"Who wants red bean paste on their popcorn?" Orihime chirped to the two girls sitting in her living room. Rukia and Tatsuki looked at each other in horror from the combination.
"No, thank you," Rukia politely responded with a smile.
"I'm okay without," followed Tatsuki.
Their rejection of her strange concoction didn't faze the bubbly girl. "More for me!" she exclaimed, scooping ladles full of the paste on her popcorn. "Now it's movie time," she grinned, walking into the room with a balancing act to hold all the bowls. Her two friends tried to hide their disgust looking at her snack.
Orihime put in the DVD and settled back with the girls against the cushions she laid out for the all-night movie fest. After her heated confrontation with Ishida, Orihime had needed some casual fun time. Tatsuki and Rukia had been dropping by her apartment often to visit and tonight they decided to have an old-fashioned sleepover, silly pajamas required.
They munched on their popcorn watching the first film, a romantic comedy Orihime had wanted to see. Thankfully, it had enough action to keep Tatsuki and Rukia interested. "That guy's hot," Tatsuki suddenly said uncharacteristically. The male lead had spiky vibrant red hair and a strong jaw line. Rukia turned her head a little, looking at the actor. "I dunno, if his hair was longer I think he'd look just like Renji."
Tatsuki froze mid-chew and hoped the girls didn't pick up on that. "Oh. My. GOD." She heard them say simultaneously. Shit, too late.
"You think Renji's hot?"
"Do you like him?"
She felt her ears go red at their comments. She hadn't meant to say that out loud.
"NO and Hell NO," she immediately replied, but it was obvious by the flush on her face that at least one of those answers was a lie.
"And why not?" Rukia interjected in defense of her long-time friend. "He does have a nice body." She looked over at Orihime with a wink. Orihime grinned widely to play along. "Yeah…I wonder how far down his tattoos go…"
Tatsuki felt thick blood pulsing in her head. She was sure her ears would catch fire if she heard anymore of this Renji nonsense.
"I think Ichigo would have the answer to that question. He's probably seen him more naked than I have."
"You've seen him naked?!"
"Not completely. Remember, I grew up with the oaf."
"Okay, that's ENOUGH!" Tatsuki raised her voice and abruptly left the small circle, storming to the bathroom to cool down.
This is such bullshit.
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"Oi, where are the girls?" Asano Keigo announced as they sat at a large booth. "This turning into a sausage fest."
Ichigo shrugged, "They're doing some stupid 'girl's night' where they watch movies 'til dawn. Why the hell else would I be hanging out with you?"
"Awww, Kurosaki-kun, that hurts," Keigo pouted, his lower lip quivering. No one bothered to console the drama queen on the group.
She's also still mad at me, Ichigo internally commented. By the time he came up with a good way to apologize to Rukia, she had already packed and left for Orihime's place for the impromptu sleepover. Instead, he left her gift sitting on her bed in his sisters' room with a note. She would get it in the morning.
At least he wasn't sitting with Keigo alone. He didn't know if he could handle that. Kojima Mizuiro, Ishida and Chad came out tonight. They sat around the booth, eating and talking like normal teenagers at a teahouse.
"The Tanabata Festival started today. We should all go on the last night," Keigo spoke. "At least we could pick up some chicks there."
"I'm sure I could pick up women, I don't know about you, Keigo-san," piped up Mizuiro. It still baffled Ichigo how the baby-faced 16-year-old managed to pull off dates with college girls.
"You could always share, Mizuiro-kun," Keigo tried to argue.
"What's the fun in that? More for me." Mizuiro's eyes sparkled deviously.
"You're so mean, Mizuiro-kun!"
Ishida and Chad just looked over at Ichigo and rolled their eyes. The ding of the door opening gained Mizuiro's attention. "Speaking of which…" His gaze stayed fixed on the blonde twins that just walked into the teahouse. They had to be at least 20-years-old. He took one final sip of his drink and fixed his already perfect dark hair. "Duty calls," he waved and slipped out the booth.
Ichigo had to laugh. How does he do it?
"So are we at least going to the festival?" Keigo tiredly convinced. Chad looked at Ichigo who just shrugged. Ishida was the one to speak. "Sure. The summer festival only comes once a year."
Keigo clapped with glee as the others kept their thoughts elsewhere.
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Rukia walked lazily back to the Kurosaki clinic. She only had a few hours of sleep during the all-night movie fest and her spirit seemed drained. Tatsuki had finally calmed down and the rest of the night was fun. She wasn't much for the usual girl gossip, but it was good to at least act like a normal teenager for that short time. Besides, now she had some ammo to use on Renji. Heh, heh, heh, Rukia's inner thoughts cackled gleefully.
She quietly opened the door into the upstairs living area as not to disturb the others. Tip-toeing down the hallway she passed by Ichigo's room. His door was closed. She felt almost disappointed. After the discussions with the girls, she found herself wishing she was sleeping in his closet again. She missed hearing the soft slumber of the orange-haired Shinigami. He snored so lightly it was like a cat purring. Her anger at him had subsided, but she wouldn't be the first to speak.
She slowly entered the girl's room where she was staying. She plopped her overnight bag on the floor and immediately made her way to the twin-sized bed. She nearly slung herself on the mattress in exhaustion, but stopped short. Resting on her pillow was a small, flat rectangular box. Tucked underneath the box was a note.
With hesitation, Rukia sat down on the bed and pulled the note out first. She opened the folded paper, biting her lip with sudden nervousness.
I know you're mad because of me, so I hope this helps…midget.
The note wasn't signed but it was obviously from him. She didn't immediately open the gift, just stared at the box in bewilderment for a while. He had saved her life several times, but this…this was different. Lovers did this.
Lovers.
The thought nearly frightened her. But it wasn't the word that scared her; it was the fact that it didn't bother her much. They were close—very close—and enjoyed each other's comfort, even when they were fighting…especially when they were fighting. It was a game they had danced around since she met him over a year ago. She just never thought the game would become serious. She did care for him after all…deeply. Still, she wasn't sure she could give her heart away again. She had done it once before and it was still in pieces.
Taking a deep breath, Rukia picked up the box and carefully began unwrapping the present. When she opened the lid, she nearly gasped at its contents. It was a simple gesture, but showed that he remembered what she liked. She picked up the delicate bracelet and looked at it in the light. The silver chain held charms that alternated tiny sculptures of Chappy the Rabbit and purple rhinestone daisies. Her eyes softened as the crystals sparkled in the morning's rays.
She finally laid down her head against the soft pillow, grasping the bracelet close to her chest. She drifted off to sleep, thoughts caught between the man she once loved and the boy she could love.
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Update Schedule: Monday, Wednesday, Friday!
Okay, this chapter was a little OOC for Tatsuki and sappy on other parts but whatever.
It's all for the laughs and happy smiles! ^_^
Also the hint about Kaien will explain itself later in the story.