Rangiku came up behind her, breaking the momentum of Orihime's almost-kiss with Sado.
Rangiku placed her hands on top of Sado's hands on Orihime and started dancing up on Orihime. "Inoue-chan, don't look now, but there's a guy who's been staring at us for the past 20 minutes. He's really hot and I want to give him a show."
"Huh?" Orihime replied, slightly annoyed that her friend hadn't noticed that she was interrupting.
"Your eight o'clock, black leather jacket and bright blue hair." Rangiku whispered, nibbling at Orihime's ear.
As Orihime turned her head to the left, a cold sweat settled onto her body, causing her body to freeze up as she took him in.
His hair had grown a bit longer since she last saw him but was still that shocking shade of blue he was known for. His icy blue eyes seemed to shine even in the barely lit club, piercing Orihime's grey eyes and demanding her attention. He wore his favourite black leather jacket with a white deep v-neck t-shirt underneath and a pair of ripped blue jeans. His posture was relaxed as he sat at the bar, nursing what she knew was a neat whiskey, his eyes never leaving her. Grimmjow, she thought, panic setting in, how did you find me?
Sado felt her tense up under his hands, but before he could ask what was wrong, she turned her face back to him. "I'll be right back," she said quietly to him and Rangiku, not quite meeting Sado's eyes, and mumbling something about "the bathroom".
Rangiku took the opportunity to hang onto Sado and they danced together, though Sado wondered what had come over Orihime.
Orihime made a beeline for the bathroom, trying to avoid where she had seen Grimmjow at the bar. Her mind was racing a mile a minute, trying to come up with strategies for getting out of the club without him following her. Before she even made it to the bathroom, however, he had intercepted her.
"Hime." He growled, staring intensely at her and brushing the back of his hand down her bare arm, causing her a terrible shiver. "You sure know how to put on a good show." He grabbed her forearm and pulled her close to him so that his mouth was right by her ear. "I enjoyed it very much, but I think he enjoyed it the most."
She feebly tried pulling her arm away from him, but he held her even tighter. "Now, do you think that it's fair? For my woman to be dancing on some piece of shit man, without my permission?" When she didn't immediately reply, he snapped and tightened his grip on her causing her to yelp. "Well, woman? Don't you think it's time I take you back home?"
Orihime wanted to speak up but felt her mouth go dry instantly. When she opened her mouth, no words came out, and though she wanted to cry at the sight of him, her eyes, along with her entire body seemed paralyzed with fear.
With his other hand that wasn't gripping Orihime, Grimmjow lightly traced the side of her face and proceeded to fix her hair and put some stray hairs in place. "There's a good girl," he whispered as his hand relaxed and dropped to her waist. He led her to the bar and sat down at one of the bar stools before setting her atop his lap. His hand freely roamed her side and her exposed back as he nestled his chin into the nook of her neck and whispered about how much he had missed her and how much he loved her and how he loved this dress.
When the bartender came around, Grimmjow nodded at him. "Another whiskey neat for me," he said, "and a double Tequila sunrise for her."
Kira, the bartender, eyed Orihime carefully, noticing that her eyes seemed to be glazed over. Furthermore, he knew Rangiku quite well and was pretty sure this girl had been a part of their group. "I'll get you your whiskey, but I'm going to have to cut off that girl. She seems like she's had a bit too much tonight."
Grimmjow's jaw tightened and he grabbed Kira's wrist closest to him. "What the fuck did you just say? You think I'd let my woman get drunk at a shitty place like this?"
Kira's eyes widened at the man's aggression, but before he could reply, someone interrupted.
"Ehhh?" Rangiku said, standing beside him in mock disappointment. Sado, who stood beside Rangiku, eyed the man's hand on Orihime suspiciously. "You had your eyes on Inoue-chan the whole time? And here I thought you were undressing me with those eyes." Sado and her had seen the man acting friendly with Orihime, and thought to confirm that it was in fact wanted attention on Orihime's part.
Grimmjow scoffed at the woman. "You wish. Nope, I've got no eyes for hoes like you. Only eyes for my Hime," he said as he ran a hand through her long hair.
"Inoue-san." Sado said, earning a dark glare from Grimmjow. "Is this man bothering you?"
Orihime was roused from her frozen state by Sado's deep voice and turned to look at him. Her cold eyes and pale face was enough of a call to Sado for protection, but before she could say anything, Grimmjow had put her onto the bar stool alone and stood up toe to toe to with Sado.
"Who the fuck do you think you are big guy?" Grimmjow spat out at Sado. "You think she's your woman just 'cause she was grinding on you for half an hour? Make no mistake, asshole, she's mine."
"Gr-Grimmjow," Orihime started saying behind him, "w-we broke up, remember?"
