Summary:
Fate gave them a chance to meet, a chance to fall in love, but she also revealed in the most cruel way a reality that forced them to point their guns at each other.

AN:
I never really intended on starting a new story. At least not until I am done writing Lady Kuchiki. But with all the IchiRukia craziness going on these days, my brain has been inundated with ideas for an IchiRukia story. Finally, tonight, after discussing with a friend about the Hong Kong movie Infernal Affairs, and listening to its haunting soundtrack, this story came into my mind. I know it is short. And frankly, I am not sure if I will continue writing it. But at least for tonight, my mood was there.

:: these things that we will never know ::

Tears streaming down from her face, Rukia squeezed her eyes shut and pulled the trigger.

There was a deafening explosion.

Then, it was all over.

She watched horrified as he fell backwards, as if in slow motion, his eyes still glaring at her, even though there was now a tinge of surprise and disbelief. Why? She heard his last breath, saw his lips move as he struggled to get the words out.

Rukia... why?

With a thud, his body fell heavily onto the ground, his hands collapsed after it. The gun that had been in his grasp tumbled a few centimeters away.

Rukia could hear the drops of rain that had suddenly started falling rapidly, hitting hard against the ground. Rain that washed away the blood from his otherwise smooth forehead. Rain that soaked her clothes. Rain that mixed with the stream of tears on her face.

"Ichi... Ichigo... " She gasped, her voice trembling as she tried to suppress her sobs.

She collapsed to her knees, her shoulders shaking and threw the gun aside. She covered her face with her hands, unwilling to let her eyes stray back to the spectacle in front of her...

---

Weeks ago...

"Rukia... "

"Mmm... ?" Rukia lifted her head from his chest lazily, her big violet orbs meeting his amber ones.

"Rukia... " He began again, his hand absently stroking the small of her back under her white cotton tank top, the circular motion of his fingers sending a shiver of pleasure through her.

"What is it you baka?" She playfully flicked his nose, her legs kicking, and giggled when he wrinkled it to suppress a sneeze.

When he failed to respond, she flicked his nose again and scowled at him.

"Cut it out now will you?" He protested softly, this time pulling his hand away from her back to cover his nose.

"What if I won't?" Rukia challenged him, pouting stubbornly, and brought her fingers close to his face again, ready to give him a flick as she waited for his reaction.

"Then... " Ichigo whispered, his eyes gleaming, "I will have to resort to violence."

Rukia gave a yelp of surprise as he rolled over, pushing her onto her back and falling on top of her, his hands pinning hers over her head.

"Hey you jerk!" Rukia wriggled beneath him, "Let me go!" Ichigo only pressed harder onto Rukia, his grip on her wrists tightening.

He smirked when he saw an angry flash across her eyes. "Heh... get out of your own mess." He taunted as her eyes continued shooting daggers at him.

After a while of making faces at each other, Ichigo grew serious again. He looked at Rukia with such solemnity that she softened her eyes and wondered what was wrong with him today.

"Ichigo?"

"Rukia... I was going to ask," He took a deep breath, and swallowed, struggling to put into words this angst that had been causing him distress the past few weeks, "do you think a bad person can ever become good again?"

Rukia raised an eyebrow and looked back at Ichigo, puzzled at how random his question was.

"...well...?" He asked, swallowing again, and his eyes afraid yet determined, bored into hers expectantly.

Rukia held his gaze. He was sometimes like this, quiet, melancholic, as if rained down by a million sadness and regrets comprehensible only to Ichigo himself.

"Ichigo... " She began softly. "Ichigo... yes... Yes. I think that even bad people can become good if they want to."

As if still dissatisfied, he lowered his face to bring it closer to hers and asked again, "Then... can you ever love a bad person, a person who has done a lot of terrible things, but one who wants to be good again?"

Rukia frowned, before slowly smiling. "Yes... if that person were you... " she whispered, craning forward to kiss his lips softly.

"Do you really mean it?" He breathed against her.

Without replying, Rukia pressed her lips harder against his, probing them with the tip of her tongue until he finally gave in and crushed against her...