A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay, I was hoping to do this weekly but College and a second job put this on hold! Anyway, thank you so much for your lovely reviews. Shoutouts to The Dessa, halfdemonfan, (yes, I copied pasted that! and no, Isamu is not really based anyone, just a image in my head!), nypsy (I went back and checked for errors, I didn't find half as many as I did in chapter 1, but thanks for noticing), wild strawberry, Crystal Dawn, and Aijou (thank you for taking the time to message me back! Glad you liked my save ;) )
Oh, and JayMaster too, who is my boyfriend and sat right next to me while he read it. Ah well, I take what I can get!
I would like to say that I'm doing my absolute best with this fic, as it is my first Bleach fic, and pretty much my first fic ever, since I don't count the ones I wrote when I was 12...trust me, they're not good! hahaha.
I'm glad I didn't get any negative comments about Orihime choosing to date Isamu - I was gonna justify it with the fact she's not completely herself right now - she's been through psychological trauma - which will play a part in future chapters! So don't forget about that.
Warning: Language. And it's kinda short...
Disclaimer: If I owned Bleach, Ichihime would have already happened. RenRuki would have already happened, and Kon would have more scenes! What does that tell you? Obviously, I do not.
Alright, enough of me and my rambling! Onto the chapter!
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Orihime had been on her date with Isamu for an hour now, and she had decided that she was glad she'd gone out with him. He was laid back and casual, constantly making her laugh. Whenever there was an awkward pause or lag in conversation, he did something to crack her up and break the ice once again. She was having a good time, eating foreign food and getting to know the mysterious brunette before her.
Though, even that didn't stop the occasional thoughts about Ichigo that slipped in her mind whenever she let it wander. She would frown when this happened, and attempt to ignore them.
"I can't be thinking about Ichigo anymore...He's fine, like always. He doesn't need me. I should stop worrying about it..." She sighed softly to herself.
"Inoue, do you want some dessert? Pick anything you want." Isamu said, giving her a friendly smile. She grinned back, snapping out of her thoughts to look at her options.
"Oh, Gelato! That sounds good. I just love Italian food!" Orihime exclaimed, sighing happily to herself. Isamu chuckled.
"It is some of the best food in the world, after all. Though, if you love food, France is a place you must visit!" he said, watching her eyes open in excitement.
"I would love to visit France! I know a little bit of french, too! I think France would be such a lovely place to take a vacation, and you are totally right about the food! They have hundreds of different cheeses even! I can barely imagine the deliciousness and the richness of the desserts they have!" she ranted, extremely excited to be thinking about the hundreds of cheeses she could try. "Crepes with Nutella and cheese? That sounds amazing!" Her eyes were bright with happiness, and Isamu liked that.
"I could take you sometime. I have family there." he said nonchalantly. Orihime gaped in surprised, but slowly formed her mouth into a smile.
"Wow! You really have been everywhere. I've always just stayed here in Japan," she said, slightly disappointed with herself.
"I'm so boring... I've done nothing exciting, except the whole getting kidnapped bit, and that's not exactly the kind of excitement I'm looking for... "she thought, eyes growing somber.
"Something wrong, Inoue? You look sad." Isamu said, scrunching his eyebrows together in worry. Orihime thought he looked cute.
"Oh, heh heh, no I'm okay! I was just thinking about how I really need to have more fun!"
"I wouldn't mind helping with that." He smirked.
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"What the hell are you waiting for Kingy? Get your ass up off this bed, and stop being such a fucking pussy! All you do is lie around, moping and being pathetic! Grow a pair, would ya?" A voice interupted Ichigo's thoughts. It sounded very annoyed.
"Shut up! I didn't ask you for your input, you damn nuissance," Ichigo retorted back, rolling his eyes and scowling more than usual. Ichigo had been lying in his bedroom for about an hour now, beating himself up for letting Orihime go with Isamu. It was pissing him off more and more each minute. He realized that her personal life shouldn't be any of his business, and he shouldn't mind so much, but he just had a bad feeling about that guy.
"Yeah well, I have to listen to all your dumbassedness and I get sick of it, King! If you're that worried about the broad, go stalk her or something! Either way, shut the fuck up about it. Some of us don't give a shit," The hollow continued on angrily.
"Like I give a damn if you care or not. Damn hollow." Ichigo muttered under his breath.
"Tch. Atleast I'm right." Shirosaki muttered back.
The thought of the Hollow being right further annoyed Ichigo. He hated to give him the least bit of credit, especially when it was unwanted advice. He scowled further.
"Told ya."
"Oi! Fuck off."
Ichigo turned over on his side again, letting out a long sigh.
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"Inoue, you are the most beautiful girl I have ever met." Isamu said, looking deeply into her eyes as they walked down the street from the restaurant. She blushed and averted her eyes, unsure of what to say.