Grimmjow turned to her, his face full of fury. He leaned in close so that their faces were nearly touching before hatefully whispering. "What I fucking remember is that bitch telling you lies about me and convincing you to leave me. We're not over until I say we're over, got it?"
Orihime whimpered in response, and Sado grabbed Grimmjow's shoulder to pull him away. In response, Grimmjow whipped around at Sado. "What the fuck do you want man?" When Grimmjow was distracted, Rangiku came around to grab Orihime and pull her out of sight of the two men.
"I think you should stay away from Inoue-san," Sado said to Grimmjow, "It's clear she doesn't want to be in your company tonight, and maybe ever."
"You looking for a fight, asshole?" Grimmjow threatened, but before he could do anything more, security showed up to escort him off the premises. Grimmjow continued to throw expletives towards Sado and Kira, but Sado was more interested in where Orihime and Rangiku had gotten to.
Kira motioned to behind the bar, and as Sado peeked over the bar, he saw Orihime crumpled and seated next to Rangiku who was trying to cheer her up.
Sado came around to the other side of the bar and knelt in front of Orihime. "Shall I take you home Inoue-san?"
Orihime nodded and with help from Rangiku, she got up and made her way out of the bar with the two of them. Orihime looked around nervously, but Rangiku patted her shoulder lightly. "I heard Kira saying that they were taking him all the way down to the police station because he started throwing punches at the bouncers." Orihime sighed in relief as Sado brought his motorcycle to where Orihime and Rangiku were.
Orihime looked at the bike nervously, but accepted the helmet when Sado extended it to her.
Rangiku smiled at them. "I'll tell Rukia and Renji that you've left." She sighed. "Guess I will be their third wheel after all."
Orihime offered a small smile to Rangiku. "Sorry, Matsumoto-senpai." She then gingerly got on the motorcycle behind Sado, pulling the hem of her dress as low as it would go while her legs straddled him. They waved at Rangiku before driving off in the direction of campus.
Once they had arrived at Himawari Hall, Sado had stared at Orihime a long while after she got off the motorcycle. Eventually he broke the silence. "Who was that guy, Inoue-san?"
"Ah." Orihime replied. "An ex-boyfriend."
At this information, it all clicked in Sado's mind. Tatsuki's telling of Orihime's story and the request to keep an eye out for her. So that's the abusive ex, Sado thought.
"I see." Is what he said to Orihime. "Are you okay?"
Orihime feigned a fake smile and waved his question off. "Yes, of course I'm fine!" You liar, she thought to herself. "Anyways, I should head in now. Thanks for bringing me back Sado-kun."
Sado didn't buy her assurance that she was fine, but figured he'd let it slide for now, and message Tatsuki and the others when he arrived home. "No problem, Inoue-san."
Orhime waved Sado off and then began gingerly walking into Himawari Hall. Still in a state of shock, she wasn't paying attention and walked into someone else who was coming into the building.
Though neither had fallen (truly a feat for Orihime given the alcohol in her blood and the shoes she was wearing), each began apologizing to the other. When she opened her eyes after her apology, she was face to face with none other than Ichigo.
Ichigo, carrying a stack of medical textbooks, quickly looked away from Orihime with a faint blush across his cheeks. Looking down at herself, she noticed what Ichigo must have been blushing about; when she bowed slightly in apology, she also showed off her cleavage and her bra. She quickly straightened up, blushing profusely.
"H-hi Inoue." Ichigo began. "Fun night out?"
"K-kurosaki-kun!" Orihime exclaimed. "Uhmm yea. Haha." Noting his textbooks, she asked, "Are you just coming back from the library?"
"Y-yea." He confessed. "Not much of a fun night out in comparison."
You'd be surprised, she thought, but chose to smile at him instead.
In the silence of the moment, Ichigo tried to find a not awkward way of telling Orihime that she looked good, when a loud stomach growling was heard first from her stomach and then from his.
They both blushed and laughed gently. "I, uh, have some instant ramen in my room that I was going to have as a snack." Ichigo began. "Do you want to come up and have some?"
Orihime, feeling her stomach backflip and rumble again in response, blushed. "Sure, that sounds nice," she replied. They made their way into the dorms and into the elevator.
A/N: Ahh! Another long chapter – I hope you all enjoy. I haven't really figured out how long to make these chapters... let me know what you think? Please leave reviews and comments of any kind. This is my first fan fiction and I could use all the advice/feedback/encouragement you're willing to give me!
I have some ideas for the next couple of chapters, but alas real world responsibilities call! I am finishing up my master's thesis this month, so updates will likely be quite slow for a month or two (but hopefully will be more frequent starting in August!). Thank you for all the support