You all probably hate me and that's to be expected because it's been a looooong year and something-months. I have no excuse for suddenly disappearing but I hope to make it up by continuing this story(:
Recap:
-Ichigo and Rukia brought Nel back to Karakura.
-Nel now lives with the Kurosakis.
-Nel refuses to let Ichigo go to school so he is forced to take her with him.
Let the chaos ensue!
ENJOI!
Ichigo's POV:
I hadn't stepped a mere five feet into school when I heard the whispering start as I trudged to the building with Nel at my side. Heads turned almost instantly to me with each step I took, Nel smiling brightly at all of the spectators without a care in the world for being judged. I grumbled to myself and picked up Nel, placing her on top of my shoulders as I pushed open the doors to school. Once again, heads snapped to me on cue and I continued to trudge down the hall. I made a sharp left into the open door of my class and was greeted with the sight of my friends, sighing in relief.
"Ichigo!" cried Keigo as he leapt towards me but I took a step to my right at the last second, sending him flying into the chalk board at the front of the class.
I shrugged and headed to my desk that directly next to Rukia's, lifting Nel off of my shoulders and sitting her in my seat. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Rukia hold out her hand towards me and I handed her Nel's backpack without question. I pulled out three thick books out of my backpack and stacked them under Nel, acting as a booster seat, as Rukia pulled out her own sketchpad and crayons for Nel to occupy herself with.
Nel smiled at both of us widely, making us smile back at her in turn. I could feel several eyes burning into my back and I looked over my shoulder to find the entire class and our teacher staring at me and Rukia. I raised an eyebrow at them and pulled a juicebox out of my bag, setting it on my desk next to the crayons. Che, let them stare, I thought to myself.
"Thank you, Itsygo and Wukia!" Nel exclaimed happily, practically bouncing in my seat.
I scoffed and ruffled her hair while Rukia simply nodded and gathered a chair for me from the back of the room, forcing the class to disperse and head to their own seats. Of course, this meant that the dreaded whispering ensued again, even worse than before because mine and Rukia's little spectacle drew her into the whispering as well.
"Who's the kid?...Did Kurosaki-kun and Kuchiki-san adopt a kid?...Are they playing house together?...I always knew they'd become parents together…Looks like THEY wasted no time at all…"
I gripped the edge of my seat tightly, gritting my teeth together. How dare they disrespect Rukia's image like that. My image? Fine, I'm used to it, but leave Rukia out of it. Out of nowhere, I felt a dainty hand on my forearm and I turned my head to find Rukia scribbling nonchalantly in her notebook. The right side of my mouth twitched up into a crooked smile as I watched her. Maybe the day won't be so long, after all, I thought to myself.
The bell sounded for the end of the school day and I began to pack up my stuff, Rukia standing next to me with a napping Nel in her arms. Surprisingly, the day had gone off without much more than some whispering in the hall. I slung my bag over my shoulder and took Rukia's in one hand as I followed her home. We were falling behind the others, which included Ishida, Orihime, Chad, and Tatsuki, as they all chatted about their day.
High pitched, distorted screams rang in the air and we all froze in our tracks. Hollows. I glanced at Rukia whose hold noticeably tightened around Nel and Ishida nodded at me from the corner of my eye. I returned the gesture and pulled my Shinigami badge from my pocket, slamming it against my body to release my Shinigami form as Chad caught my body. I gave Rukia and Nel one more look before Ishida and I took off to take care of the hollows.
Rukia's POV:
Ichigo gave me and Nel a final glance before he Shunpo'd out of sight with Ishida. I suppose Nel sensed it because she chose at that moment to wake up. I watched the recognition that Ichigo was gone cross her features before she turned her head towards the direction he left in. Her child voice called out his name before turning her focus to me as I made my way to Orihime, Chad, and Tatsuki. Orihime silently reached for Nel and I relinquished my hold on the Arrancar before removing a small pack of tissues from my bag that Ichigo had dropped when he left his body.
"Kuchiki-san, shall we go to my house and wait for Kurosaki-kun and Ishida-san?" posed Orihime with her bright smile and I nodded in agreement.
Chad picked up Ichigo's body and I gathered Nel from Orihime, simultaneously drying the tears I had prepared for as Nel softly cried for Ichigo. Poor child loved him so much. She wrapped her arms around my pale neck, crying into my shoulder as we ventured to Orihime's apartment not too far from where we were. You better come back unscathed, baka, I thought silently, this child would break if she saw you wounded.
Short, yes, but better than nothing. I'm not sure if you've noticed but down below there's a little review box/button. I'd appreciate it if you wrote me a little something to inspire me to work(: Hope you liked this chapter.
-alice