"Um, thank you, Isamu. You really think so?" she questioned, unbelieving. "You're the first boy to ask me out, you know." she added, thoughtfully. Suddenly, she wondered why that was. Was she ugly? She never thought she was pretty, so maybe she really was unattractive like she feared. Or maybe it was because she was dumb or annoying? Was she not nice enough? A combination of them? She frowned, making a mental list of things that could be wrong with her.
"Just because I'm the first doesn't mean others hadn't thought about it. Guys get nervous too, and I bet your friends scared a lot of them off. They seem like they would. So don't go thinking there's something wrong with you. I know that look." he said, casually putting his arm around her shoulders as they walked. Orihime didn't seem to mind the gesture. She smiled, feeling a bit better.
"I guess Tatsuki-chan is protective, so who knows. She's like that,"she said laughing. "I'm glad though."
"I like Tatsuki, she's feisty from what I can tell. I mean, she did just threaten to kick my ass if I kept you out too late." Isamu said humorously. "But I think the reason guys haven't been asking you out has to do with Kurosaki."
"Oh? What about Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime asked, feeling uneasy about the subject change. She was trying not to think about her orange haired crush on her date with another guy.
"If you haven't noticed, any guy that comes within a two mile radius of you gets an immpressive death glare." Isamu said, putting his free hand into his pocket. "I sure as hell got it."
"Really? I never noticed him giving you a dirty look. He was being very polite to you, as polite as he gets anyway. If you thought he was glaring, it's probably because he always has a scowl on his face. It takes some getting used to."
"Well, whatever floats your boat I guess." Isamu said, shrugging his shoulders.
They continued to walk on in silence with Orihime deep in thought. She wondered if Isamu's assumption had any truth to it. Did Ichigo scare away potential dates? Sure, he was protective, but he always kept his personal life separate from hers. Maybe it wasn't intentional. His protective nature and his scowling face probably scared guys off without him even trying. She shrugged mentally, giving up on trying to understand Ichigo and his mind. She turned her attention back to the boy before her, feeling much more relaxed than she originally did. It wasn't as awkward as Orihime had thought it would be, but the two were in a comfortable silence. His arm remained over her shoulder, pulling her close to him. She felt warm and safe there, even though he was still technically a stranger to her. She rested her head against his arm, feeling drowsy.
"Sleepy?" Isamu asked, pulling his lips into a crooked grin. His eyes were soft and gentle when he looked at her.
"A little. I probably ate too much." She said happily, thinking of the delicious dinner she had previously eaten. The tantilizing spaghetti with all it's spices and parmesan cheese, the delicious strawberry cake that had teased her tongue, making it tingle. She just loved food so much. She smiled satisfactorily.
"I should probably get you back soon. Tatsuki seems like the type to keep her word, and I'd rather not have my ass kicked right now." Isamu laughed.
"Let's walk a little longer." Orihime said. "I like to look at the stars a bit, if you don't mind." She said hopefully. He nodded, and Orihime pulled herself free from his arms, and sprang ahead of him.
"Let's sit right here!" She called over her shoulder to him. She plopped down on a spot of grass, pulling her knees into herself. Her hair cascaded over her shoulder beautifully, flailing gently in the breeze. The dim light from the moon shone upon her face, making her look like a porcelain doll. Her lips and cheeks were red from the slight chill, and her eyes were big with astonishment and wonder.
"You look like a little kid in a candy shop." Isamu said, finally catching up and sitting down next to her.
"Heh heh, yeah, I love the stars. They're just so big and mysterious. So far away...I'd like to be far away sometimes," Orihime whispered.
"The stars have a way of making us forget ourselves for awhile, that's for sure. You can get lost in thought looking up there. It's nice, I agree." Isamu said approvingly.
"They're so far away that the light we see from them is actually from millions of years ago. We're looking at their past. I just love that feeling." Orihime continued, her voice soft. " I wish I could see things from my past, but my past is gone. Only the future lies ahead for me."
Isamu's hand slowly crept towards Orihime's, and she jumped slightly when his fingers entertwined with hers. She didn't pull away though, welcoming the feeling of something in her life being complete. Maybe not her heart or her life, but atleast the spaces between her fingers would be. For now, that was enough.
Isamu moved his head close to her. She could feel his breath upon her ear, and he whispered, "Is it okay if I kiss you, Inoue?" The color from Orihime's face drained completely, and she turned her head to lock eyes with him.
"I can't believe he asked me that so suddenly...I guess this is really romantic but it's so soon for this..."
"I've never been kissed before." Orihime said to him, remembering how she had so desperately wanted her first kiss to be with Ichigo. A knot tightened in her stomach and a pain sprang in her chest.
