DISCLAIMER: I am obsessed with Bleach yet I still don't own it. Pooey.

A/N: Ohayo and domo arigatou gozaimasu for all the reviews I've received so far!

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"Damn it, where is she?" Renji stood just outside the boundaries of Karakura High. He couldn't see Rukia anywhere.

"Hey, nice costume. Who're you?" A girl with spiky black hair was talking to him. She didn't seem particularly dressed up.

"Huh?"

"I said, who're you? You don't go to Karakura, do you?"

"Uhh…no. I'm Renji…Renji Abarai." Renji felt really nervous chatting with some girl he didn't even know. Were all humans this forward?

"Who're you here with?" Man, this girl was nosy. "I might know her."

Renji grinned proudly. "Ah…Rukia. Rukia Kuchiki."

The girl raised her eyebrows. "Are you serious? You're going out with Rukia? How come I've never seen you before?" She held out her hand. "I'm Tatsuki. The only reason I'm here is so my friend Orihime doesn't get into any trouble. She's coming with Ichigo – you know Ichigo, right? If you know Rukia, you've got to know Ichigo."

Renji felt a twinge of annoyance. Oh, so were they that closely related? "Yeah, I know him all right," he said through clenched teeth.

"Yeah, well anyway, they're coming here together, and I need to keep an eye out on them. Make sure Ichigo doesn't do anything stupid. Well, it was nice meeting you, but I see him now. Gotta go." The girl ducked past him and disappeared.

Renji sighed. Where was Rukia?

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"You…look great."

Rukia blushed lightly. "Thanks."

She was wearing a violet kimono that matched her eyes. "You look good too."

Ichigo rolled his eyes and stuck his hands in his pockets. He had secretly spent two hours looking for something to wear.

:::FLASHBACK:::

"Damn it. Why do we have to dress up?" he muttered, going through his drawers. Only girls spent entire hours finding something to wear.

"Iiiiiiiichigo! Your beloved father has a costume for you!!" Isshin burst into the room.

Instinctively, Ichigo punched his face in. "I don't want…wait, how did you know I was going to the dance?"

Isshin grinned secretively. "A little birdie told me."

Ichigo sighed. "Seriously, dad."

"Okay, okay. You're girlfriend told me."

"My…what?" Rukia would never tell – wait, when did he start thinking of her as his girlfriend? The only reason they were going to the dance together was because of Keigo's stupid dare…right?

"Orihime Inoue, I think."

"Oh, her. What, when did she tell you?"

"She called this morning. She was so excited, I could tell. Wow, Ichigo, she must be really special to you, but remember, just don't forget to use a cond – "

"You sick old man!" Ichigo yelled, throwing him out of his room as Isshin yelled some more about birth control.

In the end, frustrated, he'd simply thrown on a pair of jeans and a button-up shirt. It was better than a tee-shirt, at least…

:::END OF FLASHBACK:::

"Well…I'll see you." He began walking out of the room as she waved and jumped out the window.

Meanwhile, outside…

"It was hilarious! He was all, 'Where'd it go'? And we were just cracking up."

"I wanted to see that!" Keigo said.

"Yeah, maybe next time…hey, isn't that Rukia?" Mizuiro pointed just as Rukia landed carefully on the ground.

"Hey, Rukia! Are you going to the dance?" Keigo yelled loudly.

Rukia looked up, startled. They hadn't seen her jump out of Ichigo's window, had they?

"When did you get here? We didn't notice you!" Mizuiro said.

"Oh…um…really?" she said awkwardly.

Keigo laughed. "Yeah, you appeared like right as we passed by Ichigo's house! Weird. Hey, nice kimono."

"Thanks." She felt trapped. It was okay while Ichigo was around, but right now she felt a little awkward and unsure of what to do or say.

"Hey, guys." Ichigo came out of his house. "Perfect timing. Hey, Rukia."

"Yo, Ichigo! We just saw Rukia here! It was really cool!"

Rukia could tell Ichigo was trying hard not to laugh. "Yeah, that's great. Hey, nice costumes."

Keigo grinned. "You think?" He and Mizuiro were wearing matching fruit outfits. He was a lemon, and Mizuiro was a watermelon.

"Hey, Ichigo, I think we're going to be late," Rukia suddenly blurted.

"Late? For what?"

"We have the first shift at the refreshment stand, remember?" she said, hoping he would catch on.

"Oh…right. Well, I guess we'll see you guys later, 'kay?" Ichigo caught up to her until they were out of Mizuiro and Keigo's view. "What is it?"

"Thanks for saving me from dying of awkwardosity."

"Awkwardosity? Don't you mean awkwardness?"

"Whatever." Rukia tied her hair back into a high ponytail with a lavender ribbon. "Orihime showed me the other day…she likes making up words." She laughed. "I guess it's become a bad habit."

Ichigo laughed and put his hand on her head, ruffling her hair. She growled and punched him lightly on the shoulder.

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They arrived at the school just as the dance was starting. There was loud music blasting from the speakers and bright, flashy lights. People were milling around everywhere they looked. Ichigo squinted and covered his eyes. "Great."

Rukia was excited. "Wow! School dances are so exciting! Are all of them like this?"

"How should I know? This is my first time too!"

"Really? I thought – " Suddenly Tatsuki ran over. "Where the hell is Orihime? I thought you guys were…" She noticed Rukia. "Um…are you guys going out?"

Rukia blushed. "No! We're just…just…"

"Stuff it, Tatsuki. We're just here as friends, okay?" Rukia breathed a sigh of relief. Once again, Ichigo had saved her.

Tatsuki narrowed her eyes. "Funny. That's what I heard about you and Orihime too."

"Yeah, well, you heard wrong. Orihime's cool, but she's coming with someone else."

Tatsuki raised her eyebrows. "Really? And who would that be?"

Rukia stepped in. "Ah, my friend Renji. You probably don't know him."

"Renji?! Oh yeah, I just met him! Are you serious? He was waiting for you!"

"Er…no. See, the thing is – "

"Hi, everyone!" Orihime rushed over, wearing an overwhelmingly pink dress with a lot of frills. Perched on her head was a small, silver tiara. "Sorry I'm late."

At the exact same moment, a redhead whom Ichigo was not particularly glad to see appeared. "What the hell?! Where were you, Rukia? I've been waiting over an hour for you!"

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Ahahahaha Renji's MAD! Oh well, they'll sort things out. As for now…please read and review! I'm not sure if people are actually interested, so…if no one reviews, I might stop writing this story. That would be sad, so please please please!!! Review!! – Kuchiki-chan