"Ichigo..."
"There's a first for everything, you know." Isamu said, looking hopeful. "But I understand if you don't want me to."
"Oh! No, no, Isamu, it's okay. I-I want you to." she said nervously. Do I really want him to-?
Isamu did not hesitate to take her up on her offer. Before Orihime knew it, she felt pressure against her lips. Isamu's hand automatically went into her hair, while his other hand went to the small of her back. Isamu was sitting on his knees leaning forward into her, while Orihime tried not to fall onto her back and faint. His tongue poked out from between his lips, licking hers gently. He poked at the entrance of her mouth, and she hesistated to open to let him in. Giving in, she opened them slightly, allowing his tongue travel over the inside of her lips.
Orihime was about to pull away when Isamu decided to deepen the kiss further. His tongue was now fully inside her mouth, twisting and turning. Orihime was beginning to feel overwhelmed by the sudden turn the kiss had taken. Her lips stopped moving, but he failed to notice. He was slowly creeping on top of her more and more, and she was forced to fall backward as he continued to position himself on top of her.
"This is going really fast...he's really into it but this is so soon...I'm not sure what to do..."
"Isamu," she began, but his hands tangled in her hair more and more and his lips continued on, making it hard for her to talk.
Suddenly, she felt the weight lift off her all at once and it became easier to breathe. She looked up slowly, dazed and confused by what had just happened. To the right of her, she saw Isamu laying face down in the grass in pain. The source was easy to determine: there, standing above Isamu, was a very angry orange haired teenager. Ichigo Kurosaki had murder in his eyes as he stared down at Isamu's body, preparing to strike again.
"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?" Ichigo said through gritted teeth. Isamu groaned in response, clearly in pain. Ichigo lifted his foot to the back of his head and pushed down.
"You do not treat Inoue like that, under any circumstances!" Ichigo cried, digging his foot down to get the point across. Isamu grabbed Ichigo's foot and pulled him down, knocking him over. Isamu stood up quickly, throwing a kick at Ichigo.
"I didn't hear her telling me to say stop, you're the only one with a complaint around here." Isamu retorted, distancing himself.
"She isn't that type of girl." Ichigo said, dusting himself off. "If you ever take advantage of her like that again, I will personally see to it that that thing between your legs is removed." Ichigo said menacingly.
"Kurosaki-kun." Orihime said, pushing herself off the ground to stand. She felt the heat rise to her face in embarassment. "I can't believe he saw me like that...I'm so ashamed..."
"Are you okay, Inoue?" Ichigo asked softly. Orihime hesistated to answer.
"Yes, um, I don't think Isamu realized he was making me uncomfortable. So it's really my fault, Kurosaki-kun, for not making it clear. I don't think he would have acted that way if he had known how I felt..." she said, feeling tears pooling in her eyes.
"I'm sorry, Inoue. I didn't realize that I was making you uncomfortable, I just...really enjoyed kissing you." Isamu said, averting his eyes. Orihime turned red, and Ichigo's scowl deepened.
"Are you seriously gonna buy this guys bullshit, Inoue?" Ichigo asked, glaring in Isamu's general direction.
"I don't think he's lying, K-kurosaki-kun. Isamu has been really great throughout this whole date. I know better than anyone how to get caught up in the moment. I mean, I think aliens have something to do with it, they probably beam down thoughts into our heads directly which distract -"
"Inoue, aliens aside, this guy is no good. I can tell. And don't you dare blame yourself for his behavior. I could tell from across the park you were upset. No guy is that oblivious." Ichigo said, trying to keep his temper under control. How did she always manage to find the good in everyone, even when it was clear that Isamu was anything but?
King, I say you go Bankai on his ass.
"You're not really helping, at the moment."
"You're quick to judge someone you've only talked to once. I would never do anything to hurt a beautiful creature like Inoue, Kurosaki. You are an uninvited and unwanted guest on our date. So if you don't mind leaving, I would like to get back to it."
"There is no way in hell I'm leav-"
"It's okay, Kurosaki-kun. I'll be okay. I know you're worried about me, and I know you think it's your job to protect me, but I can take care of myself. You can go." "I'm sure you've got Rukia or some one else of more importance waiting for you..."
Ichigo looked at Orihime with a shocked expression on his face. Orihime felt fear go through her from the intense look. Brown eyes met gray, and Orihime felt her knees go a weak. The intensity wasn't the good kind. He looked as though she had betrayed him.
"Fine." Ichigo said, turning to leave. He gave one last glance towards Isamu, and muttered, "You hurt her and I will not hesistate to kill you." And with that, he walked away, leaving Orihime and Isamu alone in the park.
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Reviews please? Good reviews result in a new chapter much more quickly...hint hint.(